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FutureLearn

Upcycling and the Circular Economy: Ghanaian Creative Solutions to Global Textile Waste

Hopenclass and Revival via FutureLearn

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Overview

Learn to create collective change with Ghanaian creatives at THE REVIVAL

Almost three-quarters of all textile waste is incinerated or sent to landfill.

On this two-week course, you’ll discover the global impact of fast fashion. You’ll explore how THE REVIVAL, a collective of Ghanaian creatives, are using artistic ingenuity to resolve textile waste challenges in their community and use this as inspiration to create your own localised solutions.

Investigate a global perspective of circular economy

In the UK alone, over a million tonnes of clothing ends up as waste.

You’ll examine what happens to waste textiles and how a circular economy can transform fashion waste by generating jobs, reducing inequality, and minimising the environmental impact of the fashion industry.

Using real-world case studies to contextualise your learning, you’ll be able to develop your own approach to conscious fashion and take responsibility for your fashion choices.

Explore upcycling culture and develop creative upcycling ideas

You’ll learn practical tips for upcycling, discovering how community level actions impact global fashion consumption.

Sharing your ideas, you’ll engage with other learners, developing upcycling ideas and projects with an ethical purpose.

Develop an understanding of sustainable fashion using ethnographic research

The work of THE REVIVAL is extensively featured in the Eileen Fisher Foundation & Pentatonic Textile Waste Crisis report (launching 6th July).

You’ll learn about their ethnographic, creative approach to creating change and its wider implications for fashion sustainability and global textile waste.

By the end of this course, you’ll understand circular economies as a response to global textile waste. You’ll be equipped with the knowledge to develop a community of changemakers and inspired to upcycle fashion into one of a kind treasures.

This course is designed for anyone with an interest in fashion and sustainability. It is particularly suited to creatives, professionals in the fashion industry, and environmental activists.

Syllabus

  • Who is a circular economy for?
    • Who is a circular economy for?
    • Where do your clothes go? Introducing Ghana's textile waste problem
    • Recognize the relevance of the Ghanaian perspective in the debate on the circular economy
    • Introduction to upcycling culture: local solutions for global problems
  • Upcycling for Transformation
    • Introducing upcycling culture with THE REVIVAL
    • How to design fashion that can make a difference
    • How to become a fashion researcher in your community
    • What does it mean to build a legacy?

Taught by

Yayra Agbofah, Founder, The Revival & Creative Director

Reviews

4.8 rating at FutureLearn based on 5 ratings

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