This week - 20 April till 26 April - marks the 7th edition of Fashion Revolution Week globally and the 3rd one in Malta, and despite the Covid-19 outbreak, the schedule of events is well underway.

In April, all 60 countries in which the Fashion Revolution operates host a weeklong round of activities wherein representatives promote a more sustainable fashion industry through panel discussions, screenings, repair stations, workshops and other events. In 2018 Fashion Revolution Malta (FRM) was set up and this week-long event crossed over into our boarders.

Fashion Revolution's focus this year is on four key areas; Consumption, Composition,

Conditions and Collective Action, showing how the decisions we make as consumers and brands is affecting the people who make our clothes, as well as the earth and the oceans.

The campaign will highlight what needs to happen to start to rebuild a fashion industry that values people over growth and profit and conserves and regenerates the environment as we come out of the other side of the global pandemic.

"Now, more than ever before, the industry is coming under increasing scrutiny and millions of people around the world are expected to participate in Fashion Revolution Week as it moves online."

On Tuesday 21 April, the 5th edition of the Fashion Transparency Index was published on their website, covering 250 of the world's biggest fashion brands and retailers. The index shows which brands are leading the way on transparency, which brands have seen the greatest improvement in their scores, and where there is more work to be done.

This moment proves exactly why transparency in the fashion industry is so vital and why we cannot afford to return to business as usual. The current pandemic has amplified the fashion industry's broken model of extreme waste and overproduction, bringing into question the way the entire system works.

This fits in perfectly with the theme of this year's Fashion Question Time Mass consumption: the end of an era? which will be conducted online on Friday 24 April on the Fashion Revolution Youtube page.

"Whilst the coronavirus is increasingly showing how people will support each other at a time of crisis and highlighting ways in which our personal consumption patterns can become more sustainable, the question of how to support the millions of supply chain workers who have already lost their jobs remains largely unanswered,"

On Wednesday 22 April FRM had a Q&A Wardrobe Session called 'ReadMyLabel' with Taryn Mamo Cefai and Raphael Pace were together they will investigate the truth behind the fibres and materials in our clothes.

This is being done in line with the release of their new campaign, question and hashtag #WhatsInMyClothes?, to help shed light on the story behind how our clothes are made and the impact they have on our planet. To help do this, FRM invites all consumers to turn to their labels, to understand what is in their clothes.

This campaign will be taking place in conjunction with the main campaign of Fashion Revolution Week; the #WhoMadeMyClothes campaign. Consumers turn their clothes inside out, take a picture and post it on social media, tagging the brand of the item directly and asking them the question by using the hashtag '#whomademyclothes.'

Anyone interested in contributing to this movement is invited to follow these steps and participate in this year's edition which is being supported by Manuel Bonnici and Andrew Borg Wirth.

Throughout the week FRM will also be launching our first "How To" videos, focusing on repairing skills, done in collaboration with Shannon Briffa and Malik Atwair.

These videos vary from learning how to sew a button or re-stitch tears with the aim of equipping the viewers, with the right tools needed to prolong the life of their clothes.

"A Fashion Revolution starts with thinking differently about the clothes we buy and wear. To love fashion and to also be more mindful of the impacts of our shopping habits and the way we care for our clothes. "Repairing our clothes is a practical, symbolic, aesthetic, original, creative, trendsetting, badass, revolutionary way to say my clothes are me, my chosen skin, my principles, my story. Long live our clothes!"

For more information on this week of events, make sure to follow Fashion Revolution Malta's Facebook and Instagram page.

You can read an interview The Malta Independent had carried out with Fasion Revolution Malta coordinator Tamara Fenech here.