More About Arcadia Apparel

Learn more about Arcadia Apparel.
WHAT IS PROJECT PLANT IT B?

Not just a clever play on words, we recognize the vital roles trees have on Earth and have teamed up with One Tree Planted to help plant trees around the world when and where they're needed most. To-date, with the help of our partners, we've planted in excess of 800,000 trees to help restore forests in BC, Canada. Project Plant It B is planting 10 trees with every order, forever.

WHY PLANT TREES?

  • Trees help clean the air we breathe, filter the water we drink, and provide habitat to over 80% of the world's terrestrial biodiversity.
    Forests provide jobs to over 1.6 billion people, absorb harmful carbon from the atmosphere, and are key ingredients in 25% of all medicines. Have you ever taken an Aspirin? It comes from the bark of a tree!
Here are the six pillars that explain why trees are vital:
    • AIR: Trees help to clean the air we breathe. Through their leaves and bark, they absorb harmful pollutants and release clean oxygen for us to breathe. In urban environments, trees absorb pollutant gases like nitrogen oxides, ozone, and carbon monoxide, and sweep up particles like dust and smoke. Increasing levels of carbon dioxide caused by deforestation and fossil fuel combustion trap heat in the atmosphere. Healthy, strong trees act as carbon sinks, offset carbon and reducing the effects of climate change.   
    • WATER: Trees play a key role in capturing rainwater and reducing the risk of natural disasters like floods and landslides. Their intricate root systems act like filters, removing pollutants and slowing down the water’s absorption into the soil. This process prevents harmful waterslide erosion and reduces the risk of over-saturation and flooding. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Association, a mature evergreen tree can intercept more than 15,000 litres of water every year.  
    • BIODIVERSITY: A single tree can be home to hundreds of species of insect, fungi, moss, mammals, and plants. Depending on the kind of food and shelter they need, different forest animals require different types of habitat. Without trees, forest creatures would have nowhere to call home.
    a) Young, Open Forests: These forests occur as a result of fires or logging. Shrubs, grasses, and young trees attract animals like black bears, the American goldfinch, and bluebirds in North America.

    b) Middle-Aged Forests: In middle-aged forests, taller trees begin to outgrow weaker trees and vegetation. An open canopy allows for the growth of ground vegetation prefered by animals like salamanders, elk, and tree frogs.
     
    c) Older Forests: With large trees, a complex canopy, and a highly developed understory of vegetation, old forests provide habitat for an array of animals, including bats, squirrels, and many birds.
    • SOCIAL IMPACT: From arborists to loggers and researchers, the job opportunities provided by the forestry industry are endless. We don’t just rely on trees for work, though. Sustainable tree farming provides timber to build homes and shelters, and wood to burn for cooking and heating. Food-producing trees provide fruit, nuts, berries, and leaves for consumption by both humans and animals, and pack a powerful nutritional punch.
    • HEALTH: Did you know that hospital patients with rooms overlooking trees recover faster than those without the same view? It’s impossible to ignore that feeling of elation you get while walking through a calm, quiet forest. Trees help reduce stress and anxiety, and allow us to reconnect with nature. In addition, shade provided by tree coverage helps protect our skin from the ever-increasing harshness of the sun.
    • CLIMATE: Trees help cool the planet by sucking in and storing harmful greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into their trunks, branches, and leaves — and releasing oxygen back into the atmosphere. In cities, trees can reduce ambient temperatures by up to 8° Celsius. With more than 50% of the world’s population living in cities — a number expected to increase to 66% by the year 2050 — pollution and overheating are becoming a real threat. Fortunately, a mature tree can absorb an average of 22lbs of carbon dioxide per year, making cities a healthier, safer place to live.

    WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE (SLOW) FASHION?

    Also known as "slow fashion", sustainable fashion is an umbrella term for creative solutions to problems within the clothing and fashion industry's sustainability efforts. It addresses everything from production and shipping to farming and ethics regarding the environment, people and industry.

    WHAT IS CIRCULAR (LEAN) MANUFACTURING?
    Circular manufacturing (lean manufacturing) is a sustainable model that extends the life and use of materials and goods to minimize waste and energy and resource usage. Circular manufacturing may include: converting to a renewable power source; adopting predictive maintenance to extend the condition and longevity of equipment; and sharing equipment with other plants and businesses.

    WHAT IS CIRCULARITY?
    Circularity is the principle that used or discarded products serve as raw materials for new products or materials. By participating in a circular economy, we focus on preserving the value of raw materials, components, and products from the ground up.

    WHAT IS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY?

    Circular economy image design
    A circular economy reduces material use, redesigns materials to be less resource intensive, and recaptures “waste” as a resource to manufacture new materials and products without sacrificing the quality. (Image courtesy of Sustainable Global Resources Ltd. Recycling Council of Ontario)

    WHY USE REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE?
    Regenerative agriculture is a conservation and rehabilitation approach to farming systems (Systems like farming cotton). It focuses on topsoil regeneration, increasing biodiversity, improving the water cycle, enhancing ecosystem services, supporting biosequestration, increasing resilience to climate change, and strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil. "Such microscopic. Very organisms. Many nutes. Wow." - Doge

    WHY WE USE ORGANIC COTTON
    Organic cotton farming solves a variety of issues created by modern cotton farming.
    • Organic crops require healthy soil. Healthy soil is the foundation of a healthy environment
    • Regenerative farming techniques do not include the use of toxic chemicals and pesticides
    • Regenerative farming feeds the soil with vital minerals and nutrients. Techniques like crop rotation give it a greater, natural ability to hold on to water and to sequester (reduce) greenhouse gas

    WHY WE USE RECYCLABLE AND BIODEGRADABLE MATERIALS
    When materials like plastic, polyester, rayon, nylon, etc. are discarded, they take hundreds of years to break down; if at all, emit excess greenhouse gas and can leak chemicals (chemicals like EDCs) into the environment when they are disposed of improperly.

    • Recycling synthetic materials reduces synthetic material waste by reusing them in production rather than shipping them to another country or incinerating them in the atmosphere
    • Recycling materials requires less energy than sourcing new/virgin materials
    • We do not use antimicrobials on the finish of any item
    • We use water-based, bio-degradable neo-pigment inks by Kornit on all of our designs. The inks and dyes are GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) approved and are free of heavy metals, formaldehyde and (APE) Alkylphenol Ethoxylates

    What is Recycled Polyester?
    Recycled polyester is a fabric that’s produced from synthetic fibres. Recycled polyester is produced by recycling existing materials (like plastic bottles and polyester-based clothing) but still has all the characteristics and performance of virgin polyester, making it a more sustainable fabric alternative.

    How is Recycled Polyester Made?
    Recycled polyester is made by crushing plastic products into small pieces. These small pieces are then processed into yarn, transformed into fiber, and in the end—made into a fabric.

    WHAT IS UPCYCLING
    ": to recycle (something) in such a way that the resulting product is of a higher value than the original item : to create an object of greater value from (a discarded object of lesser value)" - Merriam Webster

    In a nutshell, it's neat way to describe creative reuse.

    WHY EVERYTHING IS MADE-TO-ORDER

    • A classic, less-is-more scenario. Everything is made to order which means we only produce and ship when you complete an order
    • Not ordering clothing and accessories in bulk reduces overproduction waste
    • It adds a personal touch to the feels. Every order is made exclusively for you, from us. Nothing is premade and it's designed by hand from the best in the biz

    GO-GO GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION CENTERS

    • Having distribution centers around the world shortens the shipping distance and delivery times helping reduce greenhouse gasses produced in transport

    SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING AND UNCLAIMED ORDERS

    • We use 100% recyclable packaging
    • We reduce space waste by not using an excessive amount of void-fill (cushioning) when packing and fulfilling orders
    • When we have an unclaimed order, we reuse the materials or donate unclaimed clothing to goodwill projects like homeless shelters, halfway houses and second-hand outlets
      WHERE WE PLANT TREES
      • North America
      • South America
      • Asia
      • Africa
      • Europe
      • The Pacific
        GRATEFUL, EVERY DAY <3

        Without you, there is no us. Thank you to everyone involved in making Arcadia a reality.

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