Gallery: People and Planet Are One, Sa...

Photo by Nordic Fashion Association

EDUN’s pro-planet ethos was completely accidental, admitted Christian Kemp-Griffin, the company’s chief mission officer, at the Fashion Summit in Copenhagen on Wednesday. “It was much more about the people, much more about the development part,” he said of the ethical clothing label, which was founded in 2005 by U2 frontman Bono and his wife, Ali Hewson. “EDUN’s mission is to create beautiful clothing and sustainable trade in the developing world, in particular, sub-Saharan Africa.” It turns out, however, that you can’t minister to people without considering the planet they inhabit.

Photo by Nordic Fashion Association

INTO AFRICA

Choosing to work in Africa was an easy decision. Bono has been one of the continent’s most fervent—and most visible—advocates for the past 25 years, throwing his considerable celebrity muscle behind such high-profile initiatives as DATA, the ONE Campaign, and Project (RED).

Trade, not aid, was clearly the answer to Africa’s woes.

Africa, said Kemp-Griffin, used to have 6 percent of the world’s trade. Now, it has 2 percent. “If you could increase the trade by 1 percent to Africa, that would be $70 billion to the continent,” he said. “And they only receive $25 billion in aid today.” Trade, not aid, was clearly the answer to Africa’s woes.

GARDEN OF EDUN

Although close to 12 percent of the world’s cotton is grown in Africa, less than 2 percent of it is spun there, making it virtually impossible—before EDUN stepped in, anyway—to produce a completely African-made T-shirt.

Almost 12 percent of the world’s cotton is grown in Africa, but less than 2 percent of it is spun there.

With 22.4 million people living with HIV in the region—roughly two-thirds of the global tally—tying the company’s mission to AIDS prevention was obvious enough. “If your workforce is getting sick and dying, you’re never going to build an industry,” Kemp-Griffin said. “It was important for us not only to make the garment in Africa, but also have a component that goes back to preserving the sustainability of manufacturing in that part of the world.”