"I can't go to clothes shops anymore": Aktiv Frae Miersch take a stand against fast fashion

The Hal Irbecht in Beringen is once again bursting at the seams. For over two weeks, the 30 or so volunteers from 'Aktiv Frae Miersch' are sorting, folding and labelling clothes, shoes and toys here. But the clock is ticking. By the time the doors open in a week's time, this pile of clothes is set to become one of the country's largest second-hand markets. Yet at the moment, the pile shows no sign of getting any smaller: at the marquee by the entrance – a necessary extension – generous donors are unloading new bundles of clothes every minute. For a moment, helpless hands are thrown up in the air in exasperation at where all this stuff is supposed to go, before a space is finally found somewhere.

"Some people bring several boxes every six months, " observes Sylvie Hames, the association's chairwoman. "Some certainly collect from friends, but others simply seem to have a lot of clothes. That's also down to the shops… every week there's a new collection, every week people go shopping, and every week they come away with one item or another."