News from Social Accountability International

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.

SAI- Human Rights at Work

Website: www.sa-intl.org

For newsletter inquiries contact:
SAI Communications Manager
Joleen Ong, jong@sa-intl.org

The $20 Billion Business Case for OSHA

A groundbreaking new report proves that workplace inspections improves both worker safety and business' sustainability

Photo credit: ESH Partnering

On May 18, 2012, Science Magazine published a groundbreaking report, "Randomized Government Safety Inspections Reduce Worker Injuries with No Detectable Job Loss" which concluded, contrary to the beliefs of those critical of OSHA (US Dept. of Labor, Occupational Safety & Health Agency), that compliance with government labor inspections has been proven mutually beneficial for workers and employers In the USA.

The study found that random inspections reduced annual injuries by 9.4% and lowered employers' medical costs by 26%, for an average of $350,000 in savings in the four years following the inspection. When applied nationally, this equals an annual savings of roughly $20 billion a year, even before calculating the reductions in pain and suffering. Research focused on inspections conducted by California's Cal/OSHA in a number of dangerous industries, finding that Cal/OSHA's randomized inspections fulfilled their intended purpose by substantially lowering not only injury rates, but also workers' compensation costs (when compared with matched workplaces that did not receive inspections), thus benefiting both workers and employers.

The research was conducted by Dr. Michael Toffel, Associate Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School; Dr. David Levine, Professor at the University of California Berkeley's Haas School of Business; and Matthew Johnson, Ph.D candidate at Boston University- Dr. Toffel reported on his team's research in a recent Harvard Business Review blog entry: "Workplace inspections not only improve safety, they cause no discernible damage to employers' ability to stay in business and no reductions in sales or credit ratings, according to our research. Nor did we identify any effects of workplace inspections on wages, total payroll, or employment." SAI asked Dr. Toffel and Dr. Levine for further comment on their findings:

Q: Based on your research - what were the areas where workplace inspections resulted in major cost savings? Was it surprising to you?

Dr. Levine: The costs we examined were workers' compensation claims costs. These cost savings are realized at workers' compensation insurance companies in the short term, and passed through to companies in the form of lower insurance premiums. Workers' compensation claims tend to compensate for medical costs and lost wages. But they don't compensate for all injury-related costs, such as the worker's pain and suffering and company's potential productivity decline while training a replacement worker. Thus the cost savings we identified are likely to underestimate the total.

Q: You mentioned in your article for Science Magazine how it has taken 40 years to generate robust evidence on the effects of OSHA inspections - can you expand on some of the challenges?

Dr. Toffel: Government agencies don't have a tradition of rigorously evaluating their activities. (By "rigorous evaluation" I mean using randomized trials or other methods of evaluation that have a credible comparison group.) Neither regulatory agency heads nor Congress has insisted on such evaluations. Politically, some appreciate an agency like OSHA and others oppose it for ideological reasons. Yet seldom does either group push for rigorous evaluations to prove whether or not their hopes or fears are well grounded. Such evaluations take years conduct, and few politicians or appointed officials have that long an horizon.

As for evaluating the effectiveness of OSHA inspections in particular, one major challenge is that most inspections target workplaces that recently had injuries or safety complaints, which makes it difficult to construct a similar control group of workplaces that had similar outcomes but were not inspected. Another challenge involves measuring outcomes. If you rely on the injury logs that OSHA requires companies to maintain, and if inspections lead some companies to improve the comprehensiveness of their recordkeeping, it is very difficult to identify the extent to which inspections affect injury rates versus injury recordkeeping. Our study overcame these two challenges by examining the impact of randomly assigned inspections on injuries that entered the workers' compensation system. OMB (US Office of Management & Budget) is pushing hard for more rigorous evaluations. If that gains traction, we might see more high-quality evaluations going forward.

Overall, these findings align with SAI's experience that workplaces compliant with the SA8000 Standard will see returns on investments, such as higher employee retention rates, increased productivity, lower accident rates, consistent product quality, and overall higher employee morale. Externally, safer working conditions lessen reputational risk for both brands and supplier factories.

In the wider context of OSHA, this article was also referenced during a recent OSHA briefing in New York, hosted by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). The event featured two panelists- Jordan Barab, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, and Raphael Moure-Eraso, Chairperson of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board. Both addressed the report and its impact on validating the work of OSHA. These findings further support the words spoken last year by Dr. David Michaels, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor OSHA, at a hearing before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Workforce Protection when he stated, "We know that OSHA regulations don't kill jobs; they stop jobs from killing workers."

This article was written by SAI Research Intern Celia Sweet Guillard (cguillard@sa-intl.org). For inquiries, please contact SAI Communications Manager Joleen Ong (JOng@sa-intl.org).

Rio+20: Supply Chain Management for Sustainable Development

SAI participates in UN Global Compact Sustainability Forum in Rio

Businesses play a key role in fostering sustainable development, throughout their global supply chains. On June 16, SAI Senior Advisor Alan Spaulding spoke on the panel: "The Sustainable Supply Chain - Scaling Up Impacts of Sustainability Practice," to discuss this role, the impact of supply chain management decisions on sustainability, and how they relate to the Rio+20 agenda. This panel discussion was part of the larger United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Rio+20 Corporate Sustainability Forum: Innovation and Collaboration for the Future We Want that took place June 15-18, 2012 in Rio de Janeiro.

The forum offered an opportunity for over 2,000 participants - representing business, civil society, investors, governments, local authorities and UN entities - to strategize on how to scale up business' role in sustainable development. Social Development was one of the Forum's six core themes, the other five were: 1) Energy & Climate; 2) Water & Ecosystems; 3) Agriculture & Food; 4) Urbanization & Cities; 5) Economics & Finance of Sustainable Development.

High-level principles and standards -- such as the UNGC's Ten Principles, and the SA8000� Standard for Decent Work - offer businesses a path toward leadership in social responsibility and social compliance. However, putting principles in practice is a common challenge that companies face. This was the focus of a 2010 set of six case studies that SAI co-authored with the UNGC and the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE): From Principles to Practice: The Role of SA8000 in implementing the Global Compact. Beraca, a Brazilian company that also participated in the forum, was one of the six companies profiled in that publication.

SAI's work to help companies 'measure and improve' their capacity for sustainable supply chain practices and decent working conditions extends beyond SA8000 itself. Collaboration with other NGOs and UN agencies also help to strengthen business' contribution to sustainable development around the world. Below are four examples:

UN Women Gender Equality Seal - developed by SAI and UN Women, this auditable standard and certification system will focus on gender equality in a company and its supply chain
Task Force on Human Rights - members of the UNGC Supply Chain Sustainability Advisory Group have joined forces to look at just two topics this year: Implementation of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and Contract Labor in the Supply Chain
Handbook on UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights - in collaboration with the Interchurch Organisation for Development Cooperation (ICCO), SAI will publish a handbook and toolkit to help companies to operationalize the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (written by UN Special Representative John Ruggie and his team) in their supply chain by developing and implementing a management systems approach
Social Fingerprint� - in 2010, SAI developed this program based on ratings, classroom training, online training and toolkits designed to help companies understand, measure, and improve their social impact. Over 400 brands and companies have started using it, including Disney, Gap Inc., Carrefour, and Timberland

This article was written by SAI Communications Intern Shirley Wu (SWu@sa-intl.org). For inquiries, contact SAI Communication Manager Joleen Ong (JOng@sa-intl.org).

CSR's Next Step: The Buyer-Supplier Mutual Code of Conduct

A mutual buyer-supplier code of conduct will foster the two-way cooperation needed to improve human rights at work

SAI's Handbook on how to implement the UN Guiding Principles will be published July 2012- pre-subscribe now

In the field of corporate social responsibility, there has been a lot of talk about how the buyers' purchasing practices influence suppliers' ability to comply with their code of conduct. Buyer actions, such as large rush orders or last-minute design changes, contribute to supplier inability to meet labor standards. The traditional top-down supplier code of conduct typically used by multi-national companies fails to include their social responsibility as buyers.

Social Accountability International (SAI), in collaboration with the Interchurch Organisation for Development Cooperation (ICCO), will publish a Handbook and initiate a training program based on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Scheduled for release in July 2012, the Handbook offers a practical, six-step guide to help companies to develop and implement management systems to operationalize the UN Guiding Principles in their supply chain.

A major innovation in the Handbook is the Buyer-Supplier Mutual Code of Conduct as a tool for meeting the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

"Think about expanding your Supplier Code into a Buyer-Supplier Mutual Code that states the actions you will take to avoid causing or contributing to the negative impacts of the supplier," said Craig Moss, SAI Director of Corporate Programs & Training. "This is a major differ�ence from today's typical Supplier Code of Conduct which focuses exclusively on what is expected from the supplier. Going forward, the Buyer-Supplier Mutual Code of Conduct is needed to define shared responsibilities. We're not telling companies to start over with their code, only to think about adding a section about their responsibility to help the supplier meet their code of conduct."

The Handbook provides the tools for companies to expand their existing Supplier Code into a Buyer-Supplier Mutual Code, emphasizing shared responsibilities. Recognizing many companies' struggle with embedding the UN Guiding Principles into their daily business practice, the Handbook uses a six-step method to help companies implement a supply chain management system that integrates respect for human rights. The six-steps are:

1. Committing to a human rights policy

2. Assessing human rights impact

3. Integrating human rights in policies, procedures and responsibilities

4. Tracking human rights implementation

5. Communicating human rights impact

6. Remediating human rights impact

"We aim to tie the two [buyers and suppliers] together into a more collaborative effort to improve social performance," said Mr. Moss.

Pre-subscribe Now: SAI Handbook on UN Guiding Principles. This article was written by SAI Communications Intern Shirley Wu (SWu@sa-intl.org). For inquiries, contact SAI Communications Manager Joleen Ong (JOng@sa-intl.org).

Peru: Forum on CSR & Human Rights at Work

Register Now: June 27-28, 2012 - Lima, Peru

On June 27, 2012, SAI will jointly host an open forum in collaboration with the Peruvian Ministry of Labor, Peru EQUIDAD: Center for Public Policy and Human Rights, and Peru 2021, to promote corporate social responsibility and human rights in the workplace. This event will take place in the main auditorium at the Ministry of Labor in Lima. It will be followed by a one and a half day training course on CSR, SA8000, Social Fingerprint� and other labor rights topics within the Peruvian context. SAI's Representative for Latin America, Yolanda Brenes will be presenting at both events. (The course will take place 27-28 June at the Hotel Jose Antonio, Av. 28 de Julio 398 Miraflores. Lima 18)

Event Name: Public Forum - Corporate Social Responsibility and Human Rights at Work: Mechanisms for Social Inclusion

Foro P�blico: "La Responsabilidad Social Empresarial y los Derechos Humanos en el Trabajo: Mecanismos para la Inclusi�n Social"

Date/Time: June 27, 2012; 6:00PM-9:00PM

Address: Auditorio del Ministerio de Trabajo y Promoci�n del Empleo del Per�; Av. Salaverry 655, Jes�s Mar�a, Ingreso Libre

Event Brochure [english]: http://bit.ly/MkgsSW

Programa [en espa�ol]: http://bit.ly/Ki4Yhd

Event Name: Corporate Social Responsibility and Human Rights in Management Systems: the Development of Social Fingerprint�

La responsibilidad social empresarial y derechos humanos en los sistemas de gestion socio laboral: el desarollo de la huella social

Date/Time: June 27 (8:30AM-5:00PM) - June 28 (9:00AM-1:00PM

Address: Hotel Jos� Antonio

Av. 28 de Julio 398 Miraflores. Lima 18

Event Brochure [english]: http://bit.ly/MNcMYK

Programa [en espa�ol]: http://bit.ly/KR1gN8

For more information, and to register, please call Melissa Rondinel, Peru EQUIDAD at +51-5-472-2536 or visit www.peru2021.org | Para m�s informaci�n o para registrar para el curso, por favor llamar a Melissa Rondinel de Per� EQUIDAD al +51-5-472-2536 o haga clic en el siguiente enlace www.peru2021.org.

Tchibo's 'WE Project' Expands to India

Promoting dialogue between workers and managers for social quality

On February 2012, Tchibo's 'WE Project' launched its first training of trainers in New Delhi, India. SAI India Project Director, Rishi Sher Singh (top, third from left) and Daniel Kolterman (top, second from right) Tchibo Manager of Social Quality & WE, and Julia Thimm (top right) Tchibo Supplier Development Manager with training participants.

After 5 years of project activity in Bangladesh, China and Thailand, the WE Project starts a new chapter in India to promote dialogue between workers and managers for social equality.

Dialogue is the foundation for addressing some of the most challenging issues in workplaces. Significant improvements to working conditions are achieved and sustained when workers and managers have the knowledge, tools and communication platform to jointly resolve labor issues and identify improvements to the company's overall operations.

Since 2007, Tchibo GmbH, a leading coffee and consumers goods retailer based in Germany and an SAI Corporate Program member, has implemented its successful "WE Project" in Bangladesh, China and Thailand. Tchibo launched the new WE Project chapter in India on 7-10 February with the training of trainers (ToT) in New Delhi. The ToT was led by Mr. Daniel Koltermann, Project Coordinator Tchibo Germany, along with other master trainers, in cooperation with SAI and the CRB (Center for Responsible Business).

As part of SAI's ongoing commitment and partnership with Tchibo and its WE Project, SAI's India Project Director Rishi Sher Singh helped coordinate the event, including the selection of participants, logistics, and materials. Mr. Singh also participated in the ToT to help create a diverse learning group and actively support the ToT. Twelve trainers participated in the ToT, and four of these trainers have been selected for the first stage of implementation of the WE program in India.

This work builds on SAI's current participation in the WE Project chapter in China., where the training team consists of twelve trainers and is coordinated by Sustainability Agents (Susa). SAI staff members Harrison Xu and Jane Liu lead SAI's participation in the WE Project as members of the WE China training team.

The WE Project aims to improve working conditions in production facilities, mostly in Asia, by establishing workplace cooperation and strengthening factories' ownership of labor standards implementation. The Project was initiated in September 2007 by Tchibo GmbH and the Deutsche Gesellschaft f�r Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), co-financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Tchibo is an internationally operating German retailer, founded in 1949, originally just selling coffee via mail-order. Today, Tchibo is one of the best known brands in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. It offers a wide range of consumer goods in numerous stores and other sales channels. Sustainability is a core aspect of Tchibo's business strategy. Achim Lohrie, Head of Corporate Responsibility at Tchibo, serves as the current chair of SAI's Advisory Board. Tchibo is also an SAI Corporate Programs member at the Signatory level. In May 2012, SAI interviewed Mr. Lohrie to discuss these roles, as well as the inspiration and future of the WE Project.

For more information about Tchibo's WE Project, visit we-socialquality.com. For inquiries, contact SAI India Project Director, Rishi Sher Singh (rishi@sa-intl.org).

Snapshot: SAI's RAGS Project in India

SAI convenes a 3-day training workshop to help develop training curriculum on how to improve working conditions in the garment industry

Viraf Mehta, RAGS Project Coordinator, delivers a presentation to workshop participants on the National Voluntary Guidelines. [Photo credit: Rishi Sher Singh]

On May 28, 29 and 31, SAI organized a 3-day workshop in New Delhi to provide information on the supplier training curriculum that is being developed, and to elicit feedback from stakeholders. This workshop was part of SAI's work in UKAID's DFID RAGs Project in India. In attendance were over 35 participants - from apparel brands, NGOs, industry experts and freelance trainers.

During day 1, SAI India Project Director, Rishi Sher Singh provided information on the role of SAI in RAGS and the operational details of the project. With support of the India-based trade union, the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) and GAP Inc., SAI facilitated a discussion on gender discrimination and homeworker engagement in supply chain. Viraf Mehta, RAGS Project Coordinator for Maxwell Stamp, and Neha Kumar, Senior Technical Expert at GIZ, disseminated information on the National Voluntary Guidelines. On days 2 & 3, SAI Lead Trainers Doug DeRuisseau and Badrinath Gulur presented two supplier on-site modules of Building an Internal Social Performance Team and Worker-Manager Communications.

SAI encourages UK based apparel brands and their suppliers in India to participate in the upcoming classroom and on-site trainings, scheduled from July 2012 to Feb 2013.

One-day classroom training topics:

1. Gender Discrimination

2. Homeworker engagement in Supply chain (in partnership with ETI)

Onsite modules topics:

1. Building an Internal Social Performance Team- 3 days

2. Worker-Manager Communication- 2 days

For more information and to register, contact SAI India Project Director, Rishi Sher Singh (rishi@sa-intl.org).

ITC Standards Map: Linking 'Ethical' Suppliers to Global Buyers

The new web platform collaborates with over 75 standards and code initiatives to centralize information for buyers and suppliers

Snapshot of the ITC Standards Map: www.standardsmap.org

Mathieu Lamolle is the Standards Database Coordinator for ITC Standards Map, below he gives more details about the project and its opportunities for all stakeholders:

The International Trade Centre (ITC), a joint organization of the United Nations and World Trade Organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, has one goal: to help businesses become more competitive in global markets, speeding economic development and contributing to sustainable development.

As part of this goal, ITC has developed a new web platform called Standards Map that provides comprehensive and comparable information on sustainability standards and audit protocols, with the aim to strengthen the capacity of producers, exporters and buyers to participate in more sustainable production and trade.

ITC collaborates with over 75 organizations that have developed standards systems, codes and audit protocols, among which is SAI. ITC's role as an U.N. neutral intermediary between public-private partnerships is particularly appreciated as a "break" through the risk-averse behavior that often delays well-meaning collaborations within organizations.

The Standards Map platform offers an online "comparison tool" that enables users to make analyses, comparisons and reviews of sustainability standards and audit protocols using a unique set of social, environmental and economic criteria, audit best practices and good governance models. Ranging from small companies, traders and suppliers to retailers, importers and standards organizations themselves, users of the Standards Map platform are encouraged to share information about their various sustainability models, with the ultimate goal for companies to benefit from ethical and efficient supply chains worldwide.

The Standards Map platform helps 'ethical' suppliers, such as SA8000-certified operators, understand better their needs, how to access new markets & buyers, and how ITC can help them become more competitive and sustainable in global markets.

The information on SA8000 that is made available on the Standards Map platform is currently being updated by the ITC team in close collaboration with SAI. The ITC team is also currently working to add features to the Standards Map comparison tool, which will enable users to perform their customized analyses, save their settings directly online and share work with their social media networks, such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Since the end of May, additional sustainability standards and audit protocols were made available for review and comparison on the ITC Standards Map platform, including the Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA) and the International Council on Metals and Mining (ICMM) Sustainable Development

A free trial access to the Standards Map online comparison tool is offered to all new users who register from the Standards Map homepage. A series of free tutorials on how to use the Standards map platform and comparison tool will be organized in the coming weeks will be available to newly registered users who send an email stating "Interested in free Standards Map tutorial" to standardsmap@intracen.org. The latest news and updates on Standards Map activities, workshops, webinars and partnerships can be followed via ITC Standards Map's social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

For inquiries, contact Mathieu Lamolle, Standards Database Coordinator, ITC Standards Map (lamolle@intracen.org).

Meet SAI & SAAS' 2012 Summer Interns

SAI Summer 2012 Interns [clockwise from top left]: Anya Corke; Yu Mei Lay He; Matthew Langan; Celia Sweet Guillard; Shirley Wu; and Julia Solomon.

SAI welcomes its newest interns to SAI's headquarters in New York. Special thanks to Beth Smith for her ongoing support towards the Beth K. Smith internship fund at Wellesley College. We are proud to introduce them, in their own words:

Anya Corke: I'm a rising senior at Wellesley College, double majoring in Russian and Philosophy. Originally from California, I grew up in Hong Kong, and have also spent time living in Russia, Hungary, and Romania. I'm interested in international development and humanitarian issues, with a focus on education and Russia/Eastern Europe. I'm interning at SAI because I strongly believe in its mission, particularly its emphasis on ending child labor and enabling children to obtain access to an education. SAI also provides me with the invaluable opportunity to learn more about the economic and corporate aspects of promoting human rights.

So far, I have been researching benefit corporations and the Global Social Compliance Programme, compiling feedback to aid the revision of the SA8000 standard, and helping to map the global supply chains of SAI's corporate members. Additionally, I am working to assist SAAS with research on certification in Romania.

Celia Sweet Guillard: I am a rising junior from the University of Connecticut with a double major in Economics and International Relations with a focus on Human Rights and Social Justice, and a minor in Human Rights. I am particularly interested in corporate social responsibility and labor rights as they relate to the garment and textile industries.

Currently, I am helping to coordinate project planning and parts of the upcoming SA8000 review. I am also assisting in committee work for SAI's involvement with the UN Global Compact. I am excited to be interning at SAI because I am able to incorporate all of my interests in economics, international relations, labor rights, and corporate social responsibility, and feel that I am part of a process that will effectively promote human rights globally.

Yu Mei Lay He: I am a rising junior at Wellesley College majoring in Economics. I am from Santiago, Chile and am particularly interested in China's influence in Latin America, especially as more Chinese companies invest in the region. I am looking forward to learning more about how I can use my background in economics to look at social issues, such as labor rights and sustainable development. At SAI, I am working on mapping corporate members' suppliers with two other interns, in addition to working with SAI Development Manager Eliza Wright on research for different funding proposals and projects.

Matt Langan: I am a junior at Hamilton College where I major in government and am a member of the Levitt Leadership Institute. I am particularly interested in SAI's leading work in corporate social responsibility as well as corporate programs and training. This is largely because of my interests in international relations and business/finance, and my desire to gain a strong background in CSR as it becomes an integral part of global business and a means of improving labor standards and creating ethical work practices. At SAI, I am working with SAI's Corporate Programs and Training team -- Craig Moss, Jane Hwang, and Stephanie Wilson.

Julia Solomon: I am a rising senior at Wellesley College and am majoring in Economics. Two of my main interests are development issues and public policy. SAI's work is intriguing because of the way the organization works with business, government, and workers to improve working conditions. This summer I will be an intern at SAAS, where I will be analyzing and updating some of SAAS's data on SA8000 certification and working on the new SAAS website. Over the course of the summer I hope to learn more about how organizations can use data effectively and how social certifications like SA8000 are implemented.

Shirley Wu: I am a rising senior at Wellesley College majoring in Economics and minoring in Psychology. During my economics and other social study courses, we often discuss the conflict between economic development and human rights present in many parts of the world, especially in developing regions. Growing up in China, I have witnessed terrible labor conditions as well as companies' struggles to remain competitive in the global market.

I believe that interning at SAI will help me gain a comprehensive understanding of this issue. I would like to learn how SAI offers practical solutions to improve human rights through corporate social responsibility. Interested in the communication and marketing aspect of social organizations, I am very excited to work with SAI Communications Manager Joleen Ong to promote SAI, SA8000 and other SAI programs on various media channels. I will also be conducting research on related corporations and global events to maximize SAI's communication channels.

Enroll in Global SA8000 Auditor Training Courses
International Locations & Online Courses Available

Participants at the Advanced SA8000 Auditor Training in Sao Paulo, Brazil - April 23-25, 2012. Photo credit: Adriano Diniz Costa

SAI Training Schedule: 2012

Upcoming:

SA8000� Basic Auditor Training

Location: Surabaya, Indonesia

Date: July 16-20

SA8000� Advanced Auditor Training

Location: New York, U.S.A.

Date: July 18-20

SAI training courses are designed to encourage proficiency in social compliance issues and emphasize the implementation of management systems. Learn about a management-system approach to social compliance auditing and supply chain management. These courses are required for all SA8000^�and BSCI auditors, and are just as valuable to internal auditors, buyers, managers and workers for auditing to any labor code or standard. The courses are open to all.

For more information, contact SAI Training Coordinator, Stephanie Wilson at SWilson@sa-intl.org.

Highlights & Announcements

How to Design Leadership Development for Immediate Gains This article was co-written by Nadim Matta, President of the Rapid Results Institute (RRI). RRI is a partner of SAI, the 'Rapid Results Approach' is embedded in SAI's Social Fingerprint curriculum. Read it @bit.ly/LDSjHZ

GRI Anti-Corruption Working Group SAI Executive Director Eileen Kaufman is currently participating in this new working group of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Learn more @bit.ly/KB3nrF

EMD Millipore Stakeholder Advisory Council Meeting On June 18, 2012 SAI Director of Corporate Programs & Training Craig Moss participated to look at their current CSR efforts, and discuss how to further improve their social responsibility in their global supply chain. EMD Millipore is a division of Merck.

Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) Meeting On June 12-15, 2012 SAI Senior Manager of Corporate Programs & Training Jane Hwang participated in this meeting in Hamburg, Germany. The SAC is an industry-wide group of leading apparel and footwear brands, retailers, manufacturers, NGOs, academic experts and the U.S. EPA. Learn more @apparelcoalition.org.

U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) & Corporate Responsibility Officers Association (CROA) Meeting On June 12, SAI Senior Advisor Alan Spaulding participated in this meeting in Washington, D.C. which focused on continuing dialogue from a previous White House Sustainable Supply Chain Roundtable meeting. The goal is to establish a Community of Practice to enhance the federal government's ability to meet sustainability standards in its procurement.