Guest Essay: The Color Wheel of Life

By Anushka Kalyan
High school student in Granite Bay, CA
March 25, 2023

It’s that time of the year again – the sun is setting later and the flowers are blooming. Now that we’ve all hopefully settled into 2023, let’s recognize the true meaning of this new year. Oh no, not fulfilling gym resolutions or going vegan, but rather shifting our focus onto something called “Viva Magenta,” this year’s “Color of the Year” as deemed by Pantone, the color system mogul.

In 2023, using this shade of dark pink is supposedly the key to success in marketing, fashion, social media, and industry. I mean, we already have sneakers, wallpaper, and even cell phones in the marketplace sporting this color. It’s all “Viva Magenta!” But what happens when this color becomes “so last year”?

The market cycle of rapid consumerist trends is known as “fast fashion.” By mass replicating high-fashion designs and quickly making them accessible to the public at a low price, retail companies make money and we consumers wear trendy products. “Viva Magenta” was announced as the “Color of the Year” in December of 2022, and just a month later, new pants in this color were on the racks because of rapid market response.

However, just because trendy products are available to us in a short period of time, that doesn’t mean it’s all good. According to the UN Environment Program, fast fashion production and shipping account for 20 percent of global wastewater and a significant amount of carbon emissions. They also highlight that fast fashion is responsible for more carbon emissions than all international flights and maritime shipping combined, worsened by the fact that this industry is responsible for massive human rights violations in outsourced production. Finally, according to Earth.org, when a new Color of the Year is announced or big brand names release a new style, the average US citizen throws out 81.5 pounds of clothing each year, resulting in 92 million tons of landfill waste per year. That’s a lot of trash and many more years gone into breaking this waste down! This travesty can be avoided if consumers don’t give in to very fickle trends. As a society, we buy more and more, perpetuating a cycle of consumerist greed and massive production, to the detriment of humanity and our planet.

Ultimately, as a youth-written New York Times article so eloquently put it, it’s a privilege to fall into the trap of fast fashion. It’s a privilege to buy clothes for their aesthetics, rather than their utility. The fashion industry preys on this privilege, especially for members of my generation. We largely buy from the internet even in the post-pandemic period. This has led to the rise of hallmark fast fashion companies, such as SHEIN, H&M, and Forever 21, as they attempt to quickly please their consumers. My friends and I joke about the plastic, nylon, tacky quality of clothing at fast fashion stores, thinking who would ever wear lace-up metallic leggings, but the fact that these products exist serves as a reminder that companies are willing to compromise quality for mass production just to catch up with fickle trends.

There’s an interesting dichotomy presented by my generation’s actions. On one hand, we’re supposedly “the most environmentally woke generation,” using social media to our advantage to organize climate strikes and to advocate for… wooden toothbrushes…, but we can’t resist the urge to indulge in just a little more SHEIN, because what can I say, most of what they sell is cute! Clothing is almost exclusively the one thing uniquely defining ourselves and our lifestyles, and if a nice design presents itself at a relatively low price point, you bet we’re going to take it. Plus, yeah, yeah, human rights, but like, what’s the worst that can happen if I just get one dress. And oh my god, if I post a picture today wearing the same dress I wore in my last post, that’s Gen Z heresy! Ok, that seems like a lot of buying – let me try getting some “sustainable products” instead. Let me see what’s online… woah, I can’t buy this, it’s $50 for a regular cotton T-shirt!

This is an issue my generation contends with. I’ll leave it up to you to come to your own conclusion, but I don’t fully blame us. Adolescence is the time to figure out one’s identity — but when it meets fast fashion industry trends, it can be a dangerous bomb for the environment and human rights. Climate is different, meaning that responsibilities to address it typically fall upon the shoulders of older generations. Fast fashion however is an issue that my generation must fix, despite the fact that we have almost no control over it. To start, we can buy secondhand clothing from affordable small businesses and rent clothing to be worn once. These are modest steps, but they could lead to a world where Viva Magenta breaks away as a Color of the Year and joins the Colors of Time Immemorial. Until there’s a cooler name next business cycle. . .

SACOG delays MTP/SCS to align with MTC and SJCOG to enhance interregional coordination

On March 3, 2023, ECOS sent a letter of support for Assembly Bill 350, which would facilitate greater interregional collaboration by more closely aligning the Sacramento Area Council of Government’s (SACOG) sustainable communities strategy update with those of its regional partners, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the San Joaquin Council of Governments (SJCOG), both for SACOG’s current plan update and into the future.

Click here to view the letter.

Click here to view a fact sheet on AB 350.

Sacramento Earth Day 2023

Join us on Sunday, April 23, 2023, at Southside Park, Sacramento, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

Sacramento Earth Day is the largest Earth Day celebration in the Sacramento region, providing people with the knowledge and means to take care of our Earth. The theme this year is Grow Native. Our event is free and thousands of attendees are expected throughout the day.

Click here to learn more!

Share the flyer

Help spread the word! We want to invite the whole community to Sacramento Earth Day, so please share this flyer with your friends, family and colleagues! Feel free to print some and hang them on community boards in your library, community center, campus or cafe! Click on the flyer to view a PDF for printing. Please print with the environment in mind.

The State of the Transport System 3/7

March 7, 7AM-8AM a.m. PST

Transport accounts for 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions and is the world’s second fastest growing source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Major action is needed to transform the transport system to meet climate goals – from shifting to zero-carbon cars, trucks, ships and planes; to improving the availability of clean, modern and affordable public transportation; to providing safe walking and cycling networks; to implementing new measures to reduce unnecessary trips and wasted fuel.

Join Systems Change Lab and WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities on March 7 for a high-level discussion of the current state of play in the global transport system and the five critical shifts needed to achieve global climate goals:

  1. Guarantee reliable access to safe and modern mobility
  2. Reduce avoidable vehicle and air travel
  3. Shift to public, shared and non-motorized transport
  4. Transition to zero-carbon cars and trucks
  5. Transition to zero-carbon shipping and aviation

Panelists will explore the shared importance of vehicle electrification and shifts to active mobility, the role of various actors in catalyzing new solutions for aviation and maritime shipping, the status of tipping points in driving exponential progress, and how a systems approach can help us reimagine transport as we know it.

This session will set the stage ahead of Transforming Transportation 2023, organized by the World Bank and WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities.

Moderator: Ani Dasgupta, President & CEO, World Resources Institute

Opening Remarks: Felipe Ramírez, Urban Mobility Director, WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities

Panelists:

  • François Bausch, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Mobility and Public Works and Minister of Defence, Luxembourg
  • Maruxa Cardama, Secretary General, SLOCAT Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport
  • Binyam Reja, Global Practice Manager for the Transport Practice in the Infrastructure Vice Presidency of the World Bank
  • Sandra Roling, Director of Transport, The Climate Group

Click here to learn more.

Click here to register.

Third Act National Day of Action 3/21

Please join Third Act Sacramento in a National Day of Action on 3.21.23 when people across the country will withdraw their money and cut up their credit cards from the Four Big Dirty Banks: Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Citibank; the biggest funders of fossil fuel projects.

The goals of this action are:

1) Shame these banks for bankrolling our climate crisis.

2) Let the banks know that we won’t be complicit in the destruction of the earth.

3) Pressure the banks to stop funding fossil fuel projects.

4) Have fun while helping to create a healthier, more livable future.

This National Day of Action is for all ages, and all are encouraged to sign the pledge to move your money. Volunteers in Third Act Sacramento have created a factsheet on local alternative banking options that do not fund global heating and destruction of our precious earth. For more information about the Day of Action and other creative protests in the lead-up to March 21, go to https://thirdact.org/national-day-of-action/ or contact us at thirdactsac[at]gmail[dot]com.

Information on local actions: find the Sacramento or Davis actions on the map and sign up to receive more information and updates.