The World Is on Fire But We're Still Buying Shoes is Alec Leach's unflinching attempt to answer the question the fashion industry would rather you didn't ask: why do we keep shopping when we know the damage it causes?
About This Book
Fashion's environmental toll is well documented, yet consumer appetite shows no sign of cooling. Leach — a former editor at Highsnobiety and founder of sustainable fashion platform @future__dust — is better positioned than most to diagnose the contradiction. This compact but pointed book maps the psychological and commercial machinery that keeps us hungry: sneaker hype cycles, greenwashing tactics, and the deeper cultural logic of consumerism. Drawing on thinkers from Karl Marx to mindfulness practitioners, it builds toward a manifesto for slower, more intentional consumption — one that doesn't simply morалise but reframes what shopping actually is, and what it could stop being. Essential reading for anyone working at the intersection of design, material culture, and sustainability.
Key Features
- 114 pages of essay-driven analysis tracing consumerism, greenwashing, and sneaker culture
- Written by Alec Leach, former Highsnobiety editor and founder of @future__dust
- Published by Alec Leach, ISBN 9781736667613
What You'll Discover
- How fashion brands manufacture desire through hype mechanics and scarcity, keeping consumers in a permanent state of wanting
- The specific techniques of greenwashing — and why feel-good campaigns so effectively obscure systemic harm
- A thread connecting Karl Marx's theories of commodity fetishism to contemporary sneaker culture and social media identity
- A practical framework for intentional consumption that redefines shopping as a deliberate act rather than a reflexive one
About the Author
Alec Leach is a former fashion editor at Highsnobiety, one of the leading publications covering streetwear and contemporary style. He is also the founder of @future__dust, a platform dedicated to sustainable fashion. The World Is on Fire But We're Still Buying Shoes is his attempt to reconcile his deep familiarity with fashion's seductive systems with an honest accounting of their costs.
Specifications
- Format: Softcover
- Pages: 114
- Dimensions: 18 x 11 cm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9781736667613
- Publisher: Alec Leach
- Publication Date: [Details available upon request]
Perfect For: Fashion designers, design students, and cultural critics grappling with sustainability, material ethics, and the psychology of consumer culture.