Final Agenda for WRC Meeting Friday – RSVP Now!

April 21, 2021

Dear Colleagues,  

We hope you can join the Annual Meeting of the WRC University Caucus, held on Zoom this Friday at 12:30 p.m. ET. Please RSVP to receive the background materials and Zoom link.

As you can see in our updated agenda, we are pleased to be able to feature remarks from Representative Jim McGovern and a discussion with Chloe Cranston (Anti-Slavery International) and Zumretay Arkin (World Uyghur Congress) regarding forced labor in the Uyghur Region of China. In addition, Nathan Fleisig of university licensee Outerstuff will be joining us to discuss a factory case study drawn from our work responding to the Covid-19 pandemic.

While we will miss the informal interchange that is possible in person, we look forward to your questions and comments, particularly during a Roundtable with the WRC Field Team, during which two members of our South Asia team, along with Scott, will field audience questions. 

In addition to providing an overview of our factory case work this year and key organizational updates (including our work to combat gender-based violence and harassment), we will focus during this meeting on two key areas.

First, in Responding to the Global Pandemic, we will share updates on our latest research on the impact of the pandemic on garment workers around the world (as described in the New York Times) and our work pressing for industry-level solutions, as well as our continued engagement with licensees regarding university code compliance and WRC guidance issued specifically in response to the pandemic (available in the meeting Dropbox).

Second, in our session on Tackling Forced Labor in the Uyghur Region: A Multi-pronged Approach, WRC staff and our guests will explore the multiple approaches being taken by the WRC and other advocates to address the brutal coercion, surveillance, and abuse of ethnic minorities forced into work producing for global supply chains. In addition to discussion of the response of the US and other governments, and of the broader garment industry, WRC staff will discuss our ongoing engagement with licensees regarding the guidance we have provided to support licensees in eradicating forced labor from the production of university licensed apparel. This article provides helpful context for the discussion.

We very much hope you are able to join us.

Best,

Scott Nova  and Jessica Champagne