They risk derailing fashion’s sustainability goals, deepening reliance on fossil fuels and disrupting global supply chains. Can global efforts and private sector resilience prevail?
On 20 January, his first day in office, President Donald Trump withdrew the US from the Paris Agreement; declared a national energy emergency to expedite the permitting process for oil, gas and power infrastructure projects; and proposed the loosening of emissions regulations through executive orders. Together, these moves represent a seismic US policy shift with profound implications for the fashion industry, threatening to derail progress on climate goals, deepen reliance on fossil fuels and disrupt global trade dynamics.
Trump’s Paris Agreement pull-out marks a major setback for global climate efforts, says Julia Hughes, president of the United States Fashion Industry Association. The
international treaty, signed in 2016, aims to limit global warming to below 2°C — with ambitions for 1.5°C — by achieving net-zero emissions by mid-century. For the fashion
industry, the US’s withdrawal (its second: Trump withdrew in 2020, before the Biden administration rejoined in 2021) complicates the path to net-zero emissions goals.
“The big question is whether the actions by President Trump will ;have an impact globally or will the main impact be only here in the US,” she says.
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Trump’s policies could hinder US innovation in critical areas like climate tech and circular business models, ultimately weakening the country’s competitiveness in a global market increasingly driven by green technologies. Looser environmental regulations may also diminish the incentive for the apparel sector to invest in research and development of more sustainable raw textile materials, including those incorporating recycled fibres, according to Dr Sheng Lu, director in the department of fashion and apparel studies at the University of Delaware.