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This International German Gymnastics Festival in Leipzig continues to think of fairness – far beyond sporting competition. As part of the major sporting event, the Fair Wear Works project sets the idea of fairness in motion with a large-scale campaign – and puts the challenges of the textile industry in the spotlight. The message: Fairness does not end at the edge of the field.
“Because each working day is stressful, I usually cry when I get home from work.” This is how a woman working in Indonesia’s footwear industry described her daily life. On the other side of Asia, a garment worker in Bangalore shared how intense production pressure affects not just her health, but her sleep and appetite.
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Doughnut Economy, Plural Economics, Earth4All – the fashion interACTION Action Meeting on 10 May 2025 was all about alternative economic models that combine social justice and environmental sustainability.
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From 30 April to 4 May 2025, we were able to attend the Evangelical Church Congress in Hanover – and the impressions are still having an impact. For three days, FEMNET was in the Centre of Youth represented with a stand.
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Amsterdam/Florence/Cologne. The campaign for clean clothing, shareholders for change and the umbrella organisation of critical shareholders call on Adidas AG to comply with workers' rights in the global supply chain before the Annual General Meeting on May 15. Workers in Myanmar and Cambodia report human rights violations such as wage theft, illegal layoffs and obstruction of trade union activities.
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Berlin. On his inaugural visit to Brussels last Friday, Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced his intention to abolish the German Supply Chain Act (LkSG). He also spoke out clearly against the planned EU Supply Chain Directive (CSDDD). A broad civil society alliance reacts with strong protest – and launches the petition “No profits without conscience - protect human rights and the environment!”
The 2024 annual report is entitled 'Together we are strong'. In these challenging times, this commitment is important. It is to be feared that the shift to the right in Europe and Trump as US President will have a negative impact on women's rights. It is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve change as political and financial challenges increase. This makes it all the more important for us, as a civil society, to stick together and stand in solidarity against adversity.
On April 24, 2013, the Rana Plaza building in Savar, Bangladesh, collapsed. More than 1,100 people died and more than 2,500 were injured. For the first time, the world looked at the devastating conditions in the global fashion industry, but only for a moment. The grievances persist. How we make them visible and encourage companies to act.
Ten years ago, Dr Gisela Burckhardt published ‘Deathly fashion and morality – why expensive does not mean equally fair’. The book exposes the widespread misconception that expensive brand fashion is automatically produced under fair conditions, and is therefore alarmingly up-to-date.
FEMNET is a member of the Supply Chain Act initiative. Here we publish the joint statement of this initiative on the coalition agreement between the CDU/CSU and the SPD published on April 9, 2025.
‘Men and women are equal.’ This is what Article 3 of the Basic Law states – and furthermore: ‘The state promotes the effective enforcement of equal rights for women and men and works towards the elimination of existing disadvantages.’ Is this the case in Germany? No. Gender equality remains a project and has not yet been achieved. Bonn is particularly behind.
© Kann Kaung / Myanmar Now
Myanmar is currently facing a double crisis: The devastating earthquake on 28 March 2025 claimed over 2,886 lives (as of 2 April 2025) and triggered a serious humanitarian catastrophe. Buildings, hospitals and roads are destroyed, communication routes are interrupted. For many activists and trade unionists, the earthquake is adding to an already threatening situation. They are not only victims of the destruction caused by the quake, but also continue to be the target of oppression and persecution by the military junta. Just hours after the quake, the junta continued its bombings in the Karen State, an area where many resistance fighters are present.
