Ecosia x Tees4Trees
Photo by Olena Sergienko on Unsplash
Ecosia is proving that a search engine can save the world—no, really.
The search engine platform has garnered worldwide attention for the value it places in its environmental goals—particularly, for the company’s decision to invest all of its advertising profits into planting trees around the globe.
Most recently, Ecosia has branched out into the fashion space by launching its first-ever t-shirt fashion collection called Tees4Trees. The style collaboration partnered with eight visual artists—many of whom depict their own relationship to nature through their art—to design the one-of-a-kind shirts.
The t-shirts are made from 100% organic cotton and were developed within socially responsible factories that prioritize the use of renewable energy. Not only does the effort aim to empower this particularly thoughtful group of artists, but it also aims to give back even more to the Earth—for every tee purchased from TeeMill, the company has committed to plant 20 trees in biodiversity hotspots, and in partnership with local communities.
The eight artists tasked with designing the tees include: Marcello Velho from Brighton, UK; Liv Lee from Sydney, Australia; Grace Owen from Louisiana, US; Jordan Kay from Seattle, US; Yeye Weller from Münster, Germany; Gregory Page from Geneva, Switzerland; Clémence Gouy from Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Hola Lou from Merida, Mexico.
Each artist was provided with an “open brief” to brainstorm on the design, and center it on their own relationship to nature and the greater world. Many of the designs revolved around themes like climate activism, intersectional environmentalism and wildlife protection, among others.
Hannah Wickes, Chief Marketing Officer at Ecosia, spoke to the overall goal of the collaboration, saying: “From deciding which search engine you use, to how to book a holiday, to the clothes you wear, every action in our lives can impact the climate crisis and contribute to the health or destruction of the planet. The launch of Ecosia’s first-ever fashion collection aims to allow users to plant more trees while at the same time raising awareness of environmental issues through the visual storytelling created by the eight artists that have designed the t-shirts.”
Wickes continued in saying that: “TEES4TREES is an example of how it’s possible to collaborate with different partners to use their unique service to achieve a shared objective. With our tree-planting team, TeeMill’s sustainable clothing-producing principles and the visual artists’ powerful activism tools, it is possible to produce t-shirts that stand to create change and campaign for climate justice. In these pressing times, collaborations like these are more important than ever.”
The original designs will be printed on tees from Ecosia’s clothing partner, TeeMill—a brand which creates t-shirts using 100% Global Organic Textile Standard certified organic cotton in factories that are SA8000 certified.
TeeMill also relies on circular design principles. As a result, once an Ecosia t-shirt is worn out, it can then be sent back to Teemill to be recycled into a brand-new product.
For more information on Ecosia, the brand’s Tees4Tress collection or to purchase one of the specially designed shirts, visit www.ecosiashop.com.