By Zoey Jackson and Sialea Martinez, Staff Writers
Throwback or overconsumption?
You might have seen a strange new phenomenon taking over your feed: the internet has decided that 2026 is the new 2016. Skinny jeans, unicorn frappes, velvet chokers and the excessive use of filters are all back! But with trends continuously recycling, brands and teenagers are constantly trying to fit in. All this recycling brings the question; how is this affecting our environment?
The time of the famous Daniel Lara, AKA “Damn, Daniel”, the mannequin challenge, snapchat filters, and the release of Stranger Things. These were nationwide events that caught everyone’s attention, but now that they’re done and gone, where do we look now? It seems that instead of finding new things to do, people have decided to resurface previously popular trends.
One explanation for this could be the craving for simpler times, pre-covid, pre-highschool, and before the stress of social media. Many of us here at Poly were in our early childhood years in 2016, and weren’t aware of the trends. Our generation was too busy with playing outside or watching My Little Pony. Now, social media has made it easier and more likely for teenagers to feel the pressure to participate in new trends, making them worry about what they might miss. Resulting in brands supplying more and people buying more than they can keep up with.
That is the root of this resurgence; the urge to reclaim a viral culture that we were originally too young to experience. Now that teenagers are at the age of maturity and freedom, they are now able to participate in this. This “new trend” is just a reclamation of what many of us missed out all those years ago.
With these trends comes the concern of overconsumption and the environmental toll of micro trends. Reclaiming 2016 isn’t just about embodying the aesthetic and changing your spotify playlist, it’s also about buying the clothes to match it. This type of trend that thrives on nostalgia is exactly what fast fashion brands are looking for to make a quick buck. Fast fashion brands are mass producing cheap velvet chokers and low-quality skinny jeans, only for them to be forgotten the second the next trend pops off. This endless cycle of waste is exactly why our landfills are overflowing, leading to our carbon emissions being off the charts.
According to scientists at Quantis, the textile value chain uses 215 trillion liters of water each year, which is the same amount as 86 million Olympic-sized swimming pools. The textile emissions aren’t the only number that is growing rapidly, the stress on people’s wallets are also increasing. Teenagers racing to see who can purchase the next new thing, paying with money they don’t have. The search for the next big thing is demanding underpaid workers to work more under worse conditions than before.
One way we can combat this is by putting more thought into the things we buy and products we consume. Ask yourself this every time you think about partaking in a new trend; ¨A year from now, will I still be wearing/using this?¨ If the answer is no, maybe save your money to buy something that you will continually appreciate.
With that being said, if you are for whatever reason, dying to participate in a specific trend, see if you can buy what’s trending second-hand. Check out your local thrift stores, yard sales or even online platforms like Depop and Vinted. An even better option is to save the money, and asking people you know if they have what you’re looking for. This is especially good for wanting to participate in trends from 2016. I guarantee you that if you have older siblings, they will have 2016 clothing ¨relics¨ lying around.
Ultimately, reclaiming our missed childhood trends doesn’t have to mean destroying our planet. The 2016 revival might remind us of a more carefree era, but we cannot afford to participate in the relentless cycle of rapid consumerism. As young adults, we have the freedom to make better choices to better our future. By choosing to thrift, borrow or simply enjoy a new trend digitally, you are breaking the cycle of fast fashion. So next time you see a viral new trend, take a moment to think to yourself; what is the cost of my consumption?