Tracing transparency in supply chains

DAY 10: CONTRIBUTE TO THE MODERN SLAVERY REGISTRY

The clothing you’re wearing right now.

The party tray of fruit or shrimp in your refrigerator.

The electronic device you’re using to read this.

The harsh reality is it’s extremely difficult for any brand or company to guarantee you any of those items are entirely slavery-free, and the more complex the item, the more complicated the supply chain. Modern day supply chains – the paths products travel from raw material to finished goods – are often global, complex and notoriously tough to trace. Just a few minutes on slaveryfootprint.org will show you just how pervasive slavery is in products we buy and consume every day.

It’s incredibly disturbing to realize you have unknowingly purchased goods tainted by modern slavery. But as the video above states, as consumers we have tremendous power to influence corporations and businesses to do better. We can make it clear that it matters to us. We can insist companies push for greater transparency and accountability from their suppliers, and many are doing just that.

Today’s challenge is to spend a little time using your electronic device for good, helping make it possible to assess companies’ efforts.

Go here to contribute to the Modern Slavery Registry. We refreshed the data and need your help to document at least one company’s modern slavery statement or mark that you could not find one on their website, both are helpful in holding companies accountable.

The Modern Slavery Registry is a crowdsourced list of companies’ modern slavery statements. It is now a requirement for companies with an annual turnover (revenue) of at least £36 million (about 45 million USD) operating in the UK to publish a statement on their website. The UK government has not provided a list of the companies, or a centralized repository. So, you can help the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre populate the Modern Slavery Registry.

Discuss one way you plan to change your purchasing habits in light of what you’ve learned during Freedom Fortnight.

Don’t forget to let us know you will take action by clicking or tapping the ACCEPT CHALLENGE button on this page. If you missed any of our previous Freedom Fortnight challenges you can still take action here.