Background and context
While I was applying to SIPA back in 2023, I remember I had written in my application essay that I want to work for ensuring labor rights in global supply chains of multinational companies. This passion comes from my experience of working in civil society and partnering with the private sector and government for labor rights in India. When I finally came to SIPA, hardly a semester had passed and the development landscape in the US and consequentially in other parts of the world changed drastically. I wouldn't say I lost hope, but I was considering switching to a different path given the situation.
After my summer internship, which was at the intersection of climate change and informal workers, I realised I cannot betray my passion, my calling. Despite whatever is going on in the world, I cannot give up hope and I need to start looking for people and organisations that are working for labor rights in global supply chains.
I took the SIRI Practicum course because I thought I would try something different. It would be nice to be in touch with 'work life' again along with my 'student life'. When the professor was going through the list of projects and clients for this semester, lo and behold, there were two projects/clients focussed on human rights in supply chains. I almost jumped out of my seat in the class and had immediately decided my top two choices. Thankfully, I got one of them.
What am I excited about? What do I hope to learn?
The sector I am working in is sustainability reporting, with a focus on Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD). I never thought of sustainability reporting as a way of working for labor rights. Now I feel I was probably (blissfully?) ignorant or had a negative bias against sustainability reporting because the term is thrown around for anything to get away with everything.
But! I am glad that I am getting clarity on the path I need to pursue in order to work in the space of workers' rights in global supply chains. Through this project, I hope to learn more about the regulatory landscape and how effective are regulations in driving businesses to care about the workers in their supply chains. I am also eager to learn about other drivers that are responsible for businesses wanting to do due diligence and risk analysis with respect to human rights and adhering to the UN Guiding Principles. One of the components I will be focussing on is analysing the reasons for the gap between having on paper policy and operationalising these policies in reality on ground. We all hear so much about new regulations and policies that ultimately businesses incorporate in their 'human rights policy'. Some even go on to become signatories to the likes of the UN Global Compact. But does this actually translate into businesses doing better in taking care of their workers? And if not, what is holding them back? Identifying these pressure drivers, policy-to-practice gaps, identifying certain sectors and companies, and trying to visualise an existing tool as a solution at the end will be an interesting journey to undertake.
The first client call set me into motion. Their passion was infectious and their willingness to share their knowledge was highly motivating. I am eager to learn from people who have been working in this field for a long time. I am also eager to see how does technology play a role in fixing issues that conventional methods can't.
I am particularly interested in agriculture, food and beverage, and apparel sectors as I have worked in these sectors back in India and have read about numerous human rights violations in their supply chains internationally. I took a course on 'Corporations and Human Rights' in my first semester at SIPA, in which I did analyse human rights policies, modern slavery statements and dived deep into one of the case studies of human rights violations and the response of the company (one of the leading global apparel brands). So I am particularly interested in diving deep into these sectors.
Another interesting thing is that I have always been in the civil society while looking at these issues. The lens that I will be using to look at the whole ecosystem will be very different this time. While the mission is perhaps the same, the approach will be quite different (as I assume for now). I have never done a 'consulting' job before. I have always been a Project Lead or a Program Manager, largely looking at Strategy and Operations. This time I will be a consultant, doing a lot of research and coming up with data-backed evidence for the issues as well as the probable solution. I am excited to experience that.
Teamwork!
Last, but not the least, I am excited to learn from my team! We are at extreme ends of the 'work-ex' spectrum. I have more than 7 years of experience while everyone else is coming straight from undergrad. But they have certain hard skills which I don't have. Also, they look at things differently which personally helps me broaden my perspective. I am looking forward to leveraging our individual strengths for this project, as well as learning from the diverse perspectives that will ultimately help in building something solid for the client.
I am looking forward to a great learning experience and to the continued feeling of satisfaction of listening to my inner voice and not giving up on a cause that I care so deeply about.