With SUSTAIN THE MAG, Reza Cristián has created a forum for young advocates in sustainability.
By EcoBrandi, Photos courtesy of Reza Cristián
Tackling three problems at once is just how Reza Cristián rolls. With her innovative online publication, SUSTAIN THE MAG, she simultaneously brings attention to the perils of our current beauty, fashion and food systems, produces an attractive outlet for sustainability content and creates opportunities for passionate young writers to get their work published.
In a world continuously filled with the discards of fast fashion, single-use food packaging and nonbiodegradable plastics, Cristián is a catalyst for a thriving world where people can feel beautiful while being environmentally responsible.
This passion project, a sort of Elle Magazine meets Treehugger, started in 2017, while Cristián was a college student. “Media sites and blogs were becoming big and popular, but I didn’t feel like there were any true ones around sustainability that were…digestible for Gen Z and the younger generation,” she says. “I wanted to create the Vice Media of sustainability at that time.”
Cristián channels a portion of earnings from her day job to pay writers from around the world, ensuring their voices reach a broader audience on topics of style, culture, wellness and food. In doing so, she not only provides valuable opportunities for budding writers, but also fosters a global community of like-minded individuals who are passionate about effecting positive change. She aims to turn this project into a nonprofit, hoping to raise money to pay her writers more.
While she is a bit skeptical about the altruism of companies to reevaluate their reliance on fast fashion, she does encourage people to explore the world of secondhand shopping. She, of course, appreciates the environmental benefits of reusing clothing and other goods. But Cristián implores consumers, especially younger buyers to whom thrifting holds great appeal, “Thrift responsibly. I think a lot of people don’t realize that thrift stores are sometimes the only way people with lower income can purchase clothing.” She suggests a few ways to do just that.
- Buy clothes that are the right size for you. Young people who buy baggy clothes to be fashionable could be reducing the choices for people who require larger sizes.
- Buy only what you need, and preferably non-essentials, like jackets.
- Do not buy nice clothes cheaply from thrift stores, then upsell them online.
Cristián delights in communities where people care about the same things, as they help dispel that feeling that we all need to fix the planet individually. “Find a community or something that you’re passionate about,” she says. “I’ve done that here in Austin, found an amazing friend group. We have a group chat [where we find]cool events happening around. If we see a protest or a petition going on, we’ll share it amongst ourselves. We can kind of become accountability buddies, but also have fun and also understand that it’s not all on our shoulders. It’s nice to have people to do things with when you want to make a difference.”
EcoBrandi has been a fixture of Austin’s environmental scene for over 20 years and loves connecting people, information and resources to advance sustainability and resilience. Her wardrobe is 80% clothing swap and thrift store finds and she checks out ewg.org before buying personal care products and produce.