Freedom of Association, the Climate Crisis, and Modern Slavery
Anibel Ferus-Comelo, University of California, United States
Anibel Ferus-Comelo directs the community-engaged Labor Studies program at the University of California, Berkeley (USA). The multi-organizational collaborative initiatives that she develops prioritize race, class, caste, and gender equity through collective organizing and public policy. Having lived and worked in three continents, she brings a multilingual, transnational analytical lens to her scholarship on supply chains, migration and development. She has authored numerous scholarly articles and book chapters, and is an experienced educator, trainer and facilitator.
Dr. Camila Huerta Alvarez, Assistant Professor of Sociology, The University of California Merced, United States
Camila Huerta Alvarez is lead author of "Is Labor Green? A Cross-National Panel Analysis of Unionization and Carbon Dioxide Emissions". Much of her research is focused on integrating theories from the sociology of race and ethnicity to environmental justice issues. She employs a variety of methods including panel, spatial, and multilevel modeling. She obtained both her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Sociology at the University of Oregon. She received double bachelor's degrees in sociology and mathematics from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Attorney Grizelda "Gerthie" Mayo-Anda, Executive Director, Environmental Legal Assistance Center, the Philippines
"Gerthie" established ELAC in 1990 to empower communities and local stakeholders to assert their environmental rights and protect our natural resources. Using the science of policy-making, she has advocated for and developed policies to stop extractive projects in natural forests and key biodiversity areas, about Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), clean air management, coastal resource management, and many others.
Stijn Sintubin, Director, European and International Department of ACV-CSC (ACV-CSC International), Belgium
ACV-CSC is the largest trade union confederation in Belgium with 1,600,000 members. For years, Stijn has maintained the relationships between ACV-CSC and trade unions and trade union structures in Asia. He runs policy and training programs with unions all over Asia. Since 2016, he delivers a special program which develops activities on social dialogue and networking of trade unions in Multinational Enterprises and their supply chains, focusing on Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Bangladesh, Myanmar and on the garment and construction sector.
Shigeru Tanaka, Pacific Asia Resource Centre (PARC), Japan
Shigeru Tanaka is Director of the Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC), a people's thinktank based in Tokyo, and works to connect various social movements for common purposes. Since 2015, Shigeru has been engaged in on-the-ground research to assess human rights and environmental impacts of mining projects in the Philippines, Ecuador, Brazil and Canada. He is also a member of a Japanese consortium of NGOs called "Ethical Keitai Campaign", that examines supply chain due diligence trends of Japanese electronics companies and advocates for better management practices.