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Ref.  http://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/remington-dont-call-gun-fix-recall-n263851 Remington is being forced to fix 7.85 million guns with a firing mechanism known as the Walker trigger.  The issue: the guns are prone to firing without the trigger being pulled.  But is it a defect?  Remington denies they have a defect and insists the thousands of consumer reports they've had are "user errors." Recalls are still seen as a bad thing in lawsuit happy jurisdictions.  Admitting to a defect and recalling a product opens companies up to liability claims. This is what being between a rock and a hard place must feel like.

Source Intelligence just published a summary of the activities involving their solution for managing conflict minerals risks in the supply chain. ref.  An Insightful Look at 2014 Conflict Minerals Efforts  (free registration required) The report aggregates their client data from 2013 efforts, covering the apparel, electronics, manufacturing, oil & gas and retail industries.  At tier 1 in the supply chain, they have 1,336 suppliers -- which increased significantly as they delved into deeper tiers -- and impacted around 2M products.  Source Intelligence is definitely doing the sales pitch.  Their report shows efficiency and effectiveness gains if you use their resources for education and data collection.  But it isn't smoke and mirrors.  It makes sense that supply chain partners who are educated (having awareness of context) are better suited to effectively participate in reporting.  It also makes sense that automating the data capture is the way to go. Apart from the

DHL last week released the third edition of its Global Connectedness Index -- and despite the global economic malaise, things are looking good for the globalization of trade. DHL's analysis looks at the cross-border movement of goods, capital, information and people, using data that encompasses 99% of the world's GDP, covering 95% of its population -- and the findings are not surprising. The world’s economic center of gravity shifts eastward; emerging economies see bigger connectedness gains than advanced economies Flows of trade, capital, information and people stretched out over more distant geographies, documenting a decline in regionalization Europe remains most globally connected region; Netherlands again ranks No. 1

The cotton harvest was just completed in Uzbekistan. See a summary of events below. With Bangladesh, India and Russia being the largest importer of Uzbek cotton, will you be looking at your clothing labels different this Christmas season? If you understand the cotton supply chain, you'll realize that there is no easily discernible way of segregating cotton from one country. It's a commodity that is purchased, mixed, processed, mixed, processed, etc., before ever ending up in the hands of the cutters and sewers. Traceability is a huge hurdle to overcome. 2014-12-04 2014 Uzbek Cotton Harvest Update Webinar from As You Sow on Vimeo . Source: https://ethicallysourced.wordpress.com/

Here's some news to cheer about -- every little bit helps. Walmart to Add 400 New U.S. On-Site Solar Energy Installations - Store Brands Decisions  -- with their scale, Walmart can have significant impact to the solar power industry.  Targeting to go fully renewable eventually, and having 1B kWh by 2020 is awesome. Ikea Group Purchases 165 Megawatt Texas Wind Farm - Store Brands Decisions  -- Ikea has committed to building its second wind farm in the US, to generate 165MW.  Ikea has committed to own and operate 279 wind turbines in 9 countries (nice round number).

How not to deal with a warning that you're hosting/dealing in counterfeit products: When a consumer watchdog organization alerted eBay that it had found hundreds of counterfeits on the site, eBay blocked the whistleblower's accounts and removed its comments warning people about fake products. Source:  http://www.businessinsider.com/ebay-admits-it-banned-a-whistleblower-2014-11 The Counterfeit Report also bought fake Apple iPhone chargers, which have been implicated in starting fires, as well as counterfeit over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, sporting goods, fragrances, auto accessories, and more. Counterfeit Report:  The Counterfeit Report | Press Release Scary that some of the products bear counterfeit certification and listing marks.  To consumers, these are real products.

Today is World Toilet Day : World Toilet Day is a day to take action. It is a day to raise awareness about all people who do not have access to a toilet - despite the human right to water and sanitation.  It is a day to do something about it.  Of the world’s seven billion people, 2.5 billion people do not have improved sanitation. 1 billion people still defecate in the open. Women and girls risk rape and abuse because they have no toilet that offers privacy.  We cannot accept this situation. Sanitation is a global development priority. This is why the United Nations General Assembly in 2013 designated 19 November as World Toilet Day. This day had previously been marked by international and civil society organizations all over the world but was was not formally recognized as an official UN day until 2013. World Toilet Day is coordinated by UN-Water in collaboration with Governments and relevant stakeholders. 

McKinsey is making their 50th anniversary issue freely available to everyone.  For those who haven't had the pleasure, take a quick look. Our 50th anniversary edition examines the future of management, including long-term capitalism, leadership in an era of machine learning, next frontiers for strategists, and global productivity. Source:  2014 Issue #3 | McKinsey Quarterly | McKinsey & Company Of interest, Realizing the power of talented women Business, society, and the future of capitalism

Source: http://www.osler.com/uploadedFiles/Gender-Diversity-on-Boards-and-in-Senior-Management.pdf Osler (law firm) has an update on gender diversity on boards/senior management at publicly traded companies in Canada. Specifically, updates to securities law in 2015 brings new disclosure requirements -- which Osler suggests, may change the diversity of boards. The old adage of what is measured gets changed is in play here. The under-representation of women on boards and in senior management roles has long been a concern. however, a confluence of better tools for communication and recruitment, a regulatory focus on the issue, and media interest in the topic, have highlighted the need to take steps to redress the imbalance. new disclosure requirements under Canadian securities laws which come into effect in 2015 are expected to have an impact on disclosure and practice. Additional info: Women on Boards: A Competitive Edge - Status of Women Canada At current rates we are generations away