No one is happy to hear about disasters like Bangladesh, but with precious little time to get to the store and purchase goods, let alone research every fashion retailer’s foreign affairs at length, it’s almost impossible to be a conscientious customer and avoid the “fast fashion” that produces such disasters. Thankfully, there are ways around the conundrum.

The photos coming from the site of Rana Plaza, a garment factory complex in Bangladesh that collapsed on April 24, are harrowing — more than 1,100 people were reportedly killed in the disaster. Seen as the deadliest tragedy in the garment industry’s history, it has compelled a number of international fast-fashion retailers, including H&M and Inditex (the Spanish company which owns the Zara chain), to sign a legally binding accord to promote worker safety in the country.

But what can fashion consumers learn in relation to this issue. (Read More)