By now, you probably feel exasperated with the word ‘sustainability.’ What classifies as a sustainable brand? One thing is for sure, it isn’t as easy as opting for paper bags instead of plastic packaging or plastering green thumb messages on your page’s feed as a reminder of ‘mindfulness’ yet forgetting the essence of the word itself.

The word gets tossed around very often without truly understanding how sustainability is rooted from the choice of materials, to the ethical production (mostly to support underpaid laborers) down to the way your product communicates its message to the public. It’s a conscious cycle we have to uphold no matter how big or small your business is. Swedish retail brand H&M has been targeted by eco-friendly organizations ever since for the irony of their initiatives—pushing their Conscious line while remaining among the ranks of the earth’s top waste contributors for their excessive production just to cater to fast fashion’s fleeting needs.

‘Greenwashing’ is a trend most brands try to jump in to but not all of them have the success rate to sustain. Sounds overwhelming? Start small. Research on materials that both have amazing quality and affordable rate yet are ethically sourced and recyclable. Then, identify what your brand stands for. But never forget the afterlife of these products too. Of course we want our garments to last forever but we all know it decomposes and can sit in landfills for the next few hundred years. You can work around this by looking into recycling schemes, upcycling or donating them to those in need.

As complex as it sounds, we are left with no other choice—and 2020 pretty much proves it. In 30 years, there will be more than 9 billion people on the planet, leaving resources continuously depleting and being in an industry churning out endless supplies of waste. Honestly, the world really isn’t crying out for another pair of overpriced calf-skin leather boots. With this in mind, you’ll be surprised to know how much every little course of action matters. Take responsibility and normalize changing the system.