The climate label
I proposed a nutrition-style climate label for clothing in Threads of Change, a documentary that won 1st Prize at C‑SPAN StudentCam and aired nationally on C‑SPAN.
Then I cold-emailed congressional offices and contributed input to a bipartisan bill that would create a voluntary label.
Climate facts
- Carbon footprint
- The greenhouse gas it took to make
- Water consumption
- The water it took to make
- Durability
- How long it's built to last
Who was left out
When you buy clothing, nothing tells you what it cost the climate to make it.
It started as a sophomore assignment asking which issue matters most for America over the next 20 years.
What I made
After climate advocacy with the Palo Alto Student Climate Coalition, Emily Tang, Max Reiter, and I made a documentary on fast fashion. It proposed a label shaped like a nutrition label that lists a garment’s carbon footprint, water use, and durability.
What happened
Threads of Change won 1st Prize at C‑SPAN StudentCam, and C‑SPAN aired it nationally on April 20, 2024. I cold-emailed congressional offices, worked with Rep. Sean Casten’s office, and contributed input to the Voluntary Sustainable Apparel Labeling Act. Casten introduced it with Rep. María Elvira Salazar in July 2024 as H.R. 8978. The bill’s label is more detailed than mine, with its own rules and exceptions. It didn’t advance that session. A new version was introduced in February 2025 as H.R. 1239, which I wasn’t involved in, and neither has passed.
Awards and selections
- 1st Prize, West Division, C‑SPAN StudentCam, 2024, $3,000 from Comcast