Chloe Asaam on Fashion' Waste Crisis

Chloe Asaam is a designer, researcher, community organiser and Program/Operations Manager for The OR Foundation.

The OR Foundation is an incredible charity and campaign who are raising awareness about the fashion waste crisis, specifically in Ghana’s capital Accra, where 15 million used garments pour into the area every week from the UK, Europe, North America and Australia, flooding the city’s sprawling clothing market.

The OR (which stands for choice) work at the intersection of environmental justice, education and fashion development, our mission is to identify and manifest alternatives to the dominant model of fashion – alternatives that bring forth ecological prosperity, as opposed to destruction, and that inspire citizens to form a relationship with fashion that extends beyond their role as consumer. 

They want to catalyse a justice-led circular economy. At every level their initiatives are founded on the belief that Justice within the violent yet beautiful world we share begins with Reckoning, Recovery and Reparations.

With a background in Fashion Design, Chloe sees the negative impact of fast fashion’s thoughtless overproduction and she is on a mission to do something about it. Chloe’s work with The OR Foundation builds on her personal advocacy and gives her the space to have a tangible impact on the people working within the Kantamanto ecosystem, specifically the kayayei (female head porters).

Learn more about the work of The OR Foundation

Support their work: https://theor.org/donate

Find Chloe: @chloe_asaam

Find The OR Foundation: @TheORisPresent

Find me: @venetialamanna

Find the show: @atstpodcast

This episode was produced by Venetia La Manna and edited by Nada Smiljanic. The music was composed by William Haxworth and the artwork was designed by Alex Sedano.

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