This startup aims to curb fast fashion by revitalizing shoes

Singaporean Sue-Anne Chng used to wear a different outfit on all 15 days of the Lunar New Year, when it is customary to don new clothes to symbolise a fresh start. But this year she will wear second-hand items exchanged for her old clothes at a store catering to people concerned about the impact of fast fashion on the environment. Several swapping initiatives, from permanent shops to pop-up events, have appeared in the affluent city-state in a bid to encourage consumers to make the most of what is already in their closets.

112 youths to benefit from $250,000 startup program

Fast fashion has made buying clothes cheaper and easier. It's terrible for the environment because a lot of garments end up in the trash. But businesses are looking for ways to move towards a circular model in fashion.

US startup Bond Pet Foods is hoping to remake the pet food industry by growing nutritional chow in a lab. Most pet food includes animal protein, which requires the slaughter of animals and is ultimately a source of planet-warming gases. Rich Kelleman's Colorado-based enterprise, however, is aiming to sidestep both pitfalls by making those same proteins in a biotech process.

Israeli startup AIR unveiled its first "easy-to-operate" electric, vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft that it aims to sell directly to consumers predominantly in the United States starting in 2024. AIR has been working with the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) for two years and expects to obtain certification by the end of 2023 for the AIR ONE, a two-seater, 970 kg (2,138 lb) eVTOL, which will have a flight range of 110 miles (177 km), Co-Founder and Chief Executive Rani Plaut told Reuters.

Fashion giants H&M and Zara are producing eco-collections that claim to reduce the negative aspects of fast fashion. Their brands, they say, are becoming more sustainable. But is it true? Or is it just greenwashing?

The robotics startup Exotec has become France's 25th unicorn company, valued at $2 billion after its latest fundraising round. The firm makes robots for e-commerce depots, and counts big names like Carrefour, Uniqlo and Decathlon among its customers. Exotec's CEO Romain Moulin told FRANCE 24 the inspiration for the company actually came from online retail giant Amazon.

The European Union warned consumers to stop using their clothes like throwaway items and said Wednesday that it plans to counter the polluting use of mass-market fast fashion.

The textile industry is the backbone of Pakistan's economy, accounting for 8.5 percent of its GDP. But it's also a source of major pollution, with untreated waste flowing into the groundwater and factories relying heavily on coal. Our correspondents report on the industry's impact in Faisalabad, Pakistan's main textile hub, where clothes are produced for the biggest fast fashion brands.

The Lyon Fashion Film Festival is open to admissions from both art schools and brands. This year’s second edition of the event showcased a parade of fresh young talents who aren’t afraid to ruffle a few feathers. The winner of the designers' prize, Rémy Perrier, credits fashion with helping him to discover his true queer identity. Meanwhile, the collective 16:25 was awarded the Students' Prize for "Programmé.e", their mesmerising depiction of the drawn-out agony of the mourning process, juxtaposed with the frenetic pace of disposable fashion. FRANCE 24 takes a closer look.

Yemaachi Biotech, a Ghanaian cancer research and diagnostics startup, wants to expand the world's knowledge of how cancer affects people of African descent.

The Chinese fast fashion retail giant Shein is facing allegations of child labour on TikTok. Shein then debunked these claims with a TikTok video of its own. In this edition of Truth or Fake, we take a closer look and tell you what we know about the brand's working conditions.