Stand.earth asks Lululemon, manufacturer of Team Canada’s team, to remove coal from its supply chain when the Winter Olympics begin

Lululemon’s flagship store in Vancouver saw more action than usual on Wednesday when around 20 protesters set up a mock coal plant that spews smoke to draw attention to the sportswear brand’s links to fossil fuels.

The action comes just days before the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics, where Team Canada will wear the Lululemon logo from head to toe. The company is the official equipment supplier for Canadians competing in the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The brand’s already high profile will get an additional boost as athletes take their places on the podium, do interviews and take part in the opening and closing ceremonies.

That exposure, combined with Lululemon’s lack of effort to go green, doesn’t sit well with Muhannad Malas, senior climate activist for the Fossil Free Fashion Campaign at Stand.earth, who points to analysis by the group showing that 48 percent of The energy used to power Lululemon’s factories in Asia comes from coal. The brand manufactures its products in factories in countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and China.

Canadian National Observer He reached out to Lululemon for comment directly after the protest, but did not receive a response in time for publication.

Coal has long had a reputation as the world’s dirtiest fossil fuel – it releases the most carbon and offsets 46 percent of carbon emissions World. In Canada, the federal government has committed to phase out coal-fired electricity by 2030, while establishing a $25 million coal transition fund.

Fashion plays a big role in that, Malas explained, noting that the industry is a big polluter, accounting for five to eight percent of global climate emissions. Stand.earth has criticized other brands, such as Under Armor and Armani, for their reliance on coal, giving them Fs in their Fossil Free Fashion Dashboard in 2021. Lululemon earned a D-, with the organization noting that the brand has “shown some willingness to advocate for policies to reduce global GHG emissions.”

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Although Stand.earth has been asking Lululemon to take climate action for over a year with its lululemon coal pollution campaign, it is the first time he has organized a protest. Because the clothing company presents an image of health and sustainability, Malas said many people are unaware of the climate impact and it is getting worse: the brand’s emissions increased 12% in 2020.

“One of the things we’ve seen from Lululemon has been a lot of talk about sustainability and often misplaced efforts. Instead of addressing the biggest sources of emissions and pollution in your supply chain, we have seen pilot initiatives [like] switching to recycled polyester,” he said.

“…That in itself is a false solution because recycled polyester is still non-circular. And because it will potentially increase the dependency on fossil fuels as a source of material in the textile and clothing industry.”

Giving Lululemon space on the world stage is contributing to greenwashing, Malas said, and sidesteps the fact that burning coal contributes significantly to poor air quality in the Olympic host city of Beijing, while worsening conditions for winter sports.

The call is for Lululemon to remove coal from its supply chain by 2030.

“Lululemon … is a big buyer of products and energy from those countries, and they have significant market power to be able to work with policymakers to start phasing out coal and switching to renewables,” he said.

“And to invest in the infrastructure that is needed for these countries to be able to transition to renewable energy in the next decade.”

The group attempted to hand out a “coal medal” (measuring four feet in diameter) to employees inside the store and then posed in Canadian team Olympic suits next to a fake coal plant. Erdene Batzorig, a digital campaigner for the Fossil Free Fashion Campaign at Stand.earth, said that although they were asked to leave the store, their demonstration outside attracted many interested passers-by who were surprised to hear about the brand’s involvement with charcoal. .

“I know we got our message across, we feel very emotional. And while Lululemon is making global headlines representing Canada on the world stage, we want to make sure the public knows as much about the coal issue as possible,” she said.

“Because it’s not really about blaming Lululemon [or] pointing the finger, you are highlighting the solutions we can take, which is to ditch coal and go renewable by 2030 in your supply chains for the health of your workers and for the health of us.”