Posted on November, 23 2018

In October 2018, Global Compact Network Germany, Global Compact Network Vietnam, Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, WWF-Vietnam, WWF-Germany joined forces to develop and organise a “Climate Action Training” for the textile industry in Vietnam. Five German fashion brands - adidas, HUGO BOSS, Otto Group, PUMA Group and VAUDE - together with the organisers mobilised ~80 participants from ~30 supplier factories to attend the 2.5 day training in Ho Chi Minh City. The brands were mostly present with one or more representatives as well. The training was delivered by Systain Consulting and financed by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. We thank all participants for a great event and hope that many concrete actions at the factories will be implemented as a direct result of the training.

The fashion industry contributes to 5% of the global greenhouse gas emissions. This is comparable to the emissions from the aviation sector or Russia. Up to 90% of emissions at fashion brands originate from the supply chain. Fashion brands often share suppliers. Climate Action as well as sustainability in general should therefore be a pre-competitive issue and collaboration within the value chain offers potential for innovation and efficiency gains. Therefore it is very much appreciated that the brands take this challenge jointly. Moreover taking action in the supply chain provides the opportunity for brands to reduce their scope 3 emissions.

The training focused on climate mitigation activities. The topics covered in the workshop are greenhouse gas accounting, greenhouse gas reduction target setting, energy efficiency and renewable energy sources. According to a Vietnamese analysis, there is 20% energy efficiency potential with no or with very little investment possible.
In the beginning, the brands provided inputs on their climate strategy and underlined the high relevance to tackle their scope 3 emissions. The training introduced first steps on how to improve energy efficiency and implement renewable energy. Practical walk-through guidelines for a textile factory were introduced and applied during working sessions. Climate target setting, e.g. science based targets, was a concept only familiar to one participating supplier. In the future setting science based targets might be of increasing relevance for brands and factories alike. A guidance document from the Science Based Targets Initiative for the textile industry is currently under development.

Discussions have shown that factories can often build upon already existing activities, especially on energy saving measures. However much more action is required in order to assess and reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly and take sustainable pathways in textile productions. Adopting renewable energies must play a key role. Factories might install roof-top solar equipment (photovoltaic – PV). Attractive models for financing PV equipment available in Vietnam were also introduced during the training (e.g. REBA, IFC).

83% of the participants considered the training relevant for their current activities, 87% considered a participation as useful and 88% said it raised awareness on climate and energy issues. The topics discussed ranged from tangible case studies from factories and their learning, the emission factor for electricity from grid, biogenic emissions to the necessity to provide practical and helpful tools to suppliers. The highest interest from the participants was on energy efficiency and examples from factories followed by setting up a greenhouse gas inventory and learning more about renewable energy solutions.

All training material can be downloaded here. A further use of the material is explicitly allowed and desired. 

Moreover, please check out ongoing activities of international, regional and national initiatives. Link to relevant initiatives:

• Clean Energy Investment Accelerator (CEIA) - www.cleanenergyinvest.org
• Science Based Targets (SBT) - https://sciencebasedtargets.org
• International Finance Corporation (IFC) - www.ifc.orgVietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) - https://e.vcci.com.vn