Posted in: thought leadership

4th June 2015

Mark Wexler: A New Way to Fight Modern Slavery

Innovation, creativity, and new ways of working are increasingly celebrated in today's society, and the blurring of the lines between the private, public and non-profit sectors is becoming more and more common.

In the latest blog post from The B Team Community, Mark Wexler challenges the notion that a social problem requires a non-profit solution, and describes his experience in cultivating social enterprises that are helping to create thriving communities, and tackle the issue of modern slavery at its source.

Today, annual profits from slavery total over $150bn, with more people enslaved today (35.8 million), than at any other point in human history. Wexler sees these statistics as a "true wake-up call," stating that "we must challenge our traditionally accepted ways of addressing social problems."

This realization, was not easily arrived at for Wexler, who is the founder of the non-profit Not For Sale that supports victims of human trafficking. However, while continuing his work there, he has founded Just Business, which incubates and develops social enterprises in communities that are at risk from the global slave trade, and other social issues. Profits from these ventures are then used to scale these social businesses, and also fund research, development and other important needs to scale Just Business' overall impact.

To learn more about Not For Sale, Just Business and an exciting new model to address the social challenges we face click here.