The fashion industry is the second-largest<\/u><\/a> global consumer of water, after agriculture, according to Amy David<\/u><\/a>, clinical professor of supply chain and operations management at Purdue. In other words, water must be at the forefront of conversations about sustainability and fashion\u2014and Marie Claire<\/em> made sure of that this summer, hosting in collaboration with Kering our Fashion Our Future event<\/u> in Shanghai, where experts delved into Kering\u2019s water-positive strategy<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n “It’s not just about saving or reducing water use. It’s about creating positive impact\u2014restoring and regenerating ecosystems,\u201d Jinqing Cai, president of Kering Greater China,<\/a> explained at the event, noting that its water-positive strategy expands upon past work in climate, biodiversity, and circularity. As part of the initiative, Kering aims to achieve a net-positive water impact (meaning, leaving water systems in a better state than before), with plans of action including the establishment of water resilience labs in 10 key basins by 2035, as well as encouraging partners and startups to collaborate on innovation.<\/p>\n Jinqing Cai, president of Kering Greater China, speaking at the Fashion Our Future event.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption> (Image credit: Marie Claire China)<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n This critical conversation at Fashion Our Future underscores the pivotal role water plays in the fashion industry. “There is a tendency to hyperfixate on carbon emissions when measuring sustainability outcomes due to our focus on climate impacts,” says Kathleen Talbot<\/u><\/a>, Reformation\u2019s chief sustainability officer. “But we as a planet are consuming fresh water faster than nature can replenish…We can\u2019t survive without water, let alone produce clothes.\u201d<\/p>\n