Re:Structure Lab Receives Generous Funding from Humanity United Action, Freedom Fund, and Ford Foundation
Launched in April 2021 with the mission of combating severe labor exploitation in global supply chains through business model innovation, the Re:Structure Lab recently received a second round of funding from the Ford Foundation, Humanity United Action, and the Freedom Fund. Spearheaded by Stanford’s Center for Human Rights and International Justice and Simon Fraser University’s School of Public Policy, with participation from Yale’s Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery and the University of Michigan’s Law School, the interdisciplinary Lab calls on business and governments alike to root out forced labor, human trafficking, and modern slavery from global supply chains. In an effort to reform a brand of capitalism born in slavery, colonization, and extraction, the Re:Structure Lab’s evidence-based work suggests that slavery and forced labor are endemic – rather than anomalous – to the global economy.
With the support of these prominent funders, the Re:Structure Lab is now embarking on a new phase of work focused on strengthening the links between research and public policy and equipping businesses, advocacy groups, policymakers, and educators with evidence that business model and supply chain innovations are powerful and necessary tools to combat forced labor.
The Re:Structure Lab is led by the Center’s Director of Human Trafficking Research Jessie Brunner and Director of Simon Fraser University’s School of Public Policy Prof. Genevieve LeBaron, with the participation of a large team of faculty and other researchers that span several academic disciplines.
Since its launch in 2021, the Re:Structure Lab has produced six Forced Labour Evidence Briefs, highlighting crucial trends and patterns linked to labor exploitation and offering recommendations to address root causes. These briefs have influenced public procurement processes, investment strategies, media coverage, labor and human rights procedures, and policy strategies among US and European policymakers.
The Briefs have culminated in a comprehensive Blueprint, serving as a guiding framework for governments and businesses. It outlines steps to realize fair labor standards and protect workers from forced labor, exploitation, and abuse.
“While the Lab was created as a response to troubling supply chain trends we were seeing in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the unfortunate reality is that severe exploitation has long been - and remains - a significant problem,” Brunner said. “With this next phase of work, we aim to bring evidence-based recommendations for business and government alike to combat these issues more into the public conversation.”
In collaboration with diverse stakeholders — including business students, journalists, policymakers, NGOs, business leaders, and investors — the Re:Structure Lab now aims to translate current research into evidence-based action in support of a future in which businesses and policymakers not only have the tools to uphold workers’ rights, but also the conviction that the externalities of doing business should not continue to fall on historically marginalized communities.
About Re:Structure Lab's Funders
The Ford Foundation works to address inequality and build a future grounded in justice. For more than 85 years, Ford has supported visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement.
Humanity United Action (HUA) channels its resources toward igniting and nurturing innovative concepts, showcasing potential solutions, and facilitating the implementation of effective strategies. HUA understands that addressing the intricate and evolving obstacles confronting humanity demands strong comprehension, cooperation, and ingenuity.
The Freedom Fund is a global fund with the sole aim of helping end modern slavery. The Freedom Fund is a catalyst in the global effort to end modern slavery, working in the countries and sectors where it is most prevalent. They invest in and partner with organizations and communities on the frontlines of ending exploitation. By partnering with those at risk of modern slavery as well as visionary investors, governments and anti-slavery organizations, they bring together the knowledge, the capital and the will needed to dismantle the systems that allow slavery to exist and thrive.