This Barbie cares for sustainability! 

Just as the rest of the world, you are probably also riding the wave of the biggest blockbuster movie taking over the world, grossing nearly $1.2 billion worldwide. Starting from the toy’s roller coaster influence on the feminist movement, all the way up to this film using a historical icon to spread a beautiful message on equality and feminism, Barbie’s significant cultural influence is undeniable. Coming from someone who was brought to tears by our queen America Fererra’s beautiful monologue, it hurts to bring a reality check to this Barbie Land, which is far from perfect yet. It’s all well and good to enjoy a good movie. But it is our responsibility as the viewers to separate the message of the film from the gold diggers trying to make money off of its back, while misusing our enthusiasm for it. As Weird Barbie rightly puts it- you’re supposed to want to know the truth. Okay? So, let’s get to the nitty-gritty. 

MATTEL – Life in plastic, not so fantastic? 

Before the movie turned the tides, Mattel and its Barbies were under fire for their toxicity, physical as well as mental. Physically, the toys are known to be toxic to children and have many adverse effects on the environment and biodiversity through their easily ingestible nano- and micro-plastics. Mentally, the doll has through time contributed directly and indirectly to numerous body image issues, and affecting generations of girls growing up thinking they need to fit a certain, skinnier body type. The doll and it’s various accessories also indoctrinate children with the belief that happiness is dependent on consumption. These children have then grown up into adults easily tricked into overconsumption for the sake of one film, and it turns into a vicious cycle. We cannot allow ourselves to get lost in Mattel’s marketing strategies and forget their still existing issues.

In response to the environmental issues, Mattel has rolled out its 2030 vision for sustainability, with many goals, including the biggest being to switch to completely 100% natural materials and recycled plastic by 2030. They have introduced a take back program in order to start this process of recycling the plastic, and have also highlighted other points of progress, such as including 95% Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified material in their packaging. They have also released a line of eco-career Barbies, made mostly of recycled plastic. While this can be applauded, recycled plastic does not necessarily negate the toxicity of the products, nor the adverse effects of plastic on the biodiversity and people. 

But we at COSH! have good news! Other toys exist. 

You can find sustainably produced, non-toxic toys for your kids at stores such as BUUF, De Krokodil, Lunabloom, and many more second hand stores which can be located on our COSH! store overview map. While doing so, you can also get 2 birds with 1 stone by investing in smaller, local brands and the local economy, bringing about a myriad of other positive sustainable effects with it automatically. 

Having addressed the Barbie toy’s innumerable issues, we now open up another can of worms- introducing, hyperconsumerism! The Barbie movie’s genius marketing team indirectly brought upon a temporary surge in the clothing trends across the world, bringing back colourful, synthetic, early 2000s inspired clothing. Everyone and their mother had the sudden uncontrollable urge to wear bold pink, because of course, how else will society know that you are cool?

Fast fashion and cosmetics brands jumped at the opportunity to capitalize on this temporary trend, churning out new collections immediately, all ready to paint the mountains of garment waste bright pink. Because let’s not get it mistaken, this trend surge will without a doubt add tremendously to the existing fashion waste piles in the Global South, worsening the effects of waste colonialism. Additionally, the high amounts of microplastic from these synthetic garments will eventually find their way back to us, into our bodies.

A quick Vinted search shows the speed of the turnover of these fast fashion Barbie garments, with the longest scroll down still only leading to garments uploaded 2 days ago. This only proves the naïveté of consumers and our susceptibility to the hyperconsumerist schemes of fast fashion brands. They try to keep us blind to the throng of problems that accompany our participation in seemingly ​“innocent” trends. 

Besides the obvious effects of the increase in synthetic garment waste on the biodiversity and environment, the ethical repercussions of this are many. The movie famously says ​“Barbie is all these women. And all these women are Barbie”, however we forget who actually takes the brunt of this trend surge; the Barbies and Kens at the bottom of the fashion food chain – the garment workers. Feeding into the schemes of the fast-fashion brands goes starkly against the entire point and message of the film of uplifting unheard voices. Even Barbie herself should start by asking ​“Who made me?”, because the answer may be not so beachy.

The movie itself received the Environmental Media Association (EMA) gold seal, suggesting high sustainability of the set and production. While we cannot know the validity of this statement without further details on the rather plastic‑y looking set, we would support watching a fun film rather than buying into the fast fashion brands profiting off of it. So we are here to assist you with finding more palatable alternatives -

If you feel like in-your-face pink is not your everyday colour, but don’t want to miss out on showing your camaraderie for this Barbie inspired feminist movement, let us introduce you to the magical world of clothing rental! A fail-safe way to hop on this bandwagon, or find your next Barbie movie inspired Halloween outfit, guilt free. Rent an outfit out of Lena Library​’s vast options in Barbie style clothing, or WAUWcloset​’s new summer collection of bright colours that personify Barbie.

If you want to incorporate Barbiecore into your wardrobe on a longer term, COSH! has a solution for you there as well. Check out Capsule Studio for bright power suits to wear while taking over the supreme court, or heck, wear one of their bright pink summer dresses, as another honorary Barbie – Elle Woods would endorse.

If you are minimalist Barbie (or Ken), check out Colorful Standard for sustainable high quality everyday basics, as they house every possible bright colour in the universe! 

If you really can’t resist wearing pink go for a Vintage Barbie look; you cannot miss out on SeventyOne Belgium or Oxfam, treasure troves of vintage inspired clothing, first and second hand; or Vintage Jungle for real vintage finds and ethereal Barbiecore items to feel like a princess.

You can also opt for luxury second hand clothing at De Ruilhoek, and be sustainable luxury Barbie or Ken.

Stilettos or Birkenstocks?

It seems many people have chosen to know the truth about the universe, if Birkenstock’s increase in sales are any indication. However, how much awareness does this brand bring you, really? You can find them at the PURE mechelen store, or a similar brand Asportuguesas at Zappa Antwerp; but if you truly want your eyes open, opt for a more sustainable eco-vegan brand Zouri, or Baabuk from any of the Supergoods stores you can find on the map. Explore our map for more sustainable shoe options!

Just as in the fast fashion industry, we are unaware of most of the details behind Barbie Land, aside from the pretty exterior. Behind the pink clothes lies a dark side of the consumption industry, that requires a lot more transparency. Here’s a free movie idea- Barbie avoids Barbie Land from becoming Barbie Landfills? Then she needs to start asking the right questions. This can only occur if we, as the consumers, demand it.

On an individual level, what we can do is take the feminist message of the movie as a metaphor for all underlying issues, and open our eyes to their truths. Afterall, one can’t have feminism without addressing everything else that falls in the bracket of sustainability, such as environmental impact, ethical treatment of garment workers, etc. So when the next big movie shakes up the garment trends, come to COSH! for ideas on how to make the most of the movie without falling for fast fashion’s un-Barbie-like schemes!

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