South-North Conversations | Decolonising Sustainability Journalism
South–North Conversations examines the impact of fast fashion and waste colonialism, focusing on the unequal representation of African countries in sustainability journalism.
The project aims to challenge dominant Western narratives and elevate the voices of experts from the Global South, addressing the colonial biases often found in reporting.
Sustainability in Focus – A Decolonial Approach to Journalism
South–North Conversations explores fast fashion, waste colonialism, and the challenges of achieving fair reporting, particularly in African countries. Initiated by Kemi Fatoba, freelance journalist and founder of DADDY, a magazine for underrepresented perspectives in the media, she advocates for the decolonisation of sustainability journalism.
While sustainability journalism plays a crucial role in shaping our understanding of environmental and social issues, colonial patterns of thought are frequently reproduced, especially in coverage of the Global South. Western narratives often dominate, leaving the perspectives of the Global South marginalised. The goal of “South–North Conversations” is to address these inequalities and amplify the voices of experts from the Global South and North.
The research involved contributions from a range of experts, including Aja Barber, Chiponda Chimbelu (DW), Beatrace Angut Oola (Fashion Africa Now), Erica de Greef (African Fashion Research Institute), Monica Titton and Pumla Maswanganyi. These key figures provided insights into how media portrays fast fashion and waste issues and offered perspectives on sustainable solutions coming from the Global South.
Findings and Challenges
Fast Fashion relies on fast, cheap production, with clothes discarded after minimal use. A large amount of this waste ends up in the Global South, particularly in African countries that lack the infrastructure to deal with such vast amounts of textile waste. This practice, known as Waste Colonialism, refers to the export of waste from the Global North to the Global South, causing significant environmental and social harm. South–North Conversations investigates how these practices are portrayed in the media and how Western narratives may reinforce these injustices.
A major issue at play is white saviourism, where the Global North is presented as a rescuer, while people in the Global South are portrayed as helpless victims. These narratives ignore the agency, expertise and solutions that exist locally. In addition, Parachute Journalism, where journalists from the Global North report on crises in the South without fully understanding the context, often results in shallow reports that fail to capture the complex realities on the ground.
“South–North Conversations” analyses media coverage of Fast Fashion and Waste Colonialism, highlighting the lack of representation of BIPOC experts and voices from the Global South in sustainability journalism. Through interviews with experts from both the Global North and South, alternative perspectives are brought into the conversation and promote a more balanced dialogue.
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