In the quiet corners of college labs and under
the lens of a microscope, I’ve uncovered an
alarming truth: the fashion industry is not just
a climate crisis contributor—it’s a public health
hazard.
My
journey
exploring
how
microplastics from textiles affect human health
has led to unique collaborations with students
and faculty across U.S. campuses. I’ve seen
firsthand how fashion’s toxic trail winds its way
into our oceans, our bodies, and even our DNA.
As a quantum physics geek and lifelong
science lover passionate about health and the
environment, I launched DNA Sustainable
Threds—a name that combines my passions
and my kids’ initials. Fashion has always pulled
me in, and though I once worked in fast
fashion, I’ve been advocating for slow fashion
for the past 13 years. I now find myself in the
right place, with the right information, at the
right time.
My deep dive into plastic and its relationship to
fashion took a darker turn after reading a 2020
article in The Guardian, “Microplastics revealed
in the placentas of unborn babies.” The quote
that stopped me cold: “It is like having a cyborg
baby: no longer composed of human cells, but
a mixture of biological and inorganic entities.”
That was the lightbulb moment. I began
designing my own “cyborgs” out of post-
consumer
waste—plastic,
e-waste,
textiles,
discarded sports equipment, and other landfill
debris. I didn’t yet know their purpose, but I
knew the world needed to learn about the
hidden harms of plastic. Since then, I’ve
brought these creations to galleries in San
Francisco
and
Pennsylvania,
runways
in
Chicago, and now to the screen—through a
short film currently in production with LA-
based director Mariel Noir.
THE HIDDEN HEALTH COST
OF WHAT WE WEAR
by By Clementina Martinez-Masarweh
“The Sustainable Latina”
Plastic
Fashion
Kills
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