Fibershed

Growing a Movement of Farmers, Fashion Activists, and Makers for a New Textile Economy

By: Rebecca Burgess

Narrated by: Tia Rider

Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

A new "farm-to-closet" vision for the clothes we wear - by a leader in the movement for local textile economies

There is a major disconnect between what we wear and our knowledge of its impact on land, air, water, labor, and human health. Even those who value access to safe, local, nutritious food have largely overlooked the production of fiber, dyes, and the chemistry that forms the backbone of modern textile production. While humans are 100 percent reliant on their second skin, it’s common to think little about the biological and human cultural context from which our clothing derives. 

Almost a decade ago, weaver and natural dyer Rebecca Burgess developed a project focused on wearing clothing made from fiber grown, woven, and sewn within her bioregion of North Central California. As she began to network with ranchers, farmers, and artisans, she discovered that even in her home community there was ample raw material being grown to support a new regional textile economy with deep roots in climate change prevention and soil restoration. A vision for the future came into focus, combining right livelihoods and a textile system based on economic justice and soil carbon enhancing practices. Burgess saw that we could create viable supply chains of clothing that could become the new standard in a world looking to solve the climate crisis. 

In Fibershed readers will learn how natural plant dyes and fibers such as wool, cotton, hemp, and flax can be grown and processed as part of a scalable, restorative agricultural system. They will also learn about milling and other technical systems needed to make regional textile production possible. Fibershed is a resource for fiber farmers, ranchers, contract grazers, weavers, knitters, slow-fashion entrepreneurs, soil activists, and conscious consumers who want to join or create their own fibershed and topple outdated and toxic systems of exploitation.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 Rebecca Burgess (P)2019 Chelsea Green Publishing

Great with two notes for improvement

Really informative, well-written & well-narrated - but would have liked the audiobook to include the appendix and some names were mispronounced.

Amazing!

Wow this is a must-read. I loved it. I learned a ton and will be sharing with my friends and family. Such a powerful and important book!

A functional vision for sustainable textiles

This book covers a wide range of considerations that SHOULD be part of our decision to buy and wear clothing, but rarely are. Rebecca has the experience necessary to explain a functional plan for moving toward sustainable and ethical sourcing of textiles and clothing, and she discusses the work that she has achieved already through the Fibershed organization. Hopefully this type of thinking will catch on, and more people will associate the purchase of clothes with an opportunity to lessen our impact on the planet, and in some ways, actually help the planet.

Sanctimonious author

The author's sanctimonious tone and repeated assertions of originality of thought are off putting.

Helped me change my career paty

The narrator was serious but it was still enjoyable to listen to. I’ve had the physical book of of Fibershed on my wishlist and I am very glad I got to listen to it as well. The experiences and knowledge shared by Rebecca helped solidy that I want my career to be sustainable fiber and fabric production. Thank you Rebecca!

Interested In Sustainable Life, Not Just Food?

I already knew that finding 100% cotton clothing was challenging. I've never attempted to find natural clothing completely sourced from farm to factory to consumer within the United States, let alone within my immediate geographic area. I only marginally paid attention to conventional cotton as a GMO crop. The author makes a compelling case to not only look toward eating locally, but clothing yourself locally. She also takes the reader through why clothing manufacturing left the United States, and whether or not it can ever come back. A good read for those interested in the clothing industry or sustainable living. The narration was very good and clear. I never had any trouble understanding the reader.

Blahhhh just another generic sustainability book

If you want a book that rehashes basic facts about environmental sustainability with only a sprinkling of useful information about how modern fiber production plays into manufacturing’s ecological footprint,then this is the book for you. You won’t learn anything about fiber or shepherding that you couldn’t learn from a Wikipedia page. This is not a book that enhances creativity, either. So if you’re looking to be inspired by the beauty and wonder of small scale fiber production then look elsewhere.

I listened for 5 hours waiting for some original or creative information about sheep and fiber production, but I couldn’t take anymore sustainability 101 style factoid rehashing.

Boring, boring, boring. If you have zero knowledge about environmental issues or fiber then this is might be for you. Consider it the most beginner, entry level intro to environmental issues with a bit of a textiles lean.