Magazines like Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar never fail to let us know what trends are in season. From the wedge to the stiletto, magazine covers and runway shows update us on what merchandise to buy and look out for that season.

However, what these magazines fail to do is inform the readers that staying up to date on trends is actually killing the planet. The need to keep up with trends, in actuality, is destroying our earth at a fast rate.

Every season shoes, handbags and stylish sunglasses change, not because we are bored but because it keeps us coming back to these fashion stores and purchasing whatever is in season next.

In times where we idolize Instagram models and celebrities, we are almost forced to buy into these ever-evolving trends just to “fit in.”

This planned obsolescence of seasonal trends keeps consumers coming back to purchase more. This kind of consumerism is destroying our planet though, as “fast fashion” is the second largest polluter in the world, according to Eco Watch.

Not only are we producing too much stuff for our planet to sustain, making all these products requires extraction of natural goods, exploitation of third world countries, people and resources. Most of these products are sent to the landfill or recycled within six short months, according to Bright Enlightenment. Then we are off to buy more.

Especially with globalization today, most of these products are being shipped to us from other countries, further polluting the air with fossil fuels. There is so much that goes into producing all this clothing, increasing that demand with seasonal trends merely accelerates the rate at which we are killing our planet.

It is ingrained in our society that we must feed into these trends and cannot be left behind. However, is the cost of our planet worth it?

Nicte Hernandez can be reached at [email protected] or @nicteh7 on Twitter.