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Why is modern slavery on the rise?

• ODI

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An increase in modern slavery in the last five years has been met with a decrease in the political will needed to address it.

But what can consumers do to make more ethical choices this holiday season and beyond? In this episode we navigate the intricate web of human trafficking, exploitation and forced labour within global supply chains. We put the spotlight on the retail industry, exposing its role in the disproportionate vulnerability of women and children to forced labour.

Our guests delve into the evolving response of the world to human trafficking challenges, exploring the complexities tied to migration and government policies. As the discussion unfolds, the conversation draws crucial links to the theme of sustainability and provides practical advice for consumers.~

Join Sara Pantuliano and guests in this exploration of ethical consumerism, human rights and the collective responsibility to create a sustainable world.

Speakers

  • Sara Pantuliano (host), Chief Executive, ODI
  • Nasreen Sheikh, Survivor, Author and Social Entrepreneur
  • Grace Forrest, Founding Director, Walk Free
  • Ekaette Ikpe, Director, African Leadership Centre, Kings College London, and ODI board member

Related resources

Sara Pantuliano: [00:00:00] Welcome to Think Change. I'm your host, Sara Pantuliano. Well, the holiday season is upon us, and consumers are flocking to the shops to buy gifts, to take advantage of the sales. In recent years, awareness has been growing around the darker side of the retail industry and particularly around worker exploitation and ethical business practices. So we thought today, we would look at these questions in more depth, um, particularly to examine the extent of the problems and the links to other human rights abuses, you know, to look at how effective responsible consumerism can be.

It's clear that we need a more robust response to all forms of worker exploitations, which can take into account the full global supply chain and the structures that sustain it. But how do we get there? What is the role of the individual [00:01:00] versus governments or international organisations and business themselves? I've got fantastic guests today who bring a range of perspectives from the creative industries to anti trafficking activists. I'm really delighted to be joined by Grace Forrest, Founding Director of Walk Free, Eka Ipke, Eka is a board member at ODI and the Director of African Leadership Centre, King's College London, and Nasreen Sheikh. Nasreen is a survivor, and an author, and social entrepreneur. 

Grace, let me start with you. Can you explain to us the links between the retail industry and the issues that you focus on at Walk Free of forced labor and human trafficking. How big is this problem, and and are there any industries where this is more prevalent?

Grace Forrest: Thank you so much. Well, forced labor and human trafficking are two of the various concept, concepts that the term modern slavery covers, alongside forced marriage, debt bondage, slavery and slave life practices, um, as well as state imposed [00:02:00] forced labor. So modern slavery refers to a situation that a person cannot refuse or leave, and it is the systematic removal of a person's freedom where one person is exploited by another or a company for personal or financial gain. In terms of the size of the problem, we're looking at some fifty million people living in modern slavery in the world today. That's actually representative of a ten million person increase in the last five years.

And modern slavery is happening on the backdrop of compounding crises in last five years, from the COVID nineteen pandemic, to the ongoing climate crisis, to protracted and ongoing conflict. However, as you've mentioned with retail, modern slavery never occurs in isolation, and it is something that is deeply embedded within our global economy and within global supply chains. So something that the Global Slavery Index looks at is the top five products of modern slavery risk for the world's most powerful nations, the G20, who are responsible for eighty, [00:03:00] eighty five percent of the world's GDP. And retail and fashion sit as the second most exploitative industry In those industries of risk, um, these industries represent a four hundred and sixty eight billion US dollar risk of goods made using modern slavery into the G20, um, and fashion and retail are particularly vulnerable to this because of the nature of their transnational supply chain. So be it from the growing of the cotton, to the dyeing of the fabric, to the manufacturing of the garments. Exploitation is occurring at every level of the supply chain and it's being exacerbated by the somewhat rerise in fast fashion throughout the world. 

Sara Pantuliano: Those are very, um, powerful numbers, um, Grace. Nasreen, Grace has been quoting from her research. The research shows that women are disproportionately vulnerable to being trafficked. What can be done to help them escape the cycle of [00:04:00] exploitation?

Nasreen Sheikh: As we all know that women and girls are disproportionately vulnerable to being just not into forced marriage, human trafficking, or forced, uh, labor, Um, these these also children are vulnerable to this, and, uh, there are number of ways that we can help them escape the cycle of exploitation. Uh, me, especially as a survivor of, uh, of forced marriage and child labor and extreme poverty. Um, I come from these communities, and I have spent the last twenty-five years of my life, uh, being with the victims, being with the survivors, and, uh, and finding a ways how can I get out of this situation? And I saw that how one person who believed in me, who gave me access to education, who gave me skills that I could turn that [00:05:00] into economic, a person who give me a vocational, training, uh, a language that I could speak, those all things made me, uh, grassroots leaders. And if somebody are survivors who've been through that and can speak up and share and can empower others, imagine what the people who do have the power, who can go to the schools, who do have the political powers, you know, the world leaders, what can they do? You know? So I feel like one of the best way to help those who are vulnerable, especially the womens and girls, is giving access to quality educations, basic human rights, and providing them with economic empowerment. And for the last two decades, I have been working with these vulnerable, disadvantaged, and marginalised women. And one of the thing that I have witnessed is that how resilient they are. You know? These women are not a challenge to the society. They are [00:06:00] they are the opportunities, you know, for the people to really see something different. And many times, you know, we people in power, they see them as, like, um, just wasted or not useful, you know, but I want them to see them differently. You know? We are human being, and we have something very special to offer, and Grace always talks about that, is the, where the problem is. That's where the solution is and I definitely see that these women who are being in this male dominated society, who are oppressed, those are the women have the solution if we can give them opportunities, if we can see them. So I would invite, uh, the NGOs, government, politicians to invest in these women, you know, give them opportunities and see what they can do. Because me as a survivor, if my organisation can help five thousand seventy women. Imagine the other survivors, what else they can do. 

Sara Pantuliano: Eka, a lot of your [00:07:00] research focuses on fashion producers in Africa.

Can you share how their work offers an alternative to human trafficking trajectories? 

Ekaette Ikpe: Absolutely. I mean, I think in addition to the very vital work, um, that we've heard about that must be done to address, um, this horrible situation, I do want to highlight the significance of higher value fashion products that are coming, uh, from fashion producers in, uh, some global south, uh, context and the opportunities that consumers could have to consider these cultural and creative goods as an alternative to fast fashion. So about a year ago, the economists pointed to African fashion as one of the big stories of this year. Um, and the reasons for that include, you know, this emphasis on local manufacturing, the use of locally sourced inputs, Of course, the use of technology, so the digitisation does accompany that. Um, and beyond that, thinking of Africa's space on the, on the global stage, the expansion of its own cultural, political, [00:08:00] and, and social, uh, influence across the world. Um, and in my own work, we work with, uh, fashion producers in Lagos and in Nairobi, we found, uh, fashion producers, uh, operating much higher up the value chain. Um, so we're thinking beyond cut, make, and trim activities. We see situations of very innovative and sustainable design.

We see brands that are conscious about projecting images of Africa and sustainable narratives. Some of those sustainable narratives include, you know, minimal waste, um, uh, as a key objective, a small batch production or made-to-order, um, production using local inputs. Quite often, very high value craft and heritage, um, uh, inputs that are sustainably produced. Um, I can think of examples including Ashoke or Adire or Akwete, all, um, heritage Nigerian fabrics. Sometimes they'll use this alongside the imported inputs, but quite often you see a centering of these sorts of uh, materials or [00:09:00] fabrics, uh, being used.

Another key point to note is that quite often, they're quite they work very closely and interactively with suppliers and other producers lower down the value chain. So you have that sense of interaction, um, and, and community. Um, now one might think these producers are located far away from me, but, of course, uh, their markets are local, , they are national, but they're also global. There's a lot of innovative use of technology, including social media to platform, um, their, their products.

Um, so there is space and there is scope to be able to access that. I think of intermediary firms as well that are doing a lot of work, Um, to sort of place the the really innovative designs, uh, coming from these producers in key spaces here in the UK as well, I can think of the online platform Farfetch, uh, for, for example, um, as well. So I think Christmas, uh, in the UK and across the world, there are quite important opportunities for some of these [00:10:00] producers, uh, to be able to interact with, uh, wider markets, um, and also for consumers to experience high quality cultural goods that are supporting high value design, supporting innovation, um, and sustainable practices, but also new and fascinating narratives about African spaces. 

Sara Pantuliano: It's great to hear about some of the ethical alternatives that, uh, consumers have, but, uh, you know, I want to go back to explaining why, um, it is really not ideal to, to stay on the on, on the fast side of the retail industry. Um, Grace, you know, there are some real blind spots within the global supply chains that, that allow, you know, exploitation, to continue and go, you know, unaddressed, uh, can you tell us from your research what you've seen as the key factors that really exacerbate this issue. 

Grace Forrest: Look. I just wanna follow on from Eka's point around, around fashion and the good options that exist. Something that we talk about a lot at Walk [00:11:00] Free is that 'ethical' should be the rule, not the exception. And yet right now, it is the exception. And I think when we ask ourselves that question, um, around what makes something cheap. Nothing is ever just cheap. It always costs someone something. So on average, a five pound t-shirt will be touched by a hundred pairs of hands from the growing of the cotton, to the manufacturing of the thread, to the putting together of that garment. A hundred pairs of hands for five quid. And I think we've been hoodwinked into thinking in this modern society that our convenience can or should come at the cost somebody else's human rights. And it's become more and more difficult to ascertain where our goods are coming from. You know? Just a simple label such as 'Made in China' or 'Made in Bangladesh', that doesn't the full experience of a journey of a garment. The raw materials are as much, if not more important now to understand the ethics of a product. So I think the opaqueness of the supply chains is where we have an issue. And, really, [00:12:00] what we're looking at is how we can assess and understand industry level risk. So an industry such as cotton is a really fascinating one because it's actually never not been exploitative. Cotton has its links to historical slavery. It has its links in racial injustices throughout the world. That is something that has never really gone away. It's just continued to move. So state imposed forced labor in cotton picking in countries like Uzbekistan, that was being found in major fast fashion supplies throughout the world, in the decade that I've been in the space, we were working against that five or six years ago. And thanks to some of the work, incredible work, activists on the ground, international institutions like the ILO, in partnership with human rights organisations such as Walk Free, we've been able to see that state imposed forced labor somewhat amended. And yet, now we're looking at state imposed forced labor from Xinjiang, which also impacts cotton. And I think it's just so critical to look at these industries and not think, why is that happening now or here? But [00:13:00] to understand that exploitation has never gone away and that the exploitation that we see in our global economy is very much by design and not default. It's to benefit some at the exploitation of many. And whenever we see legislation coming in and starting to make a make a move, and it's something that we work on and I'm very passionate about. Sadly, we see industries move.

So where Bangladesh became slightly safer after the horrific run of class collapse, the incredible activism that happened after that from a groundswell movement. It became slightly safer, not even very safe, but slightly safer. We saw the fast fashion industry move to Ethiopia, which has the lowest minimum wage in the world. And this is why we need international regulation, and it's why with the legislation from the UK and Australia, such as the Modern Slavery Act, to more important and meaningful legislation like human rights due diligence laws in Germany, in France, soon to be in the EU, soon to be in Canada, the raising of these questions and [00:14:00] the materialising of this conversation being one that it isn't an accident where this exploitation is occurring. Transnational businesses are responsible for people at every level of their supply chain, and we need to have the closing of this conversation because the climate is having a lot of focus, and I'm so glad. I'm so relieved that sustainability is having a moment, but you cannot, say, harm people in the name of saving the planet. So sustainability without human rights is not sustainability. It's grainwashing. The two need to exist together, and true transparency and due diligence can create that, but it's hard for consumers in this day and age to pick it apart because we see organic and we think, well, that must be good. Or we see rainforest, that must be good. And there's too many logos and too many labels, but the truth is it is a simple question around genuine transparency for people and the planet and about valuing the people, likely the women, who make our clothes. Because if our feminism does not include them, It is not feminism. 

Sara Pantuliano: That is so powerful. Thanks, [00:15:00] um, Grace. You mentioned earlier that, uh, forced labor has increased significantly over the past few years.

But what we also know is that detection and conviction rates have plummeted. So what should be done to strengthen the international response to this problem? You talked about, you know, the need for international legislation. How do we increase, You know, this accountability and this ability to really act? 

Grace Forrest: We, we, we look at a number of recommendations on this from around the world, and we always, um, ensure that these recommendations are led by the communities closest to this problem because those communities have the greatest solutions, they just often don't get access to the halls of power where decisions are being made. Enter the world of problems that we live in. So, really, Walk Free tries to act as a conduit between communities, between survivor leadership, and Enter policy making, um, rooms to ensure that these policies are effective and accurate to to where they're needed. But coming back to the, um, question around this issue getting worse, um, it is getting worse. The estimates that we create [00:16:00] are comparable estimates. We are able to say that it is a ten million person increase, the number of people living in modern slavery, and that's a very confronting thing to see. Of course, the COVID nineteen pandemic, did it create further vulnerability? But it also is a bit of a cop out to say that. COVID nineteen also just exposed the systemic vulnerability that was I mean, throughout the world, it showed a disregard for workers at the front of supply chains and us not being able to have access to things that we were used to suddenly made us look in places where we perhaps never had before. And even countries like the United Kingdom that have legislation on modern slavery, the the NHS was finding instances of state imposed forced labor in the supply chains of PPE from North Korea. So that's a country that actually has legislation, and they're finding it. Again, it comes back to that question, exploitation by design, not default. Another area that I'd like to join, um, draw our attention to is the fact that there are groups that are more vulnerable to forced labor than [00:17:00] others. And one such group is the migrant worker workforce. So we've been able to prove in our last index that migrant workers are three times more likely to experience exploitation than non migrant workers, and this story is universal. From Australia to the United States, Saudi Arabia to the UAE, migrant workers are experiencing exploitation at unprecedented scales. The United States figure doubled between the last estimates. Australia's figure doubles between the last estimates. We were able to prove that countries in the G20, these two are also in the G20, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, they're in the top ten countries in the world leading in modern slavery numbers, and this is a story of migrant workers being exploited.

An essential, critical part of these economies building the infrastructure from FIFA World Cup to the very infrastructure that world leaders are gathering right now for COP twenty eight. It is the ultimate hypocrisy that we are seeing workers not have access to their most fundamental basic human rights, building essential [00:18:00] infrastructure for the future. And I guess the last point on rising trends would be around climate. We know that climate and modern slavery has a cyclical relationship where one vulnerability reinforces the other. So where there is climate volatility and climate related disaster, there is in turn distress migration and greater pressure put on specific communities such as women and girls, um, where their rights become just less important on the table. And that's not because of anything evil or problematic, it's because in a myriad of needs, if the rights of the girl is fragile, it will sadly be the first thing to go. So it's understanding that while climate and modern slavery have a cyclical relationship, so too do the climate solutions to the climate crisis. The green transition right now will, by default, be built using forced labor. Be it state imposed forced labor coming out of polysilicon in Xinjiang, be it raw materials going into batteries out of the DRC. We are seeing a mass [00:19:00] increase of investment into this green energy transition without the adequate transparency to back it up, without the adequate focus on basic fundamental human rights for the people at the front of those supply chains to back it up.

And this simply is not good enough, and it is why legislation such as human rights due diligence laws are so important. But as I said, in the last five years, we have seen an increase of modern slavery and a decrease in political will against it. So it is something we're trying to put firmly back on the political agenda, and nowhere is this more important than the the world's most powerful, economically powerful nations, the G20, which, as I said, is responsible for almost half a trillion US dollar import risk of goods made using modern slavery. And over fifty percent of the world's people living in modern slavery are residing in G20 countries. So you move these countries, you change the global economy, you can create genuine human rights for people. This is not rocket science, and it can be tied to other movements that we're seeing from sustainability, to women's [00:20:00] rights, to racial equality. 

Sara Pantuliano: Grace has talked a lot about the governments, what governments can do, and individuals. What can businesses do? 

Nasreen Sheikh: Yeah. That's a great question.

Um, so after after me escaping forced labor, forced marriage, extreme poverty, and getting access to education, I came to realise that whatever was happening in my community was human rights violation, and I was able to understand that with the help of education. And, uh, as being undocumented from these very rural communities. I was having extremely challenge to even get a loan, you know? So with the help of very kind of person who felt to invest in me and personally that gave me the opportunities to open and just buy one sewing machine. And and, you know, in even in the darkness, you can see light sometime, and I was able to see that light, which was the skills that I have learned in that sweatshop, and I started to make really ethical, sustainable, and natural beautiful [00:21:00] products and, uh, um, and that products was my pathway to find myself and find my own communities, but also gave me the opportunities to serve those who were very similar to my situation.

And like that in 2008, we started Local Women's Handicraft, and Local Women's Handicraft is really about honoring the artisans, providing them with safe working conditions, uh, giving them living and fair wages, you know, honoring them and seeing them what can they create. And still today, if you go to local looms handicraft website, you can see these hundred percent, like, you know, like, recycle and natural products, we use hundred year old loom, which does not need any electricity. So we're truly trying to preserve the culture, uh, which is dying, and it, there were so many ancient culture and traditions are based on the philosophy of sustainability, you know, [00:22:00] based on the local, uh, heritage and local resources. And because of the globalisation and fast consumptions and fast manufacturing, these, uh, technology or these resources is becoming endangered. And for me, it was very important to preserve that, to to support the artisans, to support the looms, to save the loom, you know, to save those artist, which is not hundred year old techniques, but thousand year old techniques.

And if anybody visited, um, it it was a great opportunities to host, um, Freedom Fund and and Grace Forest recently at our center, and they get they got to witness. So if anybody is in Nepal or in Indian villages, you know, please contact, and we would love to show you what we do. Um, and also we are raising awareness. These artisans are becoming empowered, and they're speaking for themselves. One of the biggest thing that we believe is that we should not speak for others. Let the survivors, let [00:23:00] the people, let the artisans speak for themselves. So that's a little bit about our organisation, but people can go online and read a lot more. 

Ekaette Ikpe: So, I mean, uh, following on from from Grace's point around looking at those involved in the work of of fashion, uh, I return to the fashion producers I've seen and that I've worked with, and I want to highlight some of the practices that I've seen from them that, uh, a potential opportunity to draw inspiration from. Um, a first one I want to refer to is the way that we observed interactions with suppliers. So between these fashion producers that ,that are forcing us to rethink, uh, what lead firms look like because they undertake very high value, uh, added activities of design, of branding, of distribution, and some production, uh, as well, uh, targeting a range of, uh, markets.

Now the way they interact with suppliers has tended to be quite mutually reinforcing. Relationships that are built over long [00:24:00] periods, um, and sometimes those relationships and interactions actually influence their design. Uh, for instance, if they're trying to source fabrics and have to rely on, um, a particular, um, uh, availabilities of fabric. They have to adapt their design to to speak to that. The way they interact with embroiderers, with beaders, uh, with tailors, those who are doing leather work. I mentioned their input suppliers as well. That very iterative, um, uh, exchange. We see also another key point is that those interactions tend to be quite local. Um, we see, uh, uh, connections because our research looking at fashion studios in Lagos. And in Nairobi, the way they source materials from different parts of the city. Uh, for instance, the way they source production also from different parts of the city.

And then, of course, also, they tend to be we're talking about far smaller scales, far manageable more manageable skills, uh, of activities as well. Um, and [00:25:00] sometimes it's interesting that in in, uh, fashion production on the whole, this can be treated as a shortcoming. The sense or the idea that we need to increase scale, uh, massively, here, actually, I think, we see, um, benefits to this smaller scale, uh, activity. Um, so I wonder question that perhaps is raised is, uh, does this mean that we have to think about the distance within, uh, value chains when we're, uh, engaging with the with the points that Grace has, uh, has raised here when we're thinking about conversations about change, what is it about the distance, um, within change itself? The next point I want to note is the element of community, uh, that we found in terms of our producers being part of creative ecosystems located within the city.

You see opportunities, uh, for sharing practices, for sharing challenges as well. We saw that. Um, and potentially how these might serve as spaces for accountability. Uh, some of the spaces we observed are, you [00:26:00] know, local creative hubs, um, incubator exchanges, um, and also the role of cultural intermediaries here, uh, that service spaces for support but also mentoring. So, again, a question that comes out of this is, you know, to what extent ecosystems a space, uh, that could help or support questions around accountability.

A final point I want to make is one about conscious branding. Now, of course, you know, we've seen that be a big that that has been quite abused in general. But what we observed is that this is actually important space also for accountability. The producers we spoke to some of the producers we spoke to are quite adamant about, uh, elements of social consciousness. Um, one of those I've referenced already, this point about production models, uh, very, um, intentional about having bespoke production models about having small runs, um, about having a marketing process that's really centering local [00:27:00] ideas and practices of work, um, and community.

And then, of course, what we kept seeing as well is attention to sustainable practices, both in an environmental sense, in cultural sense and in a social sense, but that are very rooted in ideas of what could be African, very diverse ideas of what could be African, and really challenging, um, narratives around how African producers would be ought to be taught about sustainability. A lot of this is embedded historically, in these, uh, in many of the communities, many of the societies that we interacted with, and and, you know, I think platforming this space as an opportunity to learn, uh, about these, uh, practices would be very, very, um, uh, important, uh, for all of us engaged in the work of, uh, fashion. 

Grace Forrest: Eka, I could not agree with you more. I, I, I just wanna just completely reiterate everything you said. I think the disconnection of the international supply chain and the localisation of skills and the deep embedment of sustainability [00:28:00] in so many of the countries where these supply chains begin. The global north is who needs to learn about sustainability. That that that's who needs to learn about what sustainability is. And and Nasreen speaks so powerfully about this, around how beautifully and mindfully the products from her communities are made and put together, and yet that part's not valued when, really, that is where all the value begins. That's where the value sits. And, I just wanna jump in on on my part of the answer around what businesses need to address, and businesses do have the greatest responsibility And, frankly, they are just not doing enough to address the exploitation in their supply chain.

So to come back to that international point, um, Walk Free's Latest Beyond Compliance Data Dashboard assess modern slavery reporting in Australia and the UK across various sectors. And this data showed us that Eighty two percent of UK companies and sixty three percent of Australian companies have not met the minimum requirements of modern slavery legislation. So while companies are making vague commitments to protect human [00:29:00] rights, we are not seeing any proof that they are following through with these promises. And, As we said, the commitments to sustainability need to also include people, but eighty two percent failing to meet minimum requirements in UK. That is an overwhelming fail of of of a legislative, um, implementation.

And it's it's just not good enough, and that's why these broader, more thorough international laws need to come into effect, and they need to start with, um, a deep understanding of what these supply chains, where they begin in the communities that have these these understanding of sustainability from from the get go, as you said, for for for many, many years. Um, and it's the need to make it fast and quick and disposable, um, that has come from rampant consumerism in the global north, um, that has created this deep lack of sustainability, um, in our global economy. 

Sara Pantuliano: Thank you very much, um, Eka, Grace and Nasreen. We're very much at time. Uh, but I just want to ask you one final quick question.[00:30:00] 

Um, the holiday season is underway. How can consumers be more mindful of their purchasing choices? You know, we are in a cost of living crisis. They will be hard pressed, you know, when it comes to, uh, buying goods that, you know, may be more sustainable but more expensive, more ethical but more expensive, how can we guide our listeners? 

Ekaette Ikpe: Yes.

No. I'm I'm it's very valid point. I mean, I think it's important to note, uh, that, you know, Christmas and festive periods are very important for creative producers. Um, you know, it's quite often where the these festive periods, uh, it's where the bulk of the sales can, uh, come from. Uh, I know especially for some of the African fashion producers that I've spoken about, Um, they rely on this period, uh, because of the heightened attention to dress for, uh, the festive festivities, Um, you know, be it Christmas or the New Year.

Um, and these are long standing practices. Um, now I think I want to [00:31:00] encourage, uh, you know, everyone who's listening now to think about, uh, you know, supporting these fashion producers, um, because despite the skill and innovation, um, there are many of them showcase. They're not they're not always very well paid. Um, they operate on the basis of precarity and business models that have very limited core funding from, you know, formal finance sources, Um, or, you know, where there are investment or, you know, opportunities for for finance, they're not often very well structured because, this, um, sector is not very well understood. Um, so in that case, many rely on other jobs, uh, to raise resources, but there's rely also on family members, as well.

And, of course, the situation has worsened quite quite a bit because, you know, high inflation rates across the world that we've, Um, observed, but also depreciating local currencies in many of the context that I am referring to. Um, so I think this season can offer real opportunities, Um, [00:32:00] for these producers who are innovating through the use of local inputs, through the use of long established sustainable practices, Um, using local raw materials and also projecting really beautiful narratives, uh, about the African continent. Um, it's an opportunity to experience, uh, some of those goods, um, it might be about buying less, um, but buying better. As it were buying higher quality goods, we're seeing really impressive forms of design, uh, as I've already noted. And some of this work is becoming increasingly available through, as I said, uh, digital forms and social media marketing and the work of intermediaries, um, as well.

Grace Forrest: Just to reiterate Eka's point, all I'd say is to quote Vivienne Westwood, I would encourage everyone to buy less, choose well, and make it last. And it's been a really hard few years The people throughout the world, and there is economic hardship everywhere. And so all we're encouraging is please consider putting [00:33:00] your hard earned money behind brands that can show you that they're prioritising people and planet. And if that means buying less, but buying something beautiful with an incredible story behind it that is empowering the community at the front of the supply chain. I think that's the true spirit of Christmas.

Um, and I I would point to Nasreen's wonderful store, which I had the privilege of visiting in person in Kathmandu last month, Local Women's Handicrafts. These are beautiful Products made with love, made by survivors of modern slavery of very high quality, um, and I think it's a privilege to be able to economically support brands that are not just not doing harm, but are also doing social good. And the last point I'd add around our retail choices at Christmas is this does not just relate the gifts with that we give each other, it relates to our wrapping paper. It relates to Christmas cards. It relates to the food that's on the table.

So buy locally where you can, buy fair trade where you can these decisions make a difference. They make a massive difference. They're done by the public, and they show brands that care about this, um, [00:34:00] at this time of year when there is heightened consumerism and, um, we can definitely consume in a more mindful way, Um, while also holding businesses to account. Even just asking the questions around transparency in whatever purchases wherever you're purchasing things is great. And we'll cover this by secondhand vintage products is also good to keep things out of landfill.

Nasreen Sheikh: Yeah. Just two things. Like, I really want people to start exploring thrift stores, and, you know, nowadays, people sell online thrift, um, secondhand items, Uh, that reduce the demand for the new production and, um, you know, just support artisan's goods. And It's very, very important for consumer to educate themselves because, uh, all of these businesses and corporations are not being very transparent. And, uh, if, uh, if anybody resonates, uh, with me and with survivors and with artisans who do care about arts and crafts and, uh, wants to live in a sustainable [00:35:00] and connected world.

It is very important to educate. And, you know, I think everybody should read GSI report, Global Slavery Index report that Walk Free put together. Um, amazing group of women, uh, have worked so hard to put all that data, and you can see how deep, Uh, the problem is and forced labor and forced marriage is not decreasing, but it's increasing. And, uh, if we don't change, Uh, we will become so disconnected from ourself and from the planet and from the people that we don't wanna be a dinosaur. You know?

We can make it, and I'm constantly fighting on the ground and supporting as many people I can and if everybody can do the same, at least take just five minutes and research about your brand, you know, who who are they, what are they doing, what are their practices and then make that decisions. And, you know, if you have too many gifts, just instead [00:36:00] of just buying gifts, donate to those organisations who are grass roots, you know? Who are survivor labs? Uh, we are so underfunded in these, uh, communities. And if we do have resources of the right To, uh, financial or anything, we can make so much impact on the ground.

And, you know, It takes a lot of money to be in the marketing and all of that, and especially the grassroots organisation and survival led organisation don't make it into the high news. So I really hope that ODI gets millions of views, uh, and our message gets reached to the every people, Um, and our voice gets heard, hopefully. 

Sara Pantuliano: Well, that's all we have time for today. Thank you to Eka, Grace, and Nasreen for joining me on this episode of Think Change. And thanks to all our listeners.

I hope we have inspired you to think more carefully about your choices this holiday [00:37:00] season, to make ethical purchases the rule rather than the exception. As Grace put it, cheap products will have a cost for someone, It will create harm ,for vulnerable workers. So think more carefully as you go out and make your purchases. Um, as always, the resources we have referred to will be available in the show notes. If you've enjoyed the show, please do like, subscribe, rate the episode. It really does help us a lot. We hope you will join us again next time. Until then. 

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Sara Pantuliano

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