In collaboration with H&M, New Moves focuses on the forward-looking shifts in fashion. With its second instalment, actor and producer John Boyega speaks about leaving a positive footprint and his sustainably-minded collection for the brand.
— john boyega
Scroll to explore
In the face of the planet’s most urgent environmental issues, the fashion industry needs to change. Beyond trends, it will take us all coming together to learn new behaviours as consumers and brands. In collaboration with H&M, WIRED’s New Moves series looks to those inspiring us to make positive steps toward achieve this goal – helping to uplift and inform how we can responsibly purchase and care for clothing. Whether they’re make-do-and-mend advocates or textile innovators, what these figures all have in common is their advocacy for conscious consumption.
“There is something we can learn today about mending our clothes,” says Golden Globe-winning actor John Boyega, famed for his roles in the Star Wars franchise, Detroit and Red, White & Blue. “The longevity of [garments] based on how we treat them… it’s very, very important.” It’s simple stuff, but John highlights a much-overlooked aspect of clothing sustainability: repairing. In the past, prolonging the life of a garment was the norm. Things were worn, cared for and fixed time and again. Currently however, it’s estimated that the average garment is worn only ten times before being disposed of, according to a leading clothes waste charity.
Created using innovative materials, the cotton is organic or recovered from textile-production waste, the nylon and polyester
are recycled and the viscose
is from sustainable sources.
PLAY
And the joy you get from clothing doesn’t need to be negated just because you’re buying with the long term in mind. As John points out, it can enrich your personal connection to a garment: “As a Nigerian, specifically as a Yoruba man, anything that is to do with identity is very specific in what we wear and how we wear it. You have fabrics and clothes and prints that are passed down through generations and still are kept.”
— john boyega
“Sustainability to me is about being proactive for the benefit of the people coming behind you.”
In line with his beliefs, he is fronting H&M Man’s latest collection, Edition by John Boyega. Made up of more sustainable pieces, it encompasses a wardrobe of effortless workwear pieces juxtaposed with floral prints and tie-dye finishes. Created using innovative materials, the cotton is organic or recovered from textile-production waste, the nylon and polyester are recycled, and the viscose is from sustainable sources.
Find out more about how H&M is moving
towards a sustainable fashion future
While taking WIRED on a tour of his hometown of Peckham, he explains his fondness for the south-east London district, “I grew up in Peckham. It's a very vibrant, multi-cultural place. It’s funny, because they call Peckham Rye Lane ‘Little Lagos’ – it’s a place where you can get a lot of amazing food, fabrics.” Entering a local tailor, Boyega explains his concept of buying for the future as he’s measured up: “It’s about being proactive for the benefit of the people coming behind you.” And it’s a feeling that extends into other aspects of his life and work – Boyega is renowned for his impassioned work for social justice, using his platform to raise awareness of the Black Lives Matter Movement. Closing with his thoughts for the future, he says, “align your career, your wants and your needs with those who will be living in the world that you leave to them.”
Find out more
It’s the estimated average time garments are worn before being disposed of.
10
Scroll to explore
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOW H&M IS MOVINGTOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE FASHION FUTURE