Written by: Rebekah Stokes, Communications Assistant @Threading Change

February 28th, 2025

[5-minute read]

As 2025 draws near, one of the most striking trends in marketing is the growing investment in influencer partnerships. Recent reports suggest that over 50% of brands are planning to increase their influencer marketing budgets next year. This is a testament to the massive impact influencers have on consumer behavior, driving trends, and shaping industries. With such influence comes the potential to leverage this power for good—pushing back against the overconsumption and unsustainable practices that are plaguing our planet and encouraging more conscious lifestyle choices.

Influencers: Our Storytellers

Influencers, in many ways, are today’s storytellers. For centuries, humanity has learned through stories, be it the drawings on cave walls warning of dangerous animals or the fairy tales passed down through generations. These narratives have shaped our understanding of the world. Now, in the age of social media, we are bombarded with an unending stream of stories, with millions of content creators shaping how we see the world, our relationships, and even our values. We learn from these creators, whether we realize it or not. Social media gives us a stage where reality, fiction, and aspiration often blend together.

The Theatre of Social Media

As Shakespeare famously said, "All the world's a stage," and no stage is complete without its costumes. Today, the stage is social media, and the costumes are the products, lifestyles, and values that influencers showcase. And therein lies a tension—the influencer world is inherently linked to consumerism. Their brands are built on their ability to influence us to desire more, to buy more, to follow trends. But can the same influencers who fuel this consumption culture also advocate for sustainability and circularity?

As consumers, we become like the people we surround ourselves with, and increasingly, those people are the influencers we follow on our screens. It’s a bit unnerving to think that some of the people we spend the most time with aren’t physically present but exist through the curated lives they present to us on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

The Ethical Dilemma Facing Sustainability Influencers

Aditi Mayer, a sustainability activist and influencer, recently described herself, the “sustainable influencer”, as a “walking oxymoron.” She pointed out the inherent contradiction: “I’m someone who’s out here promoting less consumption or no consumption at all, but the way to monetize doing that in your work is working with brands that want you to push product.” This highlights a fundamental dilemma faced by influencers who are trying to maintain a sustainable ethos while also monetizing their platforms through brand partnerships that rely on selling products.

This tension between ethical influence and commercial interests is encapsulated in the concept of the "entrepreneurship dichotomy," a term coined by researcher Brooke Harrison in her thesis on the sustainable fashion influencer ecosystem. Harrison's work explores the complexities that arise when entrepreneurship (in the form of influencer marketing) intersects with the pursuit of sustainability. Influencers are, by nature, entrepreneurs—they must build a personal brand, attract partnerships, and generate revenue. But when that brand is built around promoting products, how can they balance that with advocating for responsible consumption and environmental stewardship?

The question remains: can any influencer, contracted by a brand to promote a product, truly live out sustainable values and encourage their followers to do the same?

The answer is not a simple yes or no. Influencers exist within an ecosystem that often rewards consumption, and at times, they must navigate the delicate balance between promoting brands that may not fully align with sustainable values while still doing meaningful work to raise awareness about sustainability. Yet, this is where their true power lies.

Shifting The Story

The growing trend of influencers embracing sustainability is shifting the narrative. While some creators still struggle with the dichotomy of promoting products for income while advocating for less consumption, many are finding ways to walk that tightrope. Some influencers have begun to promote secondhand shopping, sustainable brands, or even challenge their followers to rethink their consumption patterns. Creators who prioritize sustainability in their partnerships are helping to normalize eco-conscious purchasing habits, showing that it's possible to make responsible choices without sacrificing style or self-expression.

Furthermore, influencers have the ability to drive awareness about systemic issues, from fast fashion’s environmental impact to the importance of circular economies. They can shape consumer behavior by promoting brands that embrace sustainability, whether through upcycled materials, ethical labor practices, or waste-reducing designs. This shift in focus has the potential to change the commercial landscape by pushing brands to evolve, as consumer demand for sustainable products rises.

Use the Platform

In 2025, as brands continue to invest in influencer marketing, the onus will be on creators to embrace their power as storytellers not only to sell products but to foster a shift in consumer culture toward sustainability. The question isn’t whether influencers can be sustainable in the traditional sense—it's whether they can use their influence to rewrite the script entirely, encouraging a culture of mindfulness, circularity, and responsible consumption.

As more influencers take up the mantle of sustainability, they can shift the very fabric of influencer culture from one of overconsumption to one of empowerment, teaching their audiences that living a more sustainable life doesn’t mean sacrificing joy or beauty—it simply means making more conscious, thoughtful choices. And in this, they may find their most powerful story yet.