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Upcoming Training Events
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SA8000®:2008 Standard Revisions Training Course
Ongoing- Web-based
SA8000® Basic
Auditor Training
August 29-Sept 2, Guangzhou, China Sept 12-16, New Delhi, India Sept 12-16, Emeryville, CA Sept 19-23, Sao Paulo, Brazil
SA8000® Advanced Auditor Training Aug 8-10, Sao Paulo, Brazil Aug 21-23, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Sept 14-16, Shenzhen, China Sept 18-20, Shenzhen, China
Professional Development Series
Sept 22-23, Portland, OR
Full training schedule _________________
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accepting applications for Fall 2011 interns
(New York, NY)
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Social Accountability International (SAI) is a non-profit, multi-stakeholder organization established to advance the human rights of workers by promoting decent work conditions, labor rights, and corporate social responsibility through voluntary standards and capacity building.
SAI is headquartered in the United States with field representation in Brazil, China, Costa Rica, India, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, Philippines, Switzerland, and UAE.
For newsletter inquiries contact:SAI Communications Manager- Joleen Ong, jong@sa-intl.org |
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 Thinking Beyond the Surface: Enhanced SA8000® Course
Updated Basic SA8000® Auditor Training Course Emphasizes Real Life Supply Chain Challenges & Practical Techniques
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SA8000 Basic Auditor Training course participants gather at the conclusion of the course, which took place on July 4-8 in Hamburg, Germany
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In 1998, SAI rolled out its first auditor training course. It sought to train certification auditors and professionals from a wide range of backgrounds and interests. Over the years, the growth of the CSR sector has brought in a diverse group of participants who seek to learn more about becoming a social auditor, and address real labor issues faced in a company's supply chain. Initially most participants were experienced ISO auditors; now more individuals from all codes and standards have participated in this training program.
In response to this evolution, SAI has continually updated its Basic SA8000® Auditor Training course. Now SAI introduces a holistic update/revision that incorporates over 13 years of feedback from auditors, certification bodies and companies, information from SAAS calibration meetings, and more advanced learning techniques. As one of SAI's flagship programs, the course provides the core competencies necessary for supply chain management and auditing with the SA8000® standard as a framework to assure social compliance. >>Read more
View the training schedule to find a course near you. For more information, contact SAI Training Manager, Kate Critchell at KCritchell@sa-intl.org .
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Support Structures for Dominican Sugarcane Producers
After Four Years of Project Cultivar, the ACC Consuelo Continues its Efforts as a Model for Independent Producers
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Photos above, from left: 1) A sugarcane worker transporting crops to the sugar mill; 2) SAI Program Associate, Eliza Wright, talks with Estanislao Sano about the impact of the ACC Consuelo; 3) David Figueroa, Program Coordinator for CIAC, a central figure that oversees training to ACC Consuelo producers.
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The Asociación de Colonos del Ingenio Consuelo (ACC Consuelo), a producer's association of 263 independent sugarcane producers in the eastern region of the Dominican Republic, was founded on October 2, 1974 in the town of Consuelo. ACC Consuelo brings together sugarcane producers, traditionally called "colonos", and supports them in agricultural production. It assists producers in negotiations with local sugar mills on the contract price of harvesting and delivery of sugarcane, lending important inputs for production, e.g. tractors, and helps members gain access to credit and new markets.
Building these support structures has been advantageous for the independent producers, and an overall Project Cultivar success that continues after that project's conclusion. The colonos continue to meet because of the benefits they've experienced from being an organized professional group. >>Read more
For more information, please contact SAI Program Associate, Eliza Wright- EWright@sa-intl.org
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Improving Labor Standards Performance in the Middle East
SAI's Craig Moss Contributes Article to UN Global Compact Yearbook 2011 about Labor Rights and the Arab Spring  | |
(Photo: Reuters) Protesters wave Egyptian flags during a protest in Tahrir square, Cairo, in April 2011
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On July 5, the UN Global Compact published its 2011 Yearbook, focusing on exemplary entrepreneurial commitments to establish a blueprint for corporate sustainability.SAI Corporate Programs and Training Director, Craig Moss contributed the article "Improving Labor Standards Performance in the Middle East," detailing his experience in Egypt and the Middle East, and highlighting a specific case where a company's commitment improving its social performance saved an estimated $2 million in potential lost revenue. In April 2010, SAI was working with an Egyptian company based in Cairo, to help it build an internal social performance team, which would help improve internal communications through freely elected worker representatives. Nine months later, prior to one of the Arab Spring's national strikes in Cairo, the worker representatives spoke with management, citing palpable improvements, recognizing the management's efforts to establish and respect communication channels. >>Read more
Click here to read the article, excerpted from the UNGC 2011 Yearbook. For more information about the Yearbook, click here. For more information, contact Joleen Ong at jong@sa-intl.org.
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Measure & Improve: Management Systems in the Jewellery Supply Chain
SAI Helps Rosy Blue Factory in China Develop Management Systems to Meet the Responsible Jewellery Council Code
 As reported in the June 2011 issue of the newsletter, SAI's partnership with the Responsible Jewellery Council offers new opportunities for both organizations to promote social compliance throughout the jewelry supply chain. Rosy Blue, the world's largest diamond manufacturer and an SAI Corporate Program member, is working with one of its diamond and stone processing suppliers based in Linyi, China [Rosy Blue Linyi Factory] to help improve its management systems to support its efforts towards meeting the RJC Code of Conduct. "We are continuously looking for improvement opportunities that take into account the conditions, challenges and risks specific to their markets, and also define appropriate strategies and responses to these problems," said Iris Van der Veken, Manager of Corporate Affairs Global at Rosy Blue. >>Read more Interested in a custom training course for your suppliers? For more information, contact Kate Critchell, SAI Training Manager at KCritchell@sa-intl.org. Back to top
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GSCP & SAI Announce Partnership
To Harmonize Efforts & Build the Capacity of Global Supply Chains
 SAI and the Global Social Compliance Programme (GSCP) are pleased to announce they will partner to harmonize efforts, as SAI joins the GSCP's Partner Organisations Network to build capacity and implement best social and environmental practice in global supply chains. As SAI and the GSCP work in complementary fields, this partnership acknowledges the importance of collaborating on activities to avoid overlap and duplication of activities and resources.
On June 21, the GSCP opened an Equivalence Process that will allow buying companies, initiatives and other organizations to benchmark their systems, tools and processes against agreed best existing practice as described in the GSCP Reference tools. SAI is working to benchmark SA8000® through the GSCP Equivalence Process. >>Read more
For more information about the GSCP's Equivalence Process, visit http://www.gscpnet.com./equivalence-process.html. For more information, contact Joleen Ong, Communications Manager at JOng@sa-intl.org.
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SAI India: Competitive Selection Process for Trainers
 In response to the "Call for Trainers," released on April 18, SAI and project partners, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and BSCI, received a significant number of applications, creating a competitive selection process for India-based trainers. Applications were received from all over India, including New Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Tirupur.
The trainer selection is an important process in creating the network of trainers to support cost effective and scalable trainings in India, as a key goal of SAI's joint Development Partnership (PPP), "Scaling Up Indian Responsible Business Initiatives."
"In India we say that sowing the right seed is very important for a good yield- the same adage holds true for the selection of trainers," said SAI India Project Manager, Rishi Singh. >>Read more
To learn more about the India PPP project, visit www.sa-intl.org/indiappp. For more information, contact Rishi Singh, India Project Manager at RSingh@sa-intl.org .
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Highlights & Announcements
 The State of Sustainability Initiatives Review 2010 Released by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), the review provides information on the market performance, governance, criteria coverage and implementation practices of key initiatives, including SAI's SA8000® standard, Rainforest Alliance and the Fairtrade Labelling Organisation (FLO). View this report @bit.ly/nyTJsa  | |
Watch a demo of the course: "Social Fingerprint®: Building Your Internal Social Performance Team"
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New Social Fingerprint® Course Demo Watch a demo on SAI's latest Social Fingerprint® course: "Building Your Internal Social Performance Team" View the demo @bit.ly/lQO80m Local Empowerment through Rapid Results The Rapid Results Institute (RRI), who teamed up with SAI to develop its latest Social Fingerprint® course, published this article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review. View the article @bit.ly/o0hDaZ Indian Voluntary Guidelines on Business Responsibility in India Release by the Indian Ministry of Corporate Affairs, these guidelines aim to strengthen and enable the Indian corporate sector to evolve into a global leader in responsible business. View these guidelines @ bit.ly/r8Sf6S  | |
Group with documentary filmmaker, U. Roberto Romano, after screening his film, "The Dark Side of Chocolate." Clockwise from top left: Lianna Lee; Alizah Raza; Marie-Rose Coulibaly; Jason Turner; Joleen Ong; U. Roberto Romano; and Aileen Patimeteeporn.
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The Dark Side of Chocolate On July 22, SAI welcomed documentary filmmaker, U. Roberto Romano to SAI's office to screen his film about child labor on cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast. MADE-BY Annual Report 2010 This interactive report focuses on how 'sustainability in the fashion industry is moving from responsive to strategic." View it @ bit.ly/oCtztL SAI's Social Fingerprint® Program- the Gap and Timberland SAI's partnerships with companies are highlighted in this Fair Trader Journal blog post. Read this @ bit.ly/qP3Ys6
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