Course Title: Implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices

Part B: Course Detail

Teaching Period: Term1 2009

Course Code: OHTH5461C

Course Title: Implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices

School: 350T Fashion & Textiles

Campus: Brunswick Campus

Program: C5202 - Diploma of Applied Fashion Design and Technology

Course Contact : Mandy Penton

Course Contact Phone: +61 3 99259202

Course Contact Email:mandy.penton@rmit.edu.au

Name and Contact Details of All Other Relevant Staff

PATRICIA BRIEN - patricia.brien@rmit.edu.au

Nominal Hours: 40

Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.

Pre-requisites and Co-requisites

None

Course Description

This unit covers the outcomes required to effectively analyse the workplace in relation to environmentally sustainable work practices and to implement improvements and monitor their effectiveness.

National Codes, Titles, Elements and Performance Criteria

National Element Code & Title:	MSAENV472A Implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices
Element:	1. Investigate current practices in relation to resource usage.
Performance Criteria:	1.1 Identify environmental regulations applying to the enterprise. 1.2 Assess procedures for assessing compliance with environmental regulations. 1.3 Collect information on environmental and resource efficiency systems and procedures, and provide to the work group where appropriate. 1.4 Measure and record current resource usage by members of the work group. 1.5 Analyse and record current purchasing strategies. 1.6 Analyse current work processes to access information and data and assist in identifying areas for improvement.
Element:	2. Set targets for improvements.
Performance Criteria:	2.1 Seek input from stakeholders, key personnel and specialist. 2.2 Access external sources of information and data as required. 2.3 Evaluate alternative solutions to workplace environmental and ethical issues. 2.4 Set efficiency targets.
Element:	3. Implement performance improvement strategies.
Performance Criteria:	3.1 Source techniques/tools to assist in achieving targets. 3.2 Apply continuous improvement strategies to own work area of responsibility and communicate ideas and possible solutions to the work group and management. 3.3 Integrate environmental and resource efficiency improvement plans for own work group and other operational activities and implement them. 3.4 Seek suggestions and ideas about environmental and resource efficiency management from stakeholders and act upon them where appropriate. 3.5 Implement costing strategies to fully value environmental assets.
Element:	4. Monitor performance.
Performance Criteria:	4.1 Document outcomes and communicate reports on targets to key personnel and stakeholders. 4.2 Evaluate strategies. 4.3 Set new targets and investigate and apply new tools and strategies. 4.4 Promote successful strategies and reward participants where possible.

Learning Outcomes

In this unit you will be required to develop the skills and knowledge to address processes and techniques necessary to implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices, including the development of processes and tools.

It includes:

• Indentifying areas for improvement
• Developing plans to make improvements
• Implementing and monitoring improvements in environmental performance

Details of Learning Activities

Environmental Assessment Audit, assessing ethical workplace criteria, current sustainability theories in relation to fashion industry and retail environment, hands-on workshop in creative design & recycling.

Teaching Schedule

Week 1:
Introduction to unit.
Assessment Requirements.
Film: An Inconvenient Truth

Week 2:
Approaches to Sustainability
People, Planet, Profit (Triple Bottom Line)
Cradle to Cradle principles
Overview of Environmental Law and international assessment criteria for Environmental standards and the crediting organisations.

Week 3:
The retail environment
Trend Analysis – Fashion & Sustainable possibilities.
Sustainability and the consumer
Reducing the impact of use phase
Marketing sustainability: Green washing & transparency
Assignment: Review the Australian retail environment, include international comparisons and give oral feedback in Week 4.

Week 4:
Classroom feedback of Australian & international retail environment.
Ethics & Fashion Production
Human Rights and Workers Rights Issues in the industry + Sites of connection with environmental violations + Health & Safety
Film: China Blue

Week 5:
Ethical Production: Auditing for Ethics – (Worldwide Responsible Apparel Production - W.R.A.P.)
Fairtrade principles
Corporate Social Responsibility models
Ethical Fashion organizations & crediting organisations
Outworkers and fair wages & conditions (No Sweat Shop)

Week 6:
Overview of fibres in relation to sustainability:
Manufactured fibres, Natural Fibres and Fibre ‘alternatives’.
New textiles and Fabric Technologies.
CSIRO Research
Innovations in Production

Week 7:
Rethinking Fast: Slow Fashion, Slow Design
Principles of Biomimicry in design.
Design-led alternatives, multifunctional clothes

Week 8: Local and/or Global:
User Creator possibilities
Fashion on Demand & Mass customisation
Bioregionalism & the global supply chain
Transport & carbon footprinting

Week 9:
Workshop (Otto von Busch – Fashion Hacktivism) Creative design possibilities with fashion leftovers.

Week 10: Reduce, reuse and recycle (+ rethink):
The Fashion Cycle
Life Cycle Analyses

Weeks 11:
Reduce, reuse and recycle (+ rethink):
Waste management strategies, waste disposal & resource efficiency issues.
The global textile recycling chain.
Industrial ecology.

Week 12:
Reduce, reuse and recycle (+ rethink):
Precycling, packaging & Design strategies

Week 13:
Standardising Environmental Factors in Fashion manufacturing
Introduction to EMS ISO 14001 (+ ISO 19011)
Principles of Auditing

Week 14:
ISO 14001
Practical application of auditing
(Audit preparation, surveys, post-audit & CAP) Monitoring

Week 15:
ISO 14001: Presentation of Audit plans & report.

Week 16: Degrees of Sustainability?
Revision and Conclusion.
Evaluation

Learning Resources

Prescribed Texts

References

Sustainable Fashion & Textiles Design Journeys, Kate Fletcher
Eco-chic the fashion paradox, Sandy Black
Slow Living, Perkins
Sustainable Fashion: Why Now? Janet Hethorn & Connie Ulasewicz
Designers, visionaries & other stories, A collection of sustainable design essays, Jonathan Chapman & Nick Grant
Environmental Management Systems: A Step by Step Guide to Implementation and Maintenance, Christopher Sheldon & Mark Yoxon
Biomimicry, Janine M. Benyus
Bioregional Solutions: For living on one planet, Pooran Desai
Environmental Law (Nutshells), Brenda Short
Modern Environmentalism: An Intro, David Pepper

Other Resources

Overview of Assessment

Detailed course and assessment requirements and information will be made available to you first week of class. Specific details will be explained to you during scheduled classes.

This course comprises both practical and theory components. You will be expected to attend and participate in class activities.


As well as class activities you will be required to undertake research and assessment practice outside of regular class times and participate in formal assessment tasks.


PLEASE NOTE: work that has not been authenticated during class as your own work will not be considered for assessment.

Assessment Tasks

1. Write up an environmental audit plan, schedule & report.
2. Short essay: Applying theory to practice.
3. Participation in class discussion & engagement with subject area + Retail environment oral feedback.
4. Participation in workshop (Design Recycling) + prototype product

Assessment Matrix

	Workshop: Creative Design & Recycling + prototype product (30%)	Environmental audit plan & report (30%)	Participation & Engagement with subject area + Retail environment feedback (30%)	Short        essay  (10%)
Investigate current practices in relation to resource usage.		X	X	X
Set targets for improvements		X	X
Implement performance improvement strategies.	X	X
Monitor performance.		X	X

Course Overview: Access Course Overview