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Environmental impact
How does what we do help the planet? And why does clothing circulation matter?
How are we cutting carbon and conserving water?
Since 2012, we’ve brought 1.7 million pieces of clothing from Czech households back into circulation through our charity shops. Our customers choose second-hand clothes and items instead of buying new ones. Together, this means we’re not adding more carbon emissions to the atmosphere – and we’re saving fresh water.
It’s like cars stopped running.
8,000 cars
One car generates approximately 1.716 tonnes of CO₂ per year.¹ ² The saving from one piece of second-hand clothing is, conservatively, around 8 kg of CO₂.³
It’s like having more trees.
618,000 trees
One mature tree absorbs about 22 kg of CO₂ per year.⁴ By bringing 1.7 million pieces of clothing back into use, we reduced our carbon footprint by as much as if 618,000 mature trees were cleaning the air.
Millions of drinking water were not spilled
1.7 trillion
liters of water
Producing one T-shirt requires 2,700 litres of water.⁵
Producing a pair of jeans takes 3,781 litres.⁶ For our calculations, we used 1,000 litres per clothing item and 2 litres per person per day.
Why do we extend the life of clothing?
We motivate people to clear out their wardrobes regularly and give a second life to clothes that still have value but no longer get worn.
Satellite images of the landfill
A satellite image of the Atacama Desert shows how a clothing landfill eats away at the desert landscape.
The vast majority of today’s textile production cannot be recycled, as it consists of polyester and blends that take 200 years to decompose.
We would dress 6 generations
We already have enough clothes on Earth to dress 6 more generations – no new production needed.
Circulation instead of consumption
The quickest and easiest way to lower the environmental footprint of what we wear is to keep clothes in circulation – by passing on what we don’t wear and choosing second-hand.
Why don’t we send unsellable textiles further?
Because we run charity shops, we have an up-to-date overview of which second-hand clothes in the Czech Republic still have a chance at a new life – and which no longer do. Unsellable clothing is disposed of responsibly: ideally through recycling, but since that isn’t possible for most textiles, we hand it over to a local waste processor.
Waste does not float at sea
87% of used textiles collected in the EU are transported in shipping containers to countries in Africa and Asia. ⁸
Does not pollute the oceans
Shipping puts a heavy burden on the oceans – it disrupts the navigation of marine mammals. Burning heavy fuel oil releases sulfur oxides, which contribute to acid rain and the acidification of the oceans. Ballast water transfers invasive species between ecosystems.⁹
It doesn't end
in nature
International reports warn that most textiles in Asia and Africa end up in uncontrolled landfills, impacting the environment and the health of local communities.¹⁰
How Can Each of Us Take Part?
Easier than you think – just a few small changes in your daily life can greatly reduce the impact of what you wear.
Regular closet sorting
It all starts with your closet: sort it, organise it, know what’s inside.
Giving Things a Second Life
We return things we no longer use to second life so that they can serve again.
Mindful shopping
We only buy what we really need.
We avoid impulsive purchases.
Buying
second-hand
Shopping second-hand means no new resources are wasted on production.
Resources and links
1) Dimitrios Komnos, Robin Smit, Leonidas Ntziachristos, Georgios Fontaras,A comparative analysis of car fleet efficiency evolution in Europe and Australia insights on policy influence,nJournal of Environmental Management, Volume 373, 2025, 123313,ISSN 0301-4797
2) ACEA_cars_fact_sheet_Feb2025
3) Navodit Babel, Anitta, Toma Akhil Sivanandan: Comparative Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of second-hand vs new clothing, May 2019
4) https://www.arborday.org/value
5) A.K. Chapagain, A.Y. Hoekstra, H.H.G. Savenije, R. Gautam: The water footprint of cotton consumption, September 2005
6) FLUENCE NEWS TEAM: The Water Footprint of the Blue Jean7) Maersk. 20ft container dimensions. Dostupné z: https://www.maersk.com/equipment/20-dry-container
8) Europien Environment Agency: EU exports of used textiles in Europe’s circular economy. Dostupné z: https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/eu-exports-of-used-textiles
9) Intenational Maritime Organization: IMO 2020 - cleaner shipping for cleaner air, December 2019
10) Charlie Campbell: The Race to Upcycle Africa’s Fast Fashion Dumping Ground, August 2025