Issara Institute

There's still time to register! Sign up today 🔗https://lnkd.in/e5X_8j5W 🚨 Side Session at the Business and Finance at the OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector - Demonstrating worker-driven HRDD from the ground-up: A case study in Asian apparel 🚨 📅 When: Feb 13, 2025 | 9 AM – 10 AM CET/ 3 PM - 4 PM ICT 📍 Where: Zoom 🔑 Join us for a compelling session on how apparel and footwear companies can foster authentic, ongoing engagement with rightsholders to drive meaningful human rights due diligence (HRDD) outcomes. In this webinar, Issara Institute, in collaboration with TAL Apparel, and Aye Lin Let Htut Co., Ltd., will provide valuable insights on building bottom-up HRDD systems—emphasizing the importance of involving workers and other rightsholders and navigating the complex tools and technologies needed for success. 👥 Our expert panelists include: Joe Ma, President, The Third Layer / TAL Apparel Aye Aye Thein, Managing Director, Aye Lin Let Htut Co., Ltd. Kyaw Soe Naing, Director, Aye Lin Let Htut Co., Ltd. Moderated by Issara's Director of Impact Ana Maria Soto Bernal Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry leaders and explore innovative ways to ensure your HRDD systems are built on a foundation of true collaboration. #garment #footwear #duediligence #responsible #supplychains #bizhumanrights #workerrights #laborrights

Connect with Issara Institute at the Business and Finance at the OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment & Footwear Sector! 📍 Paris | Feb 11-12 – Meet Mia Tucker, Manager of Strategy & Global Partnerships, at the Forum to discuss advancing worker-driven HRDD approaches. Reach out at 📩 mia@issarainstitute.org to connect. 💻 Can’t attend in person? Join our Director of Impact Ana Maria Soto Bernal for our virtual side session on Feb 13: 👥 Demonstrating Worker-Driven HRDD from the Ground Up: A Case Study in Asian Apparel 🔗 Learn more & register: https://lnkd.in/e5X_8j5W We look forward to engaging discussions on driving meaningful, rightsholder-centered HRDD in the apparel and footwear industry! #garment #footwear, #duediligence, #responsible, #supplychains #bizhumanrights #workerrights #laborrights

🚨 Side Session at the Business and Finance at the OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector - Demonstrating worker-driven HRDD from the ground-up: A case study in Asian apparel 🚨 📅 When: Feb 13, 2025 | 9 AM – 10 AM CET/ 3 PM - 4 PM ICT 📍 Where: Zoom 🔑 Join us for a compelling session on how apparel and footwear companies can foster authentic, ongoing engagement with rightsholders to drive meaningful human rights due diligence (HRDD) outcomes. In this webinar, Issara Institute, in collaboration with TAL Apparel, and Aye Lin Let Htut Co., Ltd., will provide valuable insights on building bottom-up HRDD systems—emphasizing the importance of involving workers and other rightsholders and navigating the complex tools and technologies needed for success. 👥 Our expert panelists include: Joe Ma, President, The Third Layer / TAL Apparel Aye Aye Thein, Managing Director, Aye Lin Let Htut Co., Ltd. Kyaw Soe Naing, Director, Aye Lin Let Htut Co., Ltd. Moderated by Issara's Director of Impact Ana Maria Soto Bernal Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry leaders and explore innovative ways to ensure your HRDD systems are built on a foundation of true collaboration. 🔗 Register today https://lnkd.in/e5X_8j5W #garment #footwear, #duediligence, #responsiblesupplychains, #bizhumanrights, #workerrights, #laborrights #hrdd #humanrightsduediligence

Today, we honor the strength, resilience, and contributions of millions of #migrants who journey across borders to build better futures for themselves, their families, and their communities. At Issara Institute, we are committed to creating a world where migration is safe, fair, and free of exploitation. Through collaboration with businesses, civil society, workers, recruitment agencies, and survivors, we strive to ensure that every migrant worker's voice is heard, their rights are protected, and their potential is celebrated. 📢 Explore the realities of migrant workers and their powerful stories on workervoices.org. Together, we can listen, learn, and act for a more equitable future.

It was an honor to participate in the Tech Against Trafficking Summit in London this November. Issara’s Director of Impact, Ana Maria Soto Bernal, joined the showcase on tech innovations, #AI, and #humantrafficking, as well as the panel on leveraging tech and AI by anti-trafficking organizations. Issara Institute was an awardee of the Tech Against Trafficking Accelerator Program 2023-2024, and the showcase was an opportunity to share the great support from Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Research teams that we have received throughout the program to strengthen and optimize our technologies designed to empower workers, drive remediation, support supply chain transparency, and amplify worker voice. Issara has also been working with the Microsoft Research team developing AI-enabled tools for better data insights and shared some initial explorations of the usage of the tool. Here are our key takeaways from the event: 🧑💻 Technology & Inclusion: Technology can play a critical role in intervention efforts to combat human trafficking and forced labor. However, there should be meaningful representation of and consultation with right holders when developing technology and initiatives. There is also more technical and financial support needed for grassroots organizations to be able to adopt and sustain the usage of technology for their efforts on the ground. 👥 Building Trust: Worker voice technology tools should be designed to empower workers and with the understanding of the context and needs of those using the tools. Worker voice and its technology tools are effective if trust is built with workers and there is proper response to their feedback and issues. 🌏 Collaborative Mindsets: More collaboration and partnership initiatives are needed to scale the efforts and impact on the ground and avoid redundancies. We would like to thank Amazon Web Services (AWS), Darren Edge, Dayenne Souza, Microsoft Research, and Phil Bennett for all their support and great collaboration. Learn more about Issara tech tools here: Inclusive Labor Monitoring: https://lnkd.in/emQee9-c Golden Dreams: https://lnkd.in/erUmqJPf And check out the real-time, aggregate worker voice data across Issara and its Inclusive Labor Monitoring Action Network (ILM-AN) CSO partners' channels at www.workervoices.org

We're growing! We're excited to expand our team and find amazing new colleagues who are as passionate about #workervoice and #ethicalsupplychains as we are. We are currently recruiting for an Empowerment Program Manager based out of our Bangkok office. Check out the full job description and all our openings on our website: https://lnkd.in/dP-vP9A. All interested candidates are encouraged to send a cover letter and CV to admin@issarainstitute.org.

Join our Senior Director of Strategy & Global Partnerships Mark Taylor at the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) #RT2024 for an illuminating panel on innovative approaches to enhancing rights and remedies

📢 Registration is open for Issara Academy trainings in November and December! Check out our upcoming multilingual online trainings. More information and registration at https://lnkd.in/gz6K476

It was an honor to participate in the Asia Pacific UNDP B+HR in Bangkok, themed “The Remedy Blueprint: Bridging Gaps and Accelerating Access” The Issara team hosted a panel discussion on Transforming Labor Conditions through Worker Voice, Partnership, and Innovation. We send heartfelt thanks to our session panelists, who represented trade unions, employers, recruitment agencies from Myanmar, and migrant workers in Thailand. Issara also contributed to panels organized by other stakeholders. Here are some of our key takeaways: 🧑💻 Technology & Rights: The forum emphasized the importance of data privacy and security for rights holders as data and technology continue to evolve at an unprecedented pace. Participants noted that while technology provides innovative solutions for enhancing transparency and accountability, it also raises significant concerns about the protection of personal information. 👥 Building Trust: Many employers expressed challenges in fostering relationships and trust with their employees, crucial for complying with human rights due diligence (HRDD). 🙌 Recommendations from Rights Holders: It was inspiring to see trade unions and rights holders providing recommendations to employers on building trust, highlighting the need for proactive remediation of concerns raised by employees. 🌏 Collaborative Mindsets: #HRDD and EU #CSDDD were central to discussions, highlighting a growing interest among employers to collaborate with stakeholders such as workers, civil society organizations, trade unions, and governments on effective implementation of growing legislation. 🤝 Partnership Recognition: There is an increasing acknowledgement of the value each stakeholder brings in minimizing risks within the global supply chain. 🌱 Climate Change & Human Rights: Concerns regarding climate change and its impact on human rights were prominently raised. 📞 Grievance Management: The importance of effective workers' grievance management and the role of independent NGOs was emphasized by many stakeholders. 📉 Social Audit Challenges: Many workers expressed feeling unsafe sharing concerns with auditors, highlighting a trust deficit that needs addressing through alternative, truly worker-centered HRDD models for ongoing monitoring and improvement. 💔 Worsening Human Rights Conditions: The impact of civil wars and conflicts leading to displacement and vulnerability was a pressing concern. During the forum, Issara Institute was honored to engage with various stakeholders, including the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security from Nepal, JP-MIRAI from Japan, Foundation For International Human Rights Reporting Standards (FIHRRST) from Indonesia, the U.S. Department of Labor, and many others. These networking opportunities are vital for aligning with partners who share our commitment to advancing human rights in the workplace. Together, we can bridge the gaps and accelerate access to remedies for those in need.

Modern slavery, while often not visible, occurs in almost every country in the world. Technology can help prevent exploitation but crucially also help to address the complex challenges that survivors of modern slavery face. As such, the Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation in collaboration with The Anti-Slavery Collective and MIT Solve launched a challenge providing direct support to founders who are applying technology-based solutions that support survivors of modern slavery. These innovative organizations are driving real impact from safer recruitment channels to trauma recovery and access to justice. A huge congratulations to the winners of the Supporting Survivors of Modern Slavery Challenge and the team that made this a reality: Golden Dreams (Issara Institute) - Dr. Lisa Rende Taylor EverFree - Kelsey Morgan, PhD HT Fusion Center (Collective Liberty) - Rochelle Keyhan ALIGHT (Alliance to Lead Impact in Global Human Trafficking) - Marianna Kosharovsky Story Mobile App (I'll Go First®) - Jessica Minhas