Wearing a Suit in Summer
Do you know what a “clo” is?
The Asahi Shimbun just published an article on how Japanese government officials will ditch their jackets and ties so that air conditioners in their offices can be turned down to save energy and prevent greenhouse effect this summer.
Although the temperature of air conditioning in many ministries and the Prime Minister’s Office is usually set at 28 degrees during the summer and officials are asked not to wear ties, the practice has yet to become firmly established. Koizumi told ministers and high-ranking officials they should take the lead as it would be difficult for rank-and-file officials to make the first move.
So, what is a “clo”?
The amount of clothing is measured in a unit called a “clo” on an international scale. Wearing a three-piece suit is set at 1 clo as a base. Thus, for instance, wearing nothing at all is 0 clo, wearing a long-sleeve shirt is 0.6 clo and wearing an overcoat is 2 clo. To do clerical work at a desk efficiently even at a temperature of 28 degrees, clothing measuring 0.5 clo would be the limit, which means wearing a short-sleeve shirt.
I think the most important part of the article is this:
The Environment Ministry is asking the public to come up with new catchwords for such clothing. “The catchwords should conjure up the image that the clothing enables people to work efficiently and comfortably, feeling cool and looking cool,” a ministry official said.
Or perhaps this one:
He added an important piece of advice: “Wearing a polo shirt is no good for business. A polo shirt is for sports.”
How about you? Do you wear a suit to work in summer?
(The photo comes from the excellent website Masamania.com. Visit it today.)
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