By Neeraj Kaushik | Cloud and AI Solutions Leader - IBM Corporate Social Responsibility
Blog
Now and again I'm reminded that the tech projects I work on are used by real people addressing important social issues. Lately, I've been allowed to work as a Cloud and AI Solutions Architect on an interesting project that uses tech to fight human trafficking.
Human trafficking is a massive, $150 billion illegal global industry — more profitable than drugs or white-collar crime. It exploits more than 40 million people worldwide, according to the International Labor Organization.
Human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal enterprise in the world. According to the Global Slavery Index, more than 40 million people are living in modern slavery.
While human trafficking is most often associated with commercial sex, it also includes domestic servitude, child labor and exploitation in areas such as migrant farming. It can happen anywhere, to men, women or children; in suburbia and on city streets, in factories and mines and at truck stops, fields or fishing boats.
Nearly 3,000 local Hawaii youth are estimated to be at risk for commercial sexual exploitation. Even as the COVID-19 pandemic shut much of the world down, this crime did not disappear. Demand merely shifted online, making many of its victims even more vulnerable to violence.
Jessica Munoz co-founded the Honolulu, Hawaii-based Hoʻōla Nā Pua, which means “New Life for Our Children,” to combat sex trafficking in the island state. Today, the organization is working with Booz Allen to use data and design thinking in the fight.
Based in Oakland, California, AnnieCannons is on a mission to help women break the cycle of exploitation by providing skills training, hands-on work experience, income opportunities, and a supportive work environment. AnnieCannons is named after American astronomer Annie Jump Cannon, who led a group of women in the early 20th century in making discoveries about astronomy and astrophysics.
The following is an excerpt from Cisco’s 2019 CSR report. To find out more or read the full report, click here.
As a technology company, we have a powerful opportunity to create an inclusive future by sharing our skills and capabilities with others. Through a new partnership with international antipoverty organization Global Citizen, we’re equipping young people with the tools to make a difference.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 16, 2020) /3BL Media/ — Polaris, a leader in combating human trafficking, today announced the creation of a newly formed Financial Intelligence Unit. The Financial Intelligence Unit, which is made possible by financial and subject matter support from PayPal, is designed to leverage intelligence from the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline and other sources to interrupt trafficker cash flows and enable prosecutions for financial crimes including money laundering.
ALEXANDRIA, Va., October 29, 2019 /3BL Media/ – The Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) today announced it has received the 2019 Presidential Award for Extraordinary Efforts to Combat Trafficking in Persons. The U.S. Secretary of State presented the award to the RBA at a ceremony this afternoon during a cabinet-level meeting of the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (PITF) in the historic Indian Treaty Room at the White House.
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct. 29, 2019 /3BL Media/ -- The Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) today announced it has received the 2019 Presidential Award for Extraordinary Efforts to Combat Trafficking in Persons. The U.S. Secretary of State presented the award to the RBA at a ceremony this afternoon during a cabinet-level meeting of the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (PITF) in the historic Indian Treaty Room at the White House.
RACINE, Wis., October 11, 2019 /3BL Media/ – Fisk Johnson, Chairman and CEO of SC Johnson, today will receive “The Last Girl Corporate Inspiration Award” from the anti-sex trafficking group, Apne Aap Women Worldwide (Apne Aap). This prestigious award will be presented to Johnson for the company’s sponsorship of the acclaimed film “Love Sonia,” a story inspired by the real-life events of a young girl’s attempts to rescue her sister after their debt-ridden father sells her into prostitution.
