Design for Sustainability in Fashion Design Education in Vietnam

The fashion industry is full of contradictions and presents unprecedented challenges related to the ethical and sustainable use of resources and pollution. Thus, Design for Sustainability in fashion has become a widely discussed topic on a global scale, in both academic and practical settings. Design for Sustainability, both theory and practice, is also becoming more and more crucial to the fashion industry. In Vietnam, however, the concept of sustainable design in fashion is still not widespread in education and design practice. In this context, higher education should be seen as a key factor to raise awareness among students and provide them with the knowledge and know-how to face the challenges and seize the opportunities to transform the fashion system into a more sustainable field. This research aims to, firstly, discover the awareness of students and graduates on Sustainable Fashion Design and, secondly, explore how design education can contribute to address and mitigate the negative impacts of the fashion industry in Vietnam. A questionnaire survey on Design for Sustainability awareness was conducted among students and graduates (n = 294) in fashion design and other design disciplines. In addition, a focus group was also held with educators and fashion professionals to discuss the role of design education in making the fashion industry in Vietnam more sustainable. Based on the results of this research, scenarios are developed that apply the principles of Design for Sustainability in fashion (e.g. designing sustainable fashion product/service systems, awareness, lifestyle, and design education). In addition, potential strategies to encourage design education towards sustainability in Vietnam and other ASEAN countries are also proposed.