SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY FOR WORKERS IN PRODUCTION COUNTRIES

 On April 24, 2013, the Rana Plaza factory in Savar, Bangladesh, tragically collapsed due to unacceptable health and safety conditions, resulting in the deaths of more than 1,100 workers. Some of the world’s largest apparel brands and retailers were sourcing from this factory (see NYU reports from 2014 and 2015).  Since then, I have traveled annually to South Asia, conducting interviews, visiting factories, and investigating why such tragedies continue to occur. My focus is on understanding how we can drive bottom-up change and the private sector's role in improving working conditions.

Among those I have had the privilege to interview are corporate executives and NGO representatives, many of whom are leading the social and environmental agendas within their organizations. 

Through this ongoing project, my goal is to provide evidence on how to improve working conditions and enhance the well-being of workers in production countries, thereby supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: #1 (No Poverty), #8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and #12 (Responsible Consumption and Production). 

Over the years, I have conducted more than 150 face-to-face interviews for this project. The insights and evidence gathered during my fieldwork have been the foundation for co-authoring several academic articles, with a particular focus on the garment industry in South Asia – E.G., BANGLADESH, SRI LANKA and PAKISTAN – and more recently THAILAND.