Visualizing Social Issues in Supply Chains Using The Social Hotspot Database

Catherine Benoît Norris, Deana Aulisio and Gregory A. Norris

No 332176, Conference papers from Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project

Abstract: Companies benefit greatly from streamlined models and tools that can be used to mine for data and prioritize issues regarding the potential impacts of their operations and products. Guided by the wellestablished fields of Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Corporate Social Responsibility, Social LCA is a developing technique that allows for the generation, organization, assessment and communication of product life cycles’ social impacts. As a precursor to a full Social LCA study, Social Hotspots can be identified through the use of a generic (i.e., top-down) database of country and sector-level social issues relative to the share of worker hours in the supply chain. Over the last three years, researchers at New Earth constructed such a prioritization tool, called The Social Hotspot Database (SHDB, www.socialhotspot.org). The SHDB system includes a Global Input-Output (IO) model derived from GTAP that is used to visualize product supply chains by Country-specific Sector (CSS). From the GTAP IO data on payment of wages to workers, a Worker Hours Model was created with wage rate data (obtained primarily from the International Labor Organization and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. This Worker Hours Model is then used to rank CSS within the supply chain of a product category by labor intensity. Those with the highest share of worker hours are considered first for potential Social Hotspots using the SHDB’s Social Theme Tables. These tables are populated with quantitative and qualitative indicators by country, and sector when relevant, that are characterized for their level of risk that the specific social issue is present. By testing the CSS with the greatest share of worker hours and other relevant CSS in the supply chain with the SHDB Social Theme Tables, it is possible to prioritize places in the supply chain that warrant a closer (site-specific) investigation. The paper will present an overview of the SHDB development methodology, including a detailed description of two of the Social Theme Tables, and highlight future advancements.

Keywords: Environmental Economics and Policy; Labor and Human Capital (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 13
Date: 2012
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:pugtwp:332176

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