Earth Overshoot Day 2025 – we are living beyond our means
On Earth Overshoot Day—the day on which humanity has used up all the resources the Earth can regenerate in one year—an uncomfortable truth becomes visible:
We are living far beyond our means.
The rest of the year is symbolically “borrowed” – from future generations, exploited ecosystems, and a natural world that has long since reached its limits.
In 2025, Earth Overshoot Day falls on July 24 – far too early once again.
To be precise: a whole day earlier than in 2024.
What does this mean?
We are consuming water, soil, air, and raw materials much faster than they can regenerate.
The way we consume is not sustainable – it is excessive.
And that was one of the reasons we founded wijld 10 years ago. Since then, we have been making clothing that is not simply less harmful, but actually makes a difference.
Instead of relying on conventional cotton or cheap synthetics, we primarily use an alternative, sustainable natural fiber: wood. Responsibly sourced, with an almost closed production cycle – particularly durable, exceptionally soft, and gentle on the skin.
The result:
Since our first shirt, we have achieved a great deal together with our community:
488,712,000 liters of water saved – enough drinking water for around 10,650 people for an entire year!
6,841,968 kg of CO₂ saved – enough to drive around the Earth by car 1,307 times!
73,307 liters of chemicals saved – roughly equivalent to 489 foul-smelling, toxic bathtubs full!
Figures that show something:
There is another way. Not perfect, but better.
Not at the expense of the environment, but in harmony with it.
Overshoot does not begin on a grand scale – it begins with the small things.
With what we wear. What we buy. And with the question of whether we can still justify our consumption – or whether we are simply continuing out of habit.
Today, the fashion industry accounts for around 10 % of global CO₂ emissions – more than all international flights and shipping combined. It is also responsible for 20% of industrial water pollution. Around 92 million tons of textile waste end up in landfills worldwide every year.
Almost every second, an entire truckload of clothing is discarded somewhere – usually far away from us. The ecological and social consequences are devastating.
Synthetic fibers also release microplastics, which enter the ocean through washing machines – with serious consequences:
🐟 Animals mistake microplastics for food – fish, mussels, and even plankton ingest them. This can disrupt their digestion, causing them to starve – with full stomachs.
🧬 Plastic accumulates in the food chain – from plankton to humans. Studies show that we also ingest microplastics through seafood, salt, and drinking water.
🧪 Microplastics carry pollutants into the ocean – such as pesticides and plasticizers. These can be toxic and disrupt the hormonal systems of living organisms.
🌊 Ecosystems are thrown out of balance – microplastics affect habitats such as coral reefs and seagrass meadows, which help bind CO₂ and preserve biodiversity.
And last but not least: clothing has become emotionally overloaded – often serving as compensation, self-expression, or a reward. At the same time, the value we attach to each garment is declining.
The result: more and more, faster and faster – increasingly meaningless.
A T-shirt may be just a small thing, but the impact it can have is enormous.
Of course, we know that one shirt will not save the world.
But it can be a statement: against disposable fashion, against empty promises, and against the misconception that growth must be limitless.
We want fashion that lasts – in the wardrobe, in the conscience, and in our sense of responsibility.
And we hope that Earth Overshoot Day will one day move further and further back.
Year after year. Shirt after shirt.
Thank you for being part of this movement, because:
Every shirt counts!
