Responding to the call in Pope Francis’ Laudato Si to care for our common home, the JAM (Justice and Mercy) students at St Aloysius College had the vision of establishing an Opportunity Shop accessible to the whole school community. The students were inspired by a strong desire to reduce the ever-growing burden on the environment by the fashion industry and endeavour to learn and pass on lifelong skills in repairing and ethical buying practices.
The fashion industry is a major polluter and the JAM group are passionate about raising awareness around this through JAM events and clothing drives throughout the school year.
The OP Shop receives donations from students, and work to mend and resell them to our school community. Both the JAM team and the purchaser are educated in the impact this industry has on the environment, ways to avoid contributing to fast fashion, and strategies for sustainable clothing purchases. The mended garments are altered in a way that brings new life to a piece of clothing that would otherwise be discarded. In partnership with the OP Shop, the JAM students also run repair workshops to practice repairing their own and donated clothing items. Funds generated from this initiative are donated to a Mercy project that the JAM group are passionate about supporting.
From SAC 2020 School Magazine, p. 132
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