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EESTI ELU reedel, 6. augustil 2021 — Friday, August 6, 2021
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Global Estonian Insights: Oskar Metsavaht and the growth of sustainable fashion Vincent Teetsov
The Estonian Foundation of Canada seeks an OFFICE AND MARKETING MANAGER who will lead marketing, communications and community/donor relations for this national charity. The successful candidate will manage the Foundation’s office and oversee and lead the funding applications program (as directed by the Board), create and manage fundraising and community awareness campaigns, and ideally plan and write content for platforms such as the EFC website and community news outlets. The applicant must have excellent project management skills, good writing and communication skills, as well as a basic understanding of Estonian. Familiarity with the Estonian community in Canada would be an asset. This position can provide flexible hours and could evolve in future. We are interested in hearing from you if you have most of these skills or willing to learn. Com pensation commensurate with experience. Please apply with resume to new email: estonianfoundationpresident@gmail.com Photo: eco-age.com
In 2020, the BBC reported that “globally, an estimated 92 million tonnes of textiles waste is created each year”, which is set to increase by 42 million tonnes by 2030. It was also said that “the equivalent to a rubbish truck full of clothes ends up in landfill sites every second.” Clothing is a consumer necessity. Moreover, it’s a creative product that so many people enjoy and spend money on. How, then, can fashion become more prudent about the waste it creates, while meeting this demand and financially sustaining its workforce? These are questions circulat ing in the fashion industry, for which we may find answers in the work of Oskar Metsavaht and his fashion company, Osklen. Metsavaht was born in Caxias do Sul, in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, to a father of Estonian heritage and a mother of Italian heritage. His paternal grandparents emigrated from Estonia to Brazil in the 1920s, and it was through his family that he and his siblings developed an interest in ecology and sports. Speaking of his youth, he has said, “...my father, who loved outdoor sports, taught me how to appre ciate and respect nature.” This is quite fitting because his surname, Metsavaht, refers to the historic Estonian forest rangers who took care of the forests surrounding Estonia’s manor houses, and later on, forest districts designated by the Estonian government. Metsavaht has described how his grand parents and father had always raised him according to the principles of being a guardian of sorts in the outdoors. In addition, his parents were both academics. His mother was a professor of history and philosophy and his father was a professor of medicine. Follow ing in these footsteps, he packed up and moved to Rio de Janeiro to study to become a doctor and work in sports medi cine. However, eventually, he found a new direction through physical activity. “With all that I learned at home, I started to travel and go on expeditions where I would camp in the woods, on beaches, and snowy mountains.” One particular expedition in the Andes Mountains was the impetus to start an outdoors brand. In 1989, he founded Osklen, which has become an interna tional fashion brand with foot wear, clothing, and accessories. Attending the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 brought the principles of sustainable development to the forefront of his business mission. One way Osklen approaches
Employment opportunity
sustainability in fashion is the use of recycled cotton. This keeps it out of landfills and re duces the amount of water used to make a garment, considering that it can take 2,700 litres to make one cotton shirt, as esti mated by the World Resources Institute. At other times, Osklen manufactures with organic cotton, silk, and jute. The skin of salmon and pira rucu (a large freshwater fish) has been used for sneakers. This excess material is sourced from the fishing activities of 378 communities in the Amazon, the sale of which has “generated a 30% increase in the income” of each familyowned supplier. To make the leather, Osklen collaborates with a tannery called Nova Kaeru, which uses “vegetable oils and a mix of biodegradable products and organic dyes” in its tanning process. In Osklen’s Fall-Winter 2019 collection, dyes were made out of “turmeric, urucum, and chlorophyll,” avoiding harsh chemicals that can seep into groundwater when clothes are discarded. For some products, recycled PET plastic is used. At one point, this came from a project where Osklen collected over 270,000 plastic bottles. Syn thetic clothing has its issues, particularly when it releases microplastics into the ocean, but recycling does make the most of plastic that is already in the system. Ideas are cultivated by Instituto-e, a non-for-profit that Metsavaht founded, which, among other activities, has led research to develop materials to be used in fashion. All this is done with Osk len’s motto in mind: “As Sustainable As Possible, As Soon As Possible.” In its public messaging, the company de clares its “deep respect for local communities and the environ ment surrounding them.” One can apply this in Canada and Estonia, too. Not only should the land be taken care of by industry in a position of respect and stewardship, but
Estonian Foundation of Canada is a registered charity that supports Estonian cultural and heritage initiatives across Canada.
with the mindset of being able to continue manufacturing longterm without pollution and resource depletion. To be clear, Osklen’s products have a higher price and are part of the luxury market. Their mode of operation is not very common and will remain more costly until more companies operate in a similar way. How ever, the hope is that the products themselves last longer and have a longer lifespan from manufacturing to waste. Beyond business, Oskar Metsavaht has maintained his connection with Estonia, having worked as Estonia’s honorary consul in Rio de Janeiro, where he currently lives. When the Honorary Consulate opened there in 2008, former Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Paet said that “These consuls help to intensify the economic and cultural ties between the two countries.” Whether in commerce or diplomacy, it’s motivating to observe an individual like Oskar Metsavaht take leader ship where they live, and to see that the Estonian diaspora holds onto its long-standing values of land stewardship.
EFC Scholarship recipient
Aleksa Gold Aleksa Gold is an Estonian-Canadian university student who received a 2020 EFC Scholarship with funding from the new Martin & Heljo Mäeks Fund. Aleksa has attended Toronto Estonian Schools, been active in Guides and at tended Jõekääru and Kotkajärve camps. Currently, she is in 3rd year Biology at the University of Toronto. Aleksa is also an elite athlete, swimming for the Estonian National team at the World and European Championships. In February 2021, Aleksa set a new Estonian record for 200m backstroke, meeting the Olympic Selection Criteria for the Tokyo Olympics, where she hopes to represent Estonia. On being Estonian Being Estonian has given me a lot, it has enriched my life and opened many doors for me. Being Estonian has taught me the importance of community… Being Estonian means that I have a unique history and experiences. I have had the pleasure of growing up in an environment that teaches chil dren about valuing traditions and culture, and amongst a community that supports its youth. I consider myself very lucky that, although living in a large country with many different cultures, our Estonian com munity has remained strong and worked hard on keeping us close to Estonia. The sense of being Estonian gives me a unique identity in our country and in this globalized world, where it is increasingly difficult to have a sense of belonging and community. On EFC:
Martens Summer School in International Law Held July 26-July 30 via Zoom, this year’s summer school drew record atten dance. Thirty-eight attendees – 50 percent more than the usual in-person attendance in Pärnu – from universities of 25 countries explored “The Law of the Sea and Polar Regions,” “The Fundamentals of Investor-State Arbitration,” “Landmarks in the recent case law of the European Court of Human Rights,” “The prohibition of torture in international human rights law.” A distinguished faculty in cluded Judge Julia Motoc of the European Court of Human Rights, professors Alex G. Oude Eiferink of Utrecht University (Holland; Mykola Gnatovsky, Taras Shevchenko
Estonian Foundation of Canada (EFC) is a charitable orga nization with a goal to support Estonians in Canada and to promote the Estonian language, culture, traditions and heri tage initiatives through the Estonian community in Canada. This makes it their mission to preserve and promote Estonian culture in Canada. EFC is important for the community as it ensures an Estonian future in Canada… In a country as large as Canada, it is important to stay connected to our heritage and our com munity so that the future generations may benefit from the same programs and ensure that our traditions are passed on. EFC is very important and necessary if we want to continue a strong Estonian connection and community in Canada for years to come.
National University (Ukraine); Martins Paparinskis, University College (London, UK). Alexan der Lott, Tartu University School of Law, gave the Martens Annual Lecture. Martens School in Inter national Law is curated by pro fessor Lauri Mälksoo, Tartu University School of Inter national Law. Financial support was provided by the Estonian American Fund.
The ninth summer school attracted attendance from far away countries like Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Singa pore, Uruguay, Vietnam. Also represented were Armenia, Bos nia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Spain,Turkey, Ukraine, USA.
