FS24_363-1060-00L Xi Huang

TASK 1: STATEMENT – ALTERNATIVE A [SWITZERLAND]; Company name: RenewedRaiment.

Our slogan “Reducing, repairing, reusing, recycling, and reimagining business practices.”
At RenewedRaiment, we are fully committed to embracing the principles of degrowth as a
cornerstone of our business ethos. Our dedication to degrowth stems from our recognition of the
detrimental effects of the coupling between economic growth and emissions, which perpetuate
relentless environmental degradation and social inequality. We envision a future where material
consumption is deliberately reduced to achieve more sustainable and equitable societies. Therefore,
our mission is centered around absolute decoupling, wherein missions should decrease during
economic growth. We are refining our business model to incorporate the practice of degrowth along
the entire value chain, celebrating core values revolving around the principles of reducing, repairing,
reusing, recycling, and reimagining business practices to minimize our ecological footprint and
promote social well-being.
In line with our commitment to degrowth, we have identified several key strategies that guide our
approach towards sustainability and resilience. Firstly, we are repositioning our value chain to embed
degrowth principles throughout our operations. This involves restructuring our management focused
on in sustainability, embracing a degrowth-oriented operation model, and promoting supplier
compliance to ensure our environmental and social targets are met. Secondly, we advocate for
product designs composed of more bio-based materials while consuming fewer resources. We
actively involve our customers in participating in our initiatives. We offer repair and trading-in
services to encourage our customers to buy less. Lastly, RenewedRaiment will allocate financial
capital to invest in projects for technical innovations to scale up the use of bio-based raw materials
and reduce carbon emissions along the supply chain.
Concrete steps are being taken to translate our commitment to degrowth into tangible actions.
RenewedRaiment hires more expertise in sustainability such as a Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO),
to guide our sustainability efforts and raise employee awareness. We also invite stakeholders to be
incorporated into our operations to promote crowdsourcing more efficient and sustainable design
and continuously set and monitor environmental and social targets for our suppliers to sustainability
at both environmental and social levels. Moreover, we actively advocate degrowth-adapted product
designs that embrace multifunctionality, quality, modularity, and circularity to minimize raw material
consumption and prolong the lifecycle of our products. We will gradually shift the use of raw
materials to recycled, renewable or bio-based ones while also offering worn-wear stores and
providing free repairs, refurbishments, and resale services to encourage customers to consume less.
Through these steps, we aim to reduce our energy consumption by at least 30% in degrowth practices
by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality no later than 2050.
In conclusion, our commitment to degrowth permeates every aspect of our business strategy,
reflecting our dedication to sustainability and resilience. Through our overarching commitment, key
strategies, and concrete steps, we are actively pursuing a future where business success is
measured not only by financial metrics but also by its positive impact on the environment and society.

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FS24_363-1060-00L Xi Huang

TASK 2: REFLECTION

1. What are your first thoughts about the idea of degrowth? Are they mostly positive or negative?
Degrowth is deemed necessary but very difficult to implement on a global scale. The current state
of the world urgently addresses a climate emergency as we stand perilously close to irreversible
tipping points. Waiting for groundbreaking technologies is not a viable option given the pace of
development and uncertainties. Drawing from my own experience as a future young architect, I
strongly advocate for degrowth, particularly in the Building & Construction sector. Minimizing
material use, pursuing regenerative and bio-based materials, maximizing the potential of
recycling and reuse, and promoting modularity and clarity are fundamentally crucial to addressing
the climate crisis.
However, I perceive it as utopian due to numerous challenges and its impracticality in the short
run, particularly in developing countries like China, where I am from. Economic growth is essential
to ensure basic living conditions and healthcare for citizens. For instance, the immense housing
demand driven by a large population and rapid urbanization compels continuous construction.
Moreover, there is a lack of environmental and social sustainability consciousness among the
public, largely influenced by the government's emphasis on economic expansion over
sustainability. The absence of robust regulations or policies, low transparency, and inadequate
education exacerbate these challenges.
2. What are key challenges in implementing a degrowth strategy?
1) Carbon and social inequality make it difficult to achieve degrowth globally.
• Resource inequality: Economic growth is inevitable in the global south, leading to increased
resource consumption.
• Emissions disparity: Emissions are not evenly distributed globally, requiring different
approaches for reduction. Additional methods beyond degrowth are necessary.
• Carbon inequality: The wealthiest 10% of the world's population contribute the most to
climate change (accounting for 50% of GHGs), while the poorest 50% are responsible for only
around 10% of total emissions (Oxfam, 2020, "Confronting Carbon Inequality"). Achieving
degrowth would require transferring wealth from rich to poor countries, a proposition that is
politically and extremely implausible.
2) Radical changes are required in the economy and society.
• Shift in public values: Limited knowledge and awareness about the urgency of the climate
crisis and the effects of degrowth hinder public adoption of lifestyle changes. Moreover, the
international political economy strongly advocates economic growth and technological
innovation, undermining cultural shifts.
• Decoupling economic growth and emissions: Transitioning to a model where the economy
expands while emissions decrease is crucial. However, developed countries primarily
promote green growth and technological innovation.
• Business perspectives: Many business leaders consider degrowth unthinkable, viewing
growth as an economic necessity. They argue that any threat to growth undermines not only
business but also societal functioning.

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3. Reflecting on the course and the collective answers to the reflection questions:
 What surprised you the most?
One thing from this course that surprised me the most is that sustainability is present in all areas
at multiple levels, especially concerning social sustainability such as working conditions, which
are often underrated. Despite my master study focus on improving sustainability in the built
environment, I’ve realized my understanding toward sustainability is still very limited and
recognized the importance for interdisciplinary cooperation.
have limited my understanding of sustainability to energy consumption, economy, or
environment, even though lot of topics in my master study are to improved sustainability in built
environment.
Another surprising aspect is that achieving sustainability targets for corporations is far more
complicated than I initially thought, but it can lead to profound differences. Lastly, conventional
reduction measures alone couldn’t achieve net zero emissions before or even beyond 2050
because there are still small percentages of remaining emissions that are difficult to avoid.
Therefore, it is urgent to develop CDR technology, scale it up, and promote it in the market.
 Has your perspective on the role of companies in the environment and our society changed
during the course? If so, how?
Yes. Companies actually bear more responsibility in achieving a sustainable environment and
society. The role of companies in the environment and society gradually changes from a focus on
economic objectives for profit maximization to a broader recognition of their responsibilities for
sustainability practices to minimize environmental impacts, promote social welfare, and
contribute to sustainable development. My perspective has changed in the following aspects:
• Corporate sustainability doesn’t solely focus on environmental aspects but also includes
social and governance dimensions. Even though the fundamental objective for a company is
to increase financial capital, long-term success requires effective and continuous actions to
reduce carbon emissions while ensuring decent labor and working conditions.
• It is necessary for companies to integrate sustainable practices into the entire value chain,
including logistics & transportation, working conditions, supply chain, R&D, and others. They
need to select and prioritize the right initiatives to reduce emissions in various scopes. More
efforts improving their supply chain are required such as sustainable sourcing, improving
efficiency in production, optimizing transportation routes etc.
• Transparently disclosing companies’ performance in sustainability through reporting could
facilitate positive competitiveness in industries, speeding up the transition to sustainable
practices.
• Companies face multiple challenges in transitioning to sustainable practices, particularly in
the context of the urgent need to address the climate crisis. Cooperation among stakeholders
and investment in research and development for technological innovations become necessary.