Design for Freedom by Grace Farms

As we observe #HumanRightsDay, we're encouraged to announce our new Design for Freedom International Guidance & Toolkit is available for download. Twenty-eight million people around the world are held in forced labor conditions, many extracting the materials that go into our homes, schools, office buildings, and landscapes. We echo the UN's statement: "This is the time to mobilize action to reinvigorate a global movement for human rights." The Design for Freedom International Guidance & Toolkit, a comprehensive resource for design and construction professionals to implement ethical and forced-labor-free material sourcing strategies into their practices, builds upon the Design for Freedom Toolkit, published in 2022. In tandem with this release is a further amplification of the global Design for Freedom movement, with Elaine Mitchel-Hill's appointment as the first international lead for Design for Freedom, leading strategic partnerships in India and the UK. "Forced labor in the building materials supply chain is a global issue,” said Sharon Prince, Grace Farms' CEO and Founder. “By expanding our engagement in Europe and Asia and issuing the International Guidance and Toolkit geared towards a growing global audience, we are better poised to address this egregious human rights violation together Through new public and private sector partnerships, we are accelerating a radical paradigm shift to design and build a more humane future for all.” The Guidance features contributions from such experts as: Lindsay Baker, Living Future; Dr. Doreen Boyd, School of Geography, University of Nottingham; Dr. James Cockayne, New South Wales Anti-Slavery Commissioner; Benafsha (Bee) Delgado, UN Global Compact Network UK; Anna Dyson, Yale CEA; Fanny Frémont, Responsible Mica Initiative - RMI; Felix Heisel, Circular Construction Lab, Cornell University; John Morrison, Institute for Human Rights and Business; Jonsara Ruth, Healthy Materials Lab at Parsons School of Design; Stefano Savi, Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR); Christopher Sharples, SHoP Architects; Dame Sara Thornton, former Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, U.K.; and Eloise Savill, Anti-Slavery International. The Guidance opens with a contribution by the Right Honorable The Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE. Through this Guidance & Toolkit, which provides new human rights due diligence tools, we can all design and build a more humane future together. Download it now: https://lnkd.in/gNNKd47y

Without undertaking appropriate human rights due diligence in our global supply chains, there will continue to be a lack of knowledge, human rights abuses, lack of accountability, and no reduction in the number of people in situations of forced labor. We ask you to commit to Design for Freedom’s three principles, each of which are a call to action: Find and Address Embedded Forced Labor; Pursue Ethical Decarbonization; Prioritize Circularity. The Design for Freedom International Guidance & Toolkit is built upon these three Design for Freedom Principles and provides resources and information professionals can use to prioritize ethical supply chains. With contributions from more than a dozen leading international experts, this Guidance shines a light on the critical issues related to forced labor in the building materials supply chain. Download it now: https://bit.ly/3VzF85t

Wishing our incredible Design for Freedom community a very Happy New Year! As we enter into 2025, we are grateful to our partners, friends, and community of supporters for all your incredible efforts to accelerate the movement to end modern slavery in the global building materials supply chain. Thank you for sharing our vision of a more ethical and humane built environment and for actively creating a future that prioritizes human dignity and environmental sustainability, and for showing that it IS possible to include fair labor inputs into new and existing means, methods, and processes. The Design for Freedom movement is expanding on an incredible scale! We look forward to another year of international impact and to achieving even more significant new outcomes. As millions of people continue to be at risk of forced labor, we are a critical moment in time. Here is to another year of Design for Freedom and to building with dignity! Photo by Lane Coder

Indelible milestones, from world-class performances to impactful initiatives, have shaped this year at Grace Farms. Our work with inspiring individuals, organizations, and communities continue to make impactful and meaningful change in the world. A few of the ways we have made impact in 2024 include: Over 32,000 people have engaged with Design for Freedom by Grace Farms presentations and events since the movement's launch, supporting efforts to design a more humane future. Our thriving member community has over 1,500 members who enjoy a diverse range of programs, events, and initiatives supporting our mission. We welcomed more than 3,000 people for musical performances at Grace Farms, including a sold-out Sanctuary for the London Philharmonic Orchestra's performance on October 21, 2024. This year, we planted 2,102 plants across the site and sowed 18 pounds of native grasses and pollinator plants in the meadows, enriching biodiversity and supporting vital ecosystems. Over the past year, we awarded 94 Space Grants to 37 different non-profit organizations, providing dedicated spaces to support their missions and amplify their impact within their communities. Grace Farms Tea & Coffee's ethically-sourced Wellness Teas are now featured in 26 Whole Foods locations across Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. Discover all of the highlights that advanced our work globally and locally in 2024: https://lnkd.in/eeSq-EfQ Cover Photo: The London Philharmonic Orchestra performing onstage in the Sanctuary for our 9th Anniversary Benefit, Architecture Moves Us, on Monday, October 21st. By Dean Kaufman.

Mark your calendars! Our 4th annual Design for Freedom Summit is officially three months away and now is the time to register with early-bird pricing. We are looking forward to an extraordinary day of hope, action, impact, and awareness as we welcome hundreds of transformative thought leaders across key sectors to share their expert insights. This momentous day offers a vital opportunity to come together with our community of supporters from around the world to form meaningful new connections, exchange ideas and strategies, and strengthen our commitment to ending forced labor in global building material supply chains. Join us at our 2025 Summit and be part of the Design for Freedom movement to create a more humane built environment! Register to attend (early bird pricing is available through January 31st) and discover the outcomes and impact of our previous Summits: https://bit.ly/3BkEKAT Thank you to our: Event Sponsors: ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions Promotional Partners: AIA Connecticut, BuildGreenCT, Living Future, mindful MATERIALS, NOMAct Media Sponsors: Architectural Record

Sign up for our Design for Freedom newsletter to stay informed on the latest news and updates about the global Design for Freedom movement! Keep up-to-date with recent and upcoming events, including details on the 2025 Design for Freedom Summit, updates on Pilot Projects, how to sign up for our 2025 Student Competition with the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), Office Hours, news, and more. Be part of the movement to eradicate modern slavery from the building materials supply chain! Subscribe to the Design for Freedom newsletter: https://lnkd.in/esZ3QKHy

A huge thank you to PJ Gach for featuring us in The Yummy AKA Food and Drink Gift Guide! 📦 🎁 It’s not too late to find the perfect holiday gift! Plus, every purchase supports Design for Freedom by Grace Farms' in the fight against forced labor globally. #GraceFarms #SipWithGrace #TeaAndCoffee #PJGach #FoodieFeature #HolidayGifts #Grateful #EndForcedLabor

Join us on March 27, 2025 for the 4th annual Design for Freedom Summit! Take advantage of early-bird pricing and save your spot today! This pivotal event brings together hundreds of leading experts across sectors and highly-engaged university students to tackle one of the most pressing human rights issues of our time: forced labor in the building materials supply chain. Attendees will have the vital opportunity to hear from inspirational speakers at the forefront of creating a more just, ethical, and transparent future. This includes Grace Forrest, Founding Director of Walk Free, Hannah Rose Thomas, an acclaimed artist, human rights advocate, and partner of Grace Farms, Lindsay Baker, CEO of Living Future, Nina Cooke John, Principal, Studio Cooke John and longtime partner of Design for Freedom, and so many more. This is your moment to reshape the future of the built environment! Attend unforgettable panels, thought-provoking roundtables, and discover how you can be part of the shift towards a more humane building materials supply chain. As millions of people are at risk of modern slavery, the time to act is now. Be part of the collaborative, global movement seeks to eliminate forced labor in the building materials supply chain, create true market transformation, and build a more equitable future. Register to attend the 2025 Design for Freedom Summit at the early-bird rate: https://lnkd.in/eUzPcphf Thank you to our: Event Sponsors: ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions Promotional Partners: AIA Connecticut, BuildGreenCT, Living Future, mindful MATERIALS, NOMAct Media Sponsors: Architectural Record

We can no longer subsidize the construction industry with modern slavery. We can no longer accept the slavery or exploitation discount. Design for Freedom calls upon the entire ecosystem to harness the power of the built environment to uphold and support human rights and remove forced labor from the building materials supply chain. Download our newly-released International Guidance & Toolkit to gain insights and take inspiration from international leaders and experts working in all parts of the built environment. The Toolkit has been updated with new tools including contract language, self-assessment questionnaires, and supply chain risk technology platforms, and more! Access it now: https://bit.ly/3VzF85t

Be part of the movement to create a more humane building materials supply chain! Submit your mission-aligned project application for our Design for Freedom Pilot Project Open Call by December 16th! Don't miss this critical opportunity to accelerate this transformative movement in the built environment and show it's not only possible to integrate ethical and transparent building practices, but also essential. Together we can change the future of design! We invite you to discover the 12 pilot projects we've created spanning three continents with owners, designers, and construction teams, and are actively seeking new Pilot Projects from a range of typologies. Let's create new findings, research, and outcomes and commit to building with humanity. Join us in setting a new industry standard for responsible, humane design. Submit your project by Monday, December 16th: https://lnkd.in/ekxR-BJ7 Pictured: The New Canaan Library by Jeff Goldberg/ESTO, Centerbrook Architects and Planners.