TMD103G: Textiles, Fashion and Sustainability
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Everyone wears clothes and is surrounded by textiles. The textile and apparel complex is a vast global business. The supply
chain from designer to store shelf, through use and ultimate disposal, raises many questions of sustainability that lend
themselves to exploration on the personal and societal levels. The course introduces basic concepts of the fashion supply
chain and its sustainability (environmental, economic and ethical).
The course is designed to meet the global responsibility, and information literacy outcomes of URI’s General Education
program, and to be a “Grand Challenge” course
OBJECTIVES
At the end of this course, successful students will be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Describe the basic steps in the global supply chain for textiles and apparel (C1)
Recognize the diverse products, markets, and professions in the textile and apparel industry, and their historical
context (C2)
Describe the broad concepts of sustainability (C3)
Apply the concepts of sustainability to textile items, and their local and global manufacture, use, and disposal (C4)
Identify ethical issues in the global supply chain, and distinguish between ‘greenwash’, and good sustainability
practices (C5)
For Global Responsibility
1. Global self awareness: Students will be able to describe the practices and perspectives of those in the global textile
and apparel supply chain, and recognize past, present and future roles within it. (G1a)
2. Global communication: Students can apply knowledge of global differences to interact appropriately with people
from other societies as part of the supply chain. (G2b)
3. Global impact: Students synthesize knowledge of the global fashion supply chain, and its associated issues of
economics, ethics and the environment to recognize workable solutions to the problems it raises. (G3c)
For Information Literacy
1. Students will be able to identify the key concepts in global supply chain to guide a search for information (IL1B)
2. Students are able to access relevant information effectively, and evaluate it using the CRAAP test. They can
organize information to achieve a specific purpose and use information ethically. (IL2, 3,4 5B)
For Grand Challenge
1. The course deals extensively with complex issues (ethics, economics, environment) that make up the broad
concept of sustainability in the textile supply chain. (GC1)
2. Textiles are inherently interdisciplinary, and the course brings together technology and environmental science,
design, anthropology, economics/business and history. (GC2)
3. The pressure of profit generates ethical issues in the global textile supply chain that demand careful consideration
and for which there are rarely easy answers. (GC3)
READINGS/RESOURCES




Hethorn, J. and Ulasewicz, C Sustainable Fashion - What’s next? 2nd Edition, NY, Fairchild, 2015
Baugh, G. (2011). The Fashion Designer’s Textile Directory. NY: Barron’s.
Selections from: The Living Planet Report. The World Wildlife Fund, 2012
Selections from: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future (“The
Brundtland Report”) The United Nations, 1987
 Selections from industry journals: AATCC Review; International Dyer; Sourcing Journal; Textile World; Textiles; Women’s
Wear Daily (WWD)
 Current newspapers and other student‐ selected sources (Web sites, magazines, current books, journals, etc.)
 Powerpoint course materials
ASSIGNMENTS/ASSESSMENTS:
Grades in the course will be based on the following student work:
1) Readings and class participation: You will be required to read texts from journals, NGO publications, and news media,
that include scientific, governmental, and field‐specific vocabularies. You will be expected to participate in classroom
assignments and discussions on the information and topics involved.
2) Unit Reflections [UR]: In each unit, you will write a response to connect an assigned subject with the texts and other
sources (appropriately accessed, selected, evaluated, organized and cited), and to your own experience, previous
learning, and topics covered within the unit. The reflections will be evaluated by rubric that will assess clarity, content,
the ability to use, cite, and engage with sources, and effective writing.
3) Garment Investigation [GI]: The various aspects of the global supply chain will be reflected In assignments
throughout the term, in the context of a garment. This will focus on placing a particular garment into a practical
context defined by the week’s topic (such as, the fibers of which it is made, the dyes used to color it and their
potential environmental impact, the role of the textile industry of the country in which the garment was made, the
likely fate of the garment when it is disposed of…)
4) Tests For each unit of the course test in multiple choice and short-answer format will reinforce the material covered
in the lectures, readings, assignments, and discussions.
GRADING: Grades in the course will be based on the following:
Exams (x4)
Summary Responses (Best 3 of 4)
Garment investigation (Best 3 of 4)
Final
In class assignments and participation
40%
24%
16%
10%
10%
GRADE SCALE:
87% - 89% B+
77% - 79% C+
67% - 69% D+
93% - 100% A
83% - 86% B
73% - 76% C
63% - 66% D
90% - 92%
80% - 82%
70% - 72%
00% - 62%
ABCF
ATTENDANCE, CONDUCT, AND PARTICIPATION: The successful completion of the course requires continuity of thought and
engagement with the material. Be prepared to actively take part in discussions; to ask and respond to questions. Keeping up
with the readings and assignments is the best way to be continually prepared and to do well. Attendance and participation
are essential for success: Arrive on time, always bring the required readings to be discussed, do all assignments in due time.
You must let us know beforehand if you will miss a class or an exam, or need to hand in an assignment late. Late
assignments, unless permission has been sought beforehand, will be downgraded by 10% for each day late for up to five
days, after which the grade becomes zero.
Please switch cell phones and other communication devices off or to silent mode before entering the classroom.
There are no circumstances under which texting or web‐surfing will be tolerated during class sessions.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Students are expected to be honest in all academic work. A student’s name on any written
work, quiz or exam shall be regarded as assurance that the work is the result of the student’s own independent thought
and study. Work should be stated in the student’s own words, properly attributed to its source. Students have an
obligation to know how to quote, paraphrase, summarize, cite and reference the work of others with integrity. The
following are examples of academic dishonesty: • Using material, directly or paraphrasing, from published sources
(print or electronic) without appropriate citation. • Claiming disproportionate credit for work not done independently.
• Unauthorized possession or access to exams. • Unauthorized communication during exams. • Unauthorized use of
another’s work or preparing work for another student. • Taking an exam for another student. • Altering or attempting
to alter grades. • The use of notes or electronic devices to gain an unauthorized advantage during exams. • Fabricating
or falsifying facts, data or references. • Facilitating or aiding another’s academic dishonesty. • Submitting the same
paper for more than one course without prior approval from the instructors.
STUDENT RESOURCES
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: Any student with a documented disability is welcome to contact me –either by email,
phone, or in class— so that we may arrange reasonable accommodations. As part of this process, please first be in
touch with Disability Services for Students Office at 302 Memorial Union, (401-874-2098.) Please do this as early in the
semester as possible
THE ACADEMIC ENHANCEMENT CENTER (AEC): Success requires that you keep pace with the work, understand course
concepts, and study effectively. The Academic Enhancement Center (www.uri.edu/aec/) is a great place to do this. At
the AEC you can work alone or in groups, and tutors and professional learning specialists are available to help you to
learn, manage your time and work, and study well. On the Kingston campus, it’s open Monday through Thursday from
10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Fridays until 1 p.m. All services are free (the coffee is free as well!), and no appointment is
needed. You can call for complete information at 874-2367, or just stop by the center on the 4th floor of Roosevelt Hall.
RHODY OUTPOST: Are you or a student you know experiencing a hardship, such as being at risk for going hungry or no
place to live? If so, URI has resources to provide confidential help. Rhody Outpost provides URI students who are food
insecure with emergency food services and resources. Rhody Outpost is housed at St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church on
15 Lower College Road. Contact them at [email protected], or 401-874-2568. Please contact the Office of Vice
President for Student Affairs at 401-874-2427 for help with emergency housing.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Week
Course Units
*** UNIT 1 ***
Objectives: 1,
2, 3
1
2
3
4
Introduction to
course and
course topics
Historical
Overview
Textile and
Fashion Supply
Chain
Sustainability
*** UNIT 2 ***
Objectives: 1 &
4
5.
6.
7.
Fibers
Fabrics
Sustainability
in Textile
Production
Topics/Course Outcomes
Understand the basic steps in the global supply chain for
textiles and apparel
2 Recognize the diverse products, markets, and professions in
the textile and apparel industry
3 Comprehend the broad concepts of sustainability
Textiles: clothes and a lot more. History. Fibers, yarns, fabrics, products,
rules and regulations
Overview of writing summary reflections; format, source evaluation,
citations, and references IL1-5
Textiles and Apparel in Industrial Society (c.1800 onward.) Textiles’
interdisciplinarity G1, GC2
Design, source, manufacture, (test), ship, merchandise/sell, wear and
wash, dispose. Who does what, and where (jobs) Clothing in society:
Fashions, trends, fads, and global identity G1, G2
9
10
11
Merchandising
& Global
Sourcing
Apparel
Categories and
the Fashion
Cycle
Careers
*** UNIT 4 ***
Objectives: 1,
2, 3, 4 & 5
In-class assignments
In-class assignments
Garment Investigation: choice of
garment
Test: Unit 1
Natural and manufactured. How fibers are produced, compared, chosen.
Volume of production and fiber use per person around the world. GC3
Unit 1 Reflection (IL1-5)
In-class assignments
Turning fibers into fabric: Spinning, weaving, knitting, dyeing, finishing,
printing. Water and energy use GC1
Fiber and fabric production chain considered and ecological impact
identified. G3, GC1
1
2
Objectives: 1,
2,3
Apparel
Manufacture
In-class assignments
The UN’s “Brundtland Report,” The Living Planet Report. Global
comparisons: rich and poor nations. Who does what, who owns what.
Ecology, economics, ethics (planet, profit, people.) How to measure and
compare? G3, GC1
1 Understand the basic steps in the global supply chain for
textiles and apparel
4 Apply the concepts of sustainability to textile items, and their
local and global manufacture, use, and disposal
*** UNIT 3 ***
8.
Work
1
3
In-class assignments
Garment Investigation: Fiber to
fabric
Test: Unit 2
Understand the basic steps in the global supply chain for
textiles and apparel
Recognize the diverse products, markets, and professions in
the textile and apparel industry
Comprehend the broad concepts of sustainability
How, where, and why it’s done. Sustainability issues. Global economics
and ethics. G2, G3, GC3
Unit 2 Reflection (IL1-5)
In-class assignments
Right product, right quantity, right time, right place, right price. G1, G2,
GC3
In-class assignments
Designer brands, luxury brands, knock offs, and “fast fashion.” The
fashion cycle and its evolution in the early 21st century. G1, GC3
In-class assignments
Careers in the textile and apparel industries. Local & global. Industry,
science, and marketing.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Understand the basic steps in the global supply chain for textiles
and apparel
Recognize the diverse products, markets, and professions that make
up the textile and apparel industry
Comprehend the broad concepts of sustainability
Apply the concepts of sustainability to textile items, and their local
Garment Investigation:
Manufacture, Merchandising
Test: Unit 3
5.
12
13
14
Textiles in Use
Rules and
Regulations
Sustainability,
ecology, and
“Green”
marketing [
and global manufacture, use, and disposal
Distinguish ‘greenwash’, and good sustainability practices
Wearing, washing, dry cleaning. What’s expected, what’s the end of life
& sustainability issues (recycle, re-use, repurposing, disposal)
Labeling (fiber content, care, country of origin) Tariffs, quotas, duties,
trade agreements. Labor laws. Eco labeling and sustainability
measurements. LCA. GC2
“Green” claims, greenwash, and industry responses to ecological issues.
GC3
Unit 3 Reflection (IL1-5)
In-class assignments
In-class assignments
Test: Unit 4
*** REVIEW
WEEK ***
15
Summary,
overview,
review.
Review of all material. Planning for final
FINAL WILL BE HELD ACCORDING TO THE EXAM SCHEDULE
Unit 4 Reflection (IL1-5)
Garment Investigation: Use and
disposal (final submission)
IL1-5