Who We Are
Humanity Research Consultancy (HRC) is a social enterprise. We provide expert supply chain investigation, training and consultancy services to governments, NGOs and corporations. Our local evidence-based insights empower policymakers to end forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking, globally.
Although HRC is not affiliated to any religious group, its origin story is faith-based. This is why a gold cross is included, albeit subtly, in our logo. The colours intend to represent diversity.
While modern slavery is prevalent in developing countries, experts are overwhelmingly from the West, facing barriers of language and cultural nuances. The engagement of local experts is greatly needed in the fight against slavery. HRC is solving the problem for government, business, and NGOs, through prioritising the role of local people. Our vision is of a slave-free world, where everyone is equally valued, respected and able to flourish.
About
The Operational Team
Mina Chiang, Founder & Director
Specialising in modern slavery, human rights, and poverty. Mina has an interdisciplinary background in engineering, sociology, anthropology and international development. She has consulted in some of the world’s poorest and conflict-affected countries. With research experience in modern slavery, forced labour, and human rights issues across a wide range of UN bodies, governments and NGOs, Mina is becoming a sought-after expert. She is also a coordinator and board director for the Rotary Action Group Against Slavery (RAGAS) and a Delta 8.7 Policy Guide working group member.
Eric Kasper, Senior Consultant
A former Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies in the Cities and Participation Clusters. His research brings together participatory social network analysis, systemic action research, complex adaptive systems, and community organizing practice to explore the ways relational structures and social dynamics of people living in urban poverty impact their ability to act collectively as agents of change.
Sharlene Chen, Project Manager
Sharlene’s area of interest includes migration, social justice, and fostering sustainability at a global level, and her research experiences range from migrant labour rights and stateless children in Taiwan to irregular migration in Europe. With a dedication to International Politics and Human Rights issues, Sharlene has experience in working with NGOs, advocacy and policy making in refugee and asylum seeker rights, and writing about regional conflicts and the human rights crisis in Asia.
Valentina Casulli, Project Officer
Valentina has a bachelor’s degree in Chinese and French from the University of Leeds, as well as a masters in Human Rights from the University of Sussex. Her areas of interest include climate change and its intersection with forced migration and slavery, with her interdisciplinary background harbouring a particular interest in human rights abuses across Asia and the Pacific.
Abdus Salam, Survivor Empowerment Officer
As a survivor of cyber-scam slavery, Salam dreams of living in a world free from slavery and uses this drive to combat injustice as part of the HRC team. Salam works with other survivors, providing support and ensuring they feel empowered in their own work fighting against human trafficking and slavery.
Sutirtha Sahariah, Advisor
Suti has been working as an independent research consultant for over a decade focusing on issues of human trafficking, gender violence, migration, human rights, and violent extremism. He has also worked as a freelance journalist covering stories on modern slavery and gender in development for The Guardian (UK), the BBC, News Deeply, The Huffington Post etc. He is the author of the book Sex Work, Labour and Empowerment (Routledge, 2022) which presents an analysis of the concept of female empowerment and resilience against violence in the informal entertainment and sex industry in Nepal. He has a Ph.D. in international development from the University of Portsmouth and a media management degree from the University of Stirling in Scotland.
Yu-Tang Wang, Surivivor Empowerment & Anti-Scam Consultant
Yu-Tang is a survivor of cyber-scam slave and human trafficking, a rescuer of trafficking victims enslaved in Cambodia and Myanmar, and an activist fighting against transnational organised crimes. Her stories have been published in The Guardian, The Reporter, etc.
Karen Leigh Anderson, Advisor
Karen works with social entrepreneurs to grow and scale businesses that change the world. An experienced professional consultant, Karen has worked with more than 1,000 social enterprises, community organisations, development trusts, community transport organisations, housing associations, co-operatives and charities. She specialises in developing sustainable organisations through innovative methods of growth, franchising/replication and buying profitable private businesses, as well as investment readiness support. She is a Churchill Enterprise Fellow for 2018.
Simon Stockley, Advisor
Simon is a senior faculty member in management practice at Cambridge Judge Business School, a social entrepreneur, and an advocate for trafficked women. Prior to coming to Cambridge, Simon spent ten years at Imperial College Business School as director of the full-time MBA programme. His MBA course in entrepreneurship was ranked 3rd in the world by the Financial Times.
Through our work, HRC has collaborated with consultants from 20 countries, including:
Algeria Argentina Bahrain Bangladesh Cambodia China Ethiopia India Indonesia Kyrgystan Malaysia Myanmar Palestine Philippines South Sudan Syria Taiwan USA Vietnam
With a worldwide network, HRC is capable of connecting to more professionals in many other countries.
Our Partners
Modern slavery and extreme human rights abuse happen in every country, and global collaboration is much needed to effectively address the crime. Building on our belief of “Local insights, global impact”, we are particularly keen on building partnership with local frontline organisations that are addressing issues in the local context. The partnership aims to create synergy, exchange information, and amplify the voice of our local partners, in order to protect human rights and serve the well-being of mankind.
Local Partners
Taiwan Yilan Migrant Fishermen Union (YMFU)
Established in 2013, YMFU was the first labour union formed by migrant workers in Taiwan. It has 110 members from Indonesia and the Philippines working in the offshore and coastal fishing industry. YMFU provides individual assistance to workers, investigates labour issues, negotiates with employers, files complaints, and coordinates legal assistance. The secretary-general, Allison Li-Hua Lee, was honoured as a Trafficking in Persons Hero by the U.S. Department of State in 2017
The Centre for Human Rights, Multiculturalism, and Migration (CHRM2)
Established in 2017, the (CHRM2) is part of the University of Jember’s strategic Centres within Southeast Asia to promote research and collaboration in the specialised areas of human rights, multiculturalism and migration with cognate disciplines. Recently the Centre has provided consultancy for the elimination of child marriage in Bondowoso District for three years from 2017 until 2019, an academic examination for the revocation of the Law No. 3/2001 on Anti-Prostitute in Jember District, and research on the social and economic impact on the application of the Indonesian Presidential Decree No. 125/2016 on Refugees.
Missing Child Kenya
Established in 2016, Missing Child Kenya. is a community led portal that works with organisations and individuals in the child protection sector and the public to help share information on missing children using various media platforms and increase search efforts at no cost to the affected families. Until February 2021, Missing Child Kenya has found 496 missing children, and helped them reunited with their families.
HRC is supported by
Sussex Innovation Centre has contributed to the creation of Humanity Research Consultancy (HRC) through workshops, trainings, and legal supports.
HRC was selected in the 2019 by the Cambridge Social Venture Incubator. The Incubator has provided a 12-month bespoke, particularly around embedding and protecting the social mission of social enterprises. See HRC’s profile on the Incubator’s page here.
Social Enterprise UK is the national body for social enterprise. It is the biggest network of social enterprises in the UK and a strategic partner to 6 government departments and have led public policy on social enterprise for 15 years. HRC is a certified social enterprise by Social Enterprise UK.
