Renowned designers The Rodnik Band, John Rocha and Eley Kishimoto are helping shoppers head to the beach in style this summer, with a new t-shirt collection that matches outstanding design with first-class environmental and social credentials.

To celebrate World Ocean’s Day 2017, the designers have teamed up with UK-charity the Environmental Justice Foundation to once again show that fashion doesn’t have to cost the earth. Artist Margot Bowman also donated a design to the collection.

A celebration of our seas, each t-shirt offers a unique and stunning visualization of the beautiful life that calls our oceans home. Each t-shirt is sustainably sourced, made from 100% fairly traded cotton, and has a carbon footprint just 10% of that of a conventional, non-organic cotton t-shirt from the high street.

Steve Trent, EJF’s Executive Director said: “As you pack your bags for the beach this year, why not treat yourself to a t-shirt that will help protect and restore the oceans that we all love. With so much synthetic fabric making its way into our oceans as pollution, and a growing concern about the impact this has on environmental and human health, organic, fairly-traded cotton offers a natural alternative. By a JUST-FOR t-shirt, you’re not only supporting innovation and sustainability in the fashion industry, but with 100% of the profits going back into EJF’s work, you’re playing a vital role in our work protecting the oceans and the people that depend on them.”

Our oceans cover 70% of the earth’s surface and are home to over a million species - and that’s just the ones we know about. They provide food and livelihoods for 3.5 billion people across the globe.

But our oceans are in peril. Unsustainable and illegal fishing practices are pushing our fisheries towards collapse, threatening the survival of vulnerable species, increasing the risk of worker exploitation and pushing coastal communities towards hunger and poverty.

EJF is working to protect ocean wildlife and coastal communities around the globe. 100% of the profits from a JUST-FOR t-shirt will go back into EJF’s campaigns and projects.

Part of an on-going collaboration, previous designers who have contributed to JUST-FOR collections include Dame Vivienne Westwood, Katherine Hamnett CBE, Christian Lacroix, Kenzo, Giles Deacon and many more. To date, the project has raised over £500,000.

All of EJF’s JUST-For t-shirts are available for sale at www.JUST-FOR.co.uk

Quotes from EJF’s supporters:

“Our oceans are amazing. They are home to millions of beautiful and magnificent creatures. But their home is being destroyed, as we continue to pollute our oceans and unsustainably and illegally fish the vital species that call them home. This has to stop.” Mark Eley and Wakako Kishimoto, Eley Kishimoto

“I know that millions of people depend on fish for both their food and their incomes. And yet throughout the world, illegal ‘pirate’ vessels are stealing food from the mouths of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable communities. I really feel it is our duty to help protect these communities and the ocean life that they depend on. That’s why I’m so very proud to support EJF’s Oceans Campaign.” John Rocha

“Art and Fashion is a huge part of who I am, and I want my clothes to represent my values. Through supporting EJF’s JUST-FOR project I can not only be a part of raising awareness towards building a more sustainable and transparent supply chain but I can also showcase the vitally important role that our oceans have to play, and support EJF’s work to save our seas. For me that’s win-win and I am proud to support the JUST-FOR project and EJF.” Philip Colbert, The Rodnik Band

“Our oceans are the absolute basis of our ecosystems. Without healthy oceans we don’t have a healthy planet to live on… The amount of plastics, the amount of illegal fishing and whaling, all of these things really need to be addressed. And the time is now.” Dancer and EJF Oceans Ambassador Kimberly Wyatt

“We live on a blue planet. Millions of people depend on fish for their essential food and income. We are taking too many fish from the oceans and that has led to illegal, pirate, fishing and even slavery. I’m proud to be a patron of EJF’s campaign to save the sea.” Model and EJF Oceans Ambassador Max Rogers

Notes for editors:

• JUST-FOR t-shirts are made of organic and fair trade cotton. The production is carried out ethically and responsibly at all stages of the supply chain. JUST-FOR’s manufacturing process is highly sustainable, using cotton fields free from petroleum-based pesticides, energy efficient factories and recycled materials. The carbon footprint of a JUST-FOR t-shirt is around 90% less than a conventional, non-organic cotton t-shirt from the high street.

• High-profile designers and celebrities who have supported EJF’s t-shirt project to date includes Vivienne Westwood, Katherine Hamnett, Gillian Anderson, Naomi Campbell, Lily Cole, Erin O-Connor, Olivia Colman, David Gandy and Christian Lacroix. To date the project has raised over £500,000, which has all been pumped back into EJF’s campaign and projects to protect the environment and defend human rights.

• Seas and oceans cover 70% of the Earth’s surface and contain nearly 90% of its living biomass. Not only are they a habitat to millions of wondrous marine plant and animal species, most of which have yet to be discovered, but they also provide a lifeline for 3.5 billion people. Coastal communities around the world depend on fisheries for food, employment or income, but their very way of life is threatened by illegal and unsustainable ‘pirate fishing’.

• Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) or ‘pirate’ fishing occurs when fishing fleets operate where there are no controls – they operate virtually with impunity in marine protected areas and in reserves for local fishermen. There are no checks on when and where they fish, how much they catch or how they catch it, including by illegal nets.

• Illegal fishing is bringing some fish stocks to tipping point. More than 60 percent of the world’s fish stocks are now considered overexploited or depleted, while over 90% of each of the world’s large ocean species - like cod, halibut, swordfish - have been lost since the 1950s. Pirate fishing continues unchecked and unpunished while the poorest people go hungry, unable to get the food they need to survive.