BSR Insight Articles About Supply Chain

Scaling the Impact of Worker Rights In-Factory Trainings

Ayesha Barenblat, Former Director, Stakeholder Collaboration

BSR—in partnership with the Levi Strauss Foundation (LSF)—recently authored a train-the-trainer resource for under-resourced worker rights training organizations operating in the light manufacturing industry. In developing this guide, organizations including Better Work, BSR’s China Training Institute, the Asia Foundation, Verite, and CARE collaborated for the first time to share lessons learned and innovative approaches to delivering worker rights trainings. Read more →

Posted: July 19, 2011 | Topics: Civil & Political Rights, Economic, Social & Cultural Rights, Supply Chain

Conflict Minerals Policy, Management, and Reporting for Supply Chain

Corporate executives are experiencing increased risk exposures from conflict minerals in an already challenging and rapidly changing international business environment. Pending regulation that requires companies using minerals originating in the Democratic Republic of Congo or adjoining countries to report on their due diligence measures regarding the source and chain of custody of those minerals is one evolving aspect of managing risks within supply chains. Read more →

Posted: July 12, 2011 | Topics: Conflict Minerals, Reporting & Communications, Supply Chain

Conflict Minerals Due Diligence: What Can Companies Expect?

Sasha Radovich, Former Manager, Advisory Services

In February, Apple was the first company to disclose how many of its suppliers use “conflict minerals,” or tin, tungsten, tantalum, and gold that may be sourced from and contribute to armed conflict in the regions around the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Apple also reported how many smelters originally processed the minerals, indicating its ability to trace them in its supply chain. Apple, along with other companies, including HP, Dell, and Intel, have announced strict policies to eliminate minerals that are not certified as “conflict free” from their supply chains. Read more →

Posted: July 5, 2011 | Topics: Conflict Minerals, Human Rights, Supply Chain

Social Impact Assessments Help Companies Manage Risks and Opportunities

Alison Colwell, Associate Director, Advisory Services

With growing stakeholder expectations and increasingly complex operating environments, leading companies recognize the need for a more comprehensive approach to understanding and managing project risks and opportunities that moves beyond regulatory requirements. Social impact assessments (SIA)—the process of analyzing, monitoring, and managing social issues such as resettlement and access to water—can help companies reduce risks, enhance operational decision-making, improve stakeholder relations, maximize community benefits, and secure a company’s license to operate. Read more →

Posted: June 28, 2011 | Topics: Economic, Social & Cultural Rights, Energy, Human Rights, Mining, Supply Chain, Water

New BSR Tool Educates Women in Developing Countries on Health Issues

Elissa Goldenberg, Associate, Advisory Services

BSR’s new HERproject Toolbuilder allows public health educators to create accurate and culturally relevant tools to educate women working in factories and farms in developing countries about health issues. BSR’s HERproject has demonstrated that investments in women’s health deliver business benefits such as reduced absenteeism and turnover and increased productivity. Read more →

Posted: June 14, 2011 | Topics: Supply Chain, Women & Sustainability