At Home with Alexander Aina
In the second entry of Awana at Home, we visit data scientist and movement/performance artist Alexander Aina at his zen den in East London. His work at Materra, building climate-resilient farming systems, is helping develop sustainable supply chains and planet-positive solutions for the fashion industry. Far from a side project, Alex’s work in movement and performance touch on identity, masculinity, and the shared psychological experience of life. In his spare time Alex runs a famous meme page.
After talking to Alex over the course of our visit - we felt it important to go further and dive into something deeper. People like him are the future of this industry and his research is vital in helping shape the new data-driven era of supply chains for our Earth.
See our full interview with Alex at the bottom of this page.
I’ve heard you run a famous meme page - where do you find the time to run this?
I think of posting memes like sending texts. No joke I actually find it easier to post memes than to reply to messages. I feel like I was born to do it.
What is your desktop background?
It’s some weeb shit…it’s a cartoon city in the daytime and nighttime. I’ve set my background to change from day to night every 6 hrs so if I end up sitting on my computer for ages at least I get to experience some kinda passage of time.
What is your waking up routine?
Most days I wake up, contemplate why the fuq I’m awake, post memes, then make coffee and stretch. I’ve got a pretty solid stretching routine that’s like 30 mins long.
How do you take your coffee?
No milk, no sugar. Dark and mysterious like me.
Do you have any morning mantras or manifestations?
You better stretch today or your back will be fucked tomorrow.
How often do you dance?
I used to dance and train like 30-35+ hours a week but now I’ve cut it down to a moderate ~15 hrs. Moderation is key.
How many plants do you have at home?
I have like 40 plants at home, no joke. A few of them had a rough summer though cos I was away for so long. I’m sorry. **nb: my plants babies are looking for a mother :)**
What is your morning song?
Field Recordings.
Do you use beauty products?
I am a beauty product… but I use a lot of Aesop stuff, I have leftovers from when I used to work there.
Showers or baths?
A shower with a good pressure goes hard but a crazy hot bath with bath salts goes harder. Mine are like a whole day spa affair… So I don’t have the time to take baths as often as I’d like.
Favourite Tattoo?
The one I’ve got on my manubrium. One of my best friends dad’s did the illustrations
You travel a lot with work - when you get home from travelling what is the first thing you do at home?
Honestly I usually take an edible and clean the house while listening to be yourself by frank ocean. Trying to prove his mum wrong and right at the same time.
Do you have a favourite baseline and or bass player?
My favourite bassist used to be, and still is to be honest, Reita from a Visual Kei band called the GazettE.
Do you have any new skills you want to learn?
I kinda feel like I do a lot of stuff already. Maybe darts?
Read our full interview with Alex on sustainability, supply chains, and future-proofing fashion below.
Can you briefly explain the problem with cotton and what Materra is working on to improve it?
Not to rattle stuff off of our website but cotton makes up over 30% of all textile fibres, and it's still grown with a disproportionately negative impact on the environment and people. High water consumption and pesticide usage, forced/child labour, low profits and debt traps for farming communities. There's a strong demand for sustainable alternatives to conventional cotton but the supply can't keep up. Less than 1% is organic. There are increasingly ambitious sustainability strategies, but brands and other stakeholders in the supply chain are struggling to source trusted and transparent textiles! Materra is developing a framework for future-proof cotton. We are transforming fibres into a force for systemic environmental and social change, starting with cotton.
There is something paradoxical about the countries most impacted by climate change being the ones that have to take on the greatest burden of industrial change - but it is great when greener initiatives essential to survival can also bring about profits. Without meaning to be cynical, what do you think serves as the larger incentive - survival or profit? Is capitalism still the tail wagging the dog? Or is this the beginning of “the green economy”?
For real! A large portion of consumers are in countries that will be the least impacted by climate change. That doesn't mean we won't be caught up in the storm, just means we'll take our sweet time to arrive at the eye of it. That's why we're currently working with Indian farmers. They're seeing the effects so vividly already. Shifted seasons, record breaking heat-waves and massive knock on effects to farming communities.
It’s hard not to be cynical but in all honesty I believe profit is still the major driver. Impact is 2nd (not for us obviously). If it was genuinely first the world would be moving a lot faster. Saying that we’re seeing some policy changes that are forcing all industries. There are also a lot of promising initiatives. Primark is a super rogue example. They’ve launched an all female farmer sustainable cotton program. Kinda unexpected but very nice to see.
We’re at a point where we have established new rules and new expectations for the century ahead. This happens to coincide with the new superpowers of this century lining up, India very much included, a country Mattera has been working in for a few years. How do you see the future of the textile and manufacturing industry?
I don't think the rules and expectations have been set yet! Our expectations are too low and I’m not sure our rules truly serve those currently at the bottom of the supply chain. We need to expect more of ourselves because there's a lot of work to do. We're not just trying to fix the damage that's been done but also regenerate and create structures that prevent it from happening again!
There’s a difference between being at work and doing work, and real change occurs through thorough work. Not just showing up to the party. The future of the industry is going to be complex and highly nuanced and will require contextually relevant solutions!
Working in the field you do and knowing what you know - do you feel optimistic for the supply chains of the future?
Not to gas ourselves up but I am feeling very optimistic about what we're doing. We've got such a dedicated team here in the UK and in India and the work we're doing is highly transferable so I'm hoping we can bring it to other parts of the fashion industry
What Materra does is so impressive - the world needs more companies like it, it was great to see it featured in the Forbes under 30. What are the plans for Materra next?
What's next? We're going to lock-in our solutions and solidify our name in the industry! I want our name to be one of the first on a brand's lips when they think of how to be more sustainable.
Do you feel you see bigger brands showing genuine ecological responsibility these days?
We're seeing it at a group level for sure. The work we're doing with Kerring and the H&M group has shown that. I think the big brands themselves are struggling to balance their identity and this responsibility properly though. Ultimately, the design teams dictate what textile is used in a collection... but being creative doesn't mean harming the planet!
The notion of luxury has shifted massively with designer brands ditching exotic pelts and furs for desired collaborations and clever marketing. The inaccessibility remains, but in a different sense. How does sustainability fit into the equation?
Luxury has always been seen as "exclusive", which has inherently meant it's inaccessible for a huge majority of our society. Sustainability is not that. Thus brands who are on this journey should be rethinking what they offer. Like yes, under the current structures, sustainable fashion is more expensive but it doesn't have to be inaccessible.
Fashion isn't just clothes anymore. I don't think it ever was, thus as a brand it's important to think beyond the garment. How can what we're offering better the planet and peoples lives? It's been said time and time again, we've got to change the way and the why we consume.
What you're doing with Awana is a rad first step and a great example in my opinion. Ensuring people deep in the supply chain are paid fairly means the cost of fibre will go up. It requires a different business model, one that’s a bit more challenging.
What is luxury to you?
Luxury? I don't really think about things in terms of luxury but more in terms of what's been made with love and care and what's not. I don't want to consume stuff devoid of love and care. Though that in itself is a luxury.
What is your wish from the fashion industry over the next 10 years?
Sort your shit out. We have a lot of power and there's a lot of people who want to do good things but also a lot of people who don't.
If you could give one piece of advice to anyone shopping in 2023 what would it be?
Cop Awana or don't cop anything at all haha. Nah but seriously also think about why the hell you're copping that piece. Yeah it's tiring to have to think about stuff all the time especially things that impact people far, far away from you but we're at that point now! Fashion can still be a form of escapism and creativity but we've gotta be more mindful.