21st Century Models of Social Responsibility: Roles for Workers, Corporations, and Consumers

The concept of social responsibility in the context of a market economy continues to evolve in the 21st century. While the sustained efforts of unions, individuals, civic organizations, and government all helped establish some basic protections and work parameters in the 20th century, what is being done now? Where is progress being made? In this symposium we bring together organizations harnessing market mechanisms to effect change and move the market to produce the outcomes we as a society want. From grassroots organization in the field, to product certification on the shelves, to C-Level commitments, corporations claim to be accepting social responsibility and acting to make the market work better. Join us to hear about their different models and assess their effectiveness.  

All events are free and open to the public. 21st Century Models of Social Responsibility is sponsored by the John B. Hurford ’60 Center for the Arts and Humanities, Philadelphia Area Creative Collaboratives (PACC) Program, Distinguished Visitors Program and Haverford Microfinance and Impact Investing Initiative (MI3)

Schedule

Thursday, November 8, 2018

Introduction and Keynote Address: Holding Goliath Accountable
4:15–6 p.m.
Stokes Auditorium

Holding Goliath Accountable: How farmworkers and consumers have used market power of multi-billion-dollar food brands to achieve unprecedented human rights advances in US agriculture and a new paradigm for social responsibility.
Lucas Benitez, Co-Founder, Coalition of Immokalee Workers
Introduction by Noelle Damico, Senior Fellow, National Social Economic Rights Initiative

Today, a new form of human rights protection called Worker-driven Social Responsibility (WSR) – one designed by the human beings whose human rights have been in question – is guaranteeing freedom, an end to violence, and respect in the fields for tens of thousands of US farmworkers in seven states along the Eastern Seaboard, ensuring the safety of 2.4 million garment workers in Bangladesh and realizing rights for dairy workers and sustainability for small farmers in Vermont.  WSR was born in the crucible of crushing demand by global retail brands for cheap produce and products that exerts a downward pressure on prices and renders workers at the bottom of supply chains ever more vulnerable. Change was possible, however, when workers in Immokalee, Florida realized that this damaging market force could be re-channeled to enforce their human rights. Come hear what Harvard Business Review named “among the most important social impact stories of the last century” and learn where you fit in.

Reception: Harvest without Violence Exhibition
6–6:30 p.m.
DC Sunken Lounge

Light Refreshments will be provided.

Talk with docent Ximena Pedroza, Student/Farmworker Alliance about the exhibit on Tuesday, Nov. 6 through Friday, Nov. 9 between 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. and 4:30–6:30 p.m. daily.

Harvest without Violence is a mobile museum on sexual violence in agriculture and the Fair Food Program

4 out of 5 women farmworkers have experienced sexual harassment or assault in US Agriculture. Come and learn about the farmworker-designed program that’s stopping it.

Through the exhibition, visitors are immersed in a world of multimedia and investigative journalism, extensive academic research, court documents and farmworker women’s testimonies detailing the pervasive problem of violence against women in agriculture, both in the US and across the border in Mexico.

The exhibit explores the Fair Food Program as a model for sexual violence prevention and captures its stunning impact on farmworker women’s lives. Participants are presented with the ongoing work to expand the Fair Food Program through the CIW’s Campaign for Fair Food and national Wendy’s Boycott, a section which examines the contrasting models of Corporate Social Responsibility versus the Worker-driven Social Responsibility Model established by the Fair Food Program.

Friday, November 9, 2018

Workshop I: Organizing for Sustainable, Systemic Change
9:30–11:00 a.m.
VCAM 201
Lucas Benitez, Co-Founder, Coalition of Immokalee Workers
Noelle Damico, Senior Fellow, National Social Economic Rights Initiative
Ximena Pedroza, Student/Farmworker Alliance

Nelson Mandela once observed, “It always seems impossible, until it’s done.” Come learn how the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and Alliance for Fair Food used a human-rights approach to organizing that united hundreds of thousands of people to make the impossible, possible!  We will look at why this approach, gleaned from people’s movements in Mexico, Guatemala, and Haiti, has been so successful in creating sustainable, systematic change that delivers results while catalyzing democratic practices. This workshop will include a special focus on the power of student organizing and the crucial role students are playing in the movement for Fair Food.

Free Time/Lunch
11–12:30 p.m.
VCAM 202

An optional light lunch will be provided in the Artist Residency Studio. 

Panel Discussion: 21st Century Social Responsibility
12:30–2 p.m.
VCAM 001
Lucas Benitez, Co-Founder, Coalition of Immokalee Workers
Noelle Damico, Senior Fellow, National Social Economic Rights Initiative (moderator)
Jay Coen Gilbert, Founder of B-Lab and B-Corp Certification
Penelope Kyritsis, Research Associate, Workers Rights Consortium

The last 50 years has seen the emergence of massive private corporations with economic power far greater than that of many states and with the responsibility born of that power to protect the communities in which they operate, the environments with which they interact and the human rights of workers toiling in their vast, global supply chains. This panel will discuss models and approaches to social responsibility including standards development, monitoring, enforcement, and certification.  It will examine the role of consumers and investors in these approaches to social responsibility and the results achieved.

Workshop II: The Power of Art and Symbolism in Social Movement
2:30–4:00 p.m.
VCAM Lounge
Lucas Benitez, Co-Founder, Coalition of Immokalee Workers
Noelle Damico, Senior Fellow, National Social Economic Rights Initiative
Ximena Pedroza, Student/Farmworker Alliance

In this workshop we’ll explore how the Coalition of Immokalee Workers used everyday objects that were emblematic of their exploitation – soiled clothing, worn-out shoes – to center powerful direct actions that made a direct and impossible to ignore demand for corporate executives to recognize farmworkers’ humanity.  We’ll look at how CIW repurposed iconic symbols such as the Statue of Liberty to capture their quest for equality and justice in America. [That CIW statue is now the centerpiece of the Smithsonian’s permanent exhibit “The Nation We Build Together.”] We’ll examine how CIW used what’s come to be known as “brand busting” to reposition exploitation in the minds of consumers who heard or saw corporate taglines and logos.

In Concert: Philadelphia’s &More (Donn T & Chill Moody)
8–9:30 p.m.
VCAM Lounge
Performers: Philadelphia Musicians Donn T (Alt R&B) and Chill Moody (Rap/Hip-Hop)

Come hear Chill Moody’s thought-provoking lyrics and Donn T’s smooth vocals as this new duo and their band bring their special rap/alt R&B sound to the VCAM. They are steeped in the Philly music scene (Questlove is Donn T’s brother and Chill Moody picked Best Rapper in Philadelphia Magazine’s "Best of Philly" issue) with a strong focus on community and justice in their songs. After a great performance at the XPN XPoNential Music Fest this summer, they are about to drop their first album. Come hear them here and now on Haverford’s campus for the music event of the year.