Sustainable Fashion and Circular Economy for Effective Waste Management in the Fashion Industry: A Narrative Review

Abstract

This paper reviews the digital transformation of the fashion industry, focusing on the alignment with sustainability principles through the integration of sustainable clothing technologies. The introduction emphasizes how urgent it is to switch from linear production techniques to circularity and digitally enabled systems that promote resource efficiency and a circular economy. The primary research questions focus on how circular and sustainable production contributes to efficient waste management solutions, how waste management is oriented in the fashion industry, and how sustainable clothing technologies have a major influence on waste management objectives. The theoretical framework examines the fashion and textile industry's sustainability and highlights the necessity of a green transformation made possible by digital technology to lessen its effects on the environment.  The paper also examines how the fashion and clothing business has developed into a high-tech sector, emphasizing innovations like digital printing, CAD-CAM systems, and 3D technologies that increase accuracy, cut waste, and promote sustainable practices. The review concludes by highlighting the critical roles that interdisciplinary cooperation, legal frameworks, and skill-development investments play in overcoming the difficulties associated with putting digital and sustainable practices into practice in apparel sector. It makes the argument that developing a robust and sustainable fashion and textile sector that is in line with social and environmental objectives requires a calculated embrace of digital ecosystems and apparel technologies.

Keywords: Sustainable Fashion; Circular Economy; Waste Management; Environmental Sustainability.