Académique Documents
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Submitted By:
Vineet Mishra
C037
Prabakaran Nagarajan
C039
Jatin Nigam
C041
Ayush Parikh
C043
Ruchita Sen
C049
Sharanya Yaradi
C066
Table of Contents
S No.
1.
2.
3.
4.
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
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9.
10.
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Topic
About Nike, Inc.
Social Responsibility According to Nike
Social Responsibility Initiatives Taken by Nike
Integration with Business Model
Workplace CSR
Marketplace CSR
Environmental CSR
Community CSR
Stakeholder Mapping
Critical Analysis
Millennium Development Goals Analysis
Conclusion
References
Appendix
Page No
3
4
4
6
7
8
10
12
13
14
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18
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20
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To track sustainable development, Nike has come up with three indices listed below:
Nike Material Sustainability Index
Nike created this index to provide information needed to make better decision about materials
based on sustainability as well as performance characteristics. The NIKE MSI measures
energy and water use, waste generation and chemical use in materials.
Two key improvements developed that can be measured using this index are:
Reducing waste by improving pattern efficiency
Choice of more sustainable options
The two products developed keeping in mind the above index:
ColorDry: Nike has introduced a new process called ColorDry which uses recycled
CO2 that eliminates the use of water and process chemicals in the dyeing process and
also provides consistent color results (See Appendix A: Environment Benefits of
ColorDry)
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NIKE Flyknit: Nike has developed this innovative technology and manufacturing
process which helps reduce the footwear waste by upto 80% on an average compared
with traditional production methods
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Indices used for measuring sustainability of footwear, apparel, materials and contract factory
which are FSI, ASI, MSI, SMSI respectively are developed by NIKE.
An important thing to note is that these indices are central to the business of NIKE and
impacts NIKEs CSR activities. So, all these activities will overlap when it comes to these
indices but studying and reporting them separately gives us a clear and holistic picture of
NIKEs CSR activities. In describing these activities, we have taken complete reference of
NIKEs Sustainability Report and have reported everything at its face value. Critical analysis
is done in the later part of the report.
After analysing the report and the CSR activities done by NIKE, we arrive at a conclusion
that it falls under First and Second Generation of CSR. The sustainable innovations like
Flyknit Technology and ColorDry technology are NIKEs long term business strategy.
Through the philanthropic initiatives taken like the Girl Effect, it is in the First Generation of
CSR. Though they are working on various measures to reduce their footprint regarding
environmental degradation which makes a strong case for classifying it into Third Generation
of CSR but we believe that it falls less of the significant contributions towards addressing
poverty, inclusion and environmental degradation. Hence, we believe that it activities are not
Third Generation of CSR.
Drivers of CSR in case of NIKE are:
Stakeholder Management
Environmental Degradation & Emissions
Consumer Pressure
Risk Management & Sustainability
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Workplace CSR
Labour
NIKEs aim is to transform working relationship with contract factories to incentivize
changes that benefit their workers. To achieve these they have done various activities.
NIKE employs 1.01 million people in 785 factories globally (See Appendix B: NIKEs
contract factory labor data)
One of the initiatives is that NIKE is a participating brand in the Play Fair Freedom of
Association Protocol in Indonesia where training of factory management and workers is
providing the platform for greater engagement in this area.
NIKE believes that lean manufacturing provides an approach that will significantly reduce
excessive working hours. NIKE provides training to contract factory management to engage
employees in problem solving and continuous improvement.
In pilot programs in Indonesia, NIKE worked with factories to improve data quality, and to
study and assess absenteeism, worker engagement and well-being, factory management and
supervisor skills. Many of the factories in NIKE supply base invest in providing support to
their workers through on-site health clinics or financial literacy training.
In FY12, NIKE launched NikeU an online platform for employee training and development
in areas such as merchandising, retail, leadership and management that will help NIKE
employees build capabilities to execute on our business strategy.
Manager90 is an upward feedback tool that NIKE launched in FY12 to provide managers
with insights from their employees about key strengths and opportunities to improve
according to the four core principles of our manifesto.
NIKE has measured and monitored their contract factory performance on quality and on-time
delivery and costing through Sourcing and Manufacturing Sustainability Index (SMSI).
Ratings for last three years are shown below:
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At the end of FY13, 82% of contract factories had grievance systems in place and were in
compliance with NIKE standards. Also 93% of audited contracted factories reported no
incidents of excessive overtime.
NIKE also strives for achieving Diversity and Inclusion in its workforce. (See Appendix C:
Diversity and Inclusion)
Marketplace CSR
Product
NIKEs aim is to design products that provide superior performance and lower environmental
impact across NIKE, Inc.
NIKE has developed NIKE Footwear Sustainability Index (FSI) and the NIKE Apparel
Sustainability Index (ASI) providing a way for our product creation teams to measure the
environmental profile of each product. A glimpse of percentage of indexed products is shown
below:
By the end of FY13, NIKE succeeded in using the new indices to score 98% of all new,
global, NIKE Brand footwear product (with 63% of those achieving silver or gold ratings)
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and 86% of all new, global, NIKE Brand apparel product (with 51% of those achieving
bronze or higher ratings)
Below are some of the statistics about the raw materials used for making products:
88% of NIKE Brand global cotton-containing apparel used at least 5% organic cotton
in FY13, down slightly from 90% in FY11
19% of the polyester used by NIKE Brand in FY13 was recycled polyester (compared
to 16% in FY11), and more than 35% of our global NIKE Brand polyester apparel
contains some recycled content
100% of the leather used by NIKE Brand in footwear is certified according to the
standards of the Leather Working Group, an organization that rates and classifies
tanneries based on environmental standards for leather processing
Manufacturing
In terms of manufacturing, NIKEs aim is to drive improvement in factory sustainability
performance by implementing sourcing systems that include measures of sustainability
performance in sourcing-evaluation processes.
The Manufacturing Index (MI) helps determine whether to buy from contract factories.
Also, Sourcing & Manufacturing Sustainability Index (SMSI) helps score factories based
on five parameters (See Appendix D: SMSI Detailed Process).
NIKE is also interested in looking at developing assessing factories approach to people
management. For that they are using HRM, an integral part of Lean 2.0 which enables them
to improve the skills of their employee base.
To improve factory capabilities to manage working conditions and reduce risks, NIKE with
the Fair Labor Association (FLA) played a key role in the development of the Sustainable
Compliance Initiative (SCI) methodology and assessment tool.
When it comes measuring, SMSI measured data shows results and rankings of its factories in
footwear, equipment and apparel segments:
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Environmental CSR
Nike has identified areas of greatest impact on environment and set targets and made
commitments for each: Energy, Chemistry, Water and Waste. Through systems analysis, the
company is improving their understanding of the interconnected nature of impacts and bring
those insights into approach to manage them. The section that follows provides an overview
of their aims and commitments as well as how the strategies are executed, measured and
monitored.
1. Climate& Energy
Goal: To deliver carbon reductions across the value chain. Achieve a 20% reduction
in CO2 emissions per unit.
Reduction was accomplished by reducing process heat loss, fostering better
engagement between factories and NIKEs energy field team. At retail stores, energy
use per square foot is reduced by 8% from FY11 to FY13, largely due to better energy
management systems and through system and control upgrades. Also, by shipping
more products by ocean than air, they reduced fuel consumption and cost.
2. Chemistry
Goal: Minimize the impact of product ingredients throughout the lifecycle.
NIKE helped launched ZDHC coalition and committed itself to the goal of zero
discharge of hazardous chemicals by 2020. Strategic relationship with bluesign
system partner enabled their manufacturers to bluesign-certified textile chemical
formulations, including dye systems, detergents and other chemicals used in
manufacturing. It is an easy-to-use, rigorously vetted list of chemical products that
will help them to reduce the environmental impacts of their processes and therefore
their products.
Nike asked material vendors to commit in writing to green chemistry practices.
Bluesign tools helped them in achieving
Restricted substance list(RSL) are shared with vendors that catalogs
substances not to be used in NIKE products
Reduce Petroleum derived solvents (PDS) per pair in the products.
Phase out long-chain, per-flourinated chemicals(PFCs) till 2015
3. Water
Goal: Improve water efficiency in apparel materials dyeing and in footwear
manufacturing.
Product creation teams have been made more waterefficient using the NIKE
Materials Sustainability Index (MSI) and preferring materials from water efficient
vendors. Water quality and quantity has been improved and profiling of materials has
seen improvement through Better Cotton Initiative (BCI). Improving metering and
data analysis to reduce leaks; repurposing treated gray water, setting standards for
water-consuming processes such as cleaning; and reduce flow rates are some
initiatives taken. Many factories have developed and implemented mid-sole washing
processes that recycle and extend the life of water through a three-step filtration
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process. Using NIKE ColorDry technology eliminates water and process chemicals
from the dyeing process.
4. Waste
Products which are thrown away after their life cycle makes up 59% of the total
waste in our value chain. Targets to reduce waste from finished goods manufacturing
across NIKE, Inc. and also in shoebox weight per unit.
Through Reuse-A-Shoe program 28 million shoes have been recycled into NIKE
Grind
Nike Grind converted the scrap and recycled shoes to sports surfaces, carpet
underlays and fitness flooring
Flyknit shoes which reduce footwear waste by 80% on average when compared to
typical NIKE running footwear
Redesigned new NIKE Brand box which reduces waste by 3%
Measure
Nike has developed tools, processes and indices to establish metrics which can be used to
measure, track and analyze sustainability-impact. Also, Nike has launched a Smart Data
Initiative to provide data on the companys overall footprint.
Business and Environmental Scenario Tool (BEST)
BEST provides a 10-year quantified view of environmental and financial impacts from
changes to scenarios such as materials used or changes in sourcing.
NIKE Apparel Sustainability Index and NIKE Footwear Sustainability Index are now part of
the standard product creation suite of tools used by all of our designers. Their Sourcing &
Manufacturing Sustainability Index was integrated as a component into Nikes overall
Manufacturing Index, making sustainability a factor in all supplier evaluations and ratings.
Monitor
Nike monitors and reports the progress effectively and continues to develop and test tools that
help to identify the key actions each function and assess their progress toward integrating
sustainability into the way they operate.
The below figure show the progress achieved on the environment sustainability targets.
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Community CSR
NIKEs aim is to catalyse human potential by creating community and business impact
through a portfolio of innovative partnerships, advocacy and movement-making initiatives
NIKE says that they contribute 1.5 % of pre-tax income contributed annually. The exact
contribution is shown below.
NIKE identifies that physical inactivity has reached epidemic levels that threaten social and
economic prosperity for individuals, companies and nations around the world.
Initiatives taken are:
Raise Awareness: more than 100 organizations have officially aligned under Designed
to Move, adopting a common language to collectively advocate for urgent change.
Create Active schools
Reshape youth sports
Aligning to Deliver Early Positive Experiences in Sports
Employee empowerment
Other initiatives by NIKE for community include the NIKE N7 Fund that provides grants in
support of sports and physical activity programs for youth.
Philanthropy by NIKE is The Girl Effect which includes initiatives like launching Ni
Nyampinga brand radio show, opening of Girl Hub Ethiopia and magazine in Rwanda to
connect girls and inspire them to reach their full potential. Ensuring girls were included in
commitments made at the London Family Planning Summit in 2012, where over $4 billion
was pledged to tackle the unmet family planning needs of 120 million girls and women by
2020.
NIKE has done lot of community investment globally. A brief can be seen below:
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Stakeholder Mapping
1) Stakeholder 1: Factory Workers, Trade Unions, Employees
They form the dependent Stakeholders with legitimacy and urgency. They cant force
the company to bring about a change.
2) Stakeholder 2: Shareholders
Shareholders possess all three attributes: power, legitimacy and urgency.
Hence, they are the Definitive Stakeholders
3) Stakeholder 3: Nike supported Governments
Nike generally sets up its factories in monarchies and military dictatorships. They
have power but they do not utilize it against Nike. They possess the power to impose
their will but they choose not to, hence they are Dormant stakeholders.
4) Stakeholder 4: Consumers (collectively)
With recent protests against Nike, the consumers have shown their power and
legitimacy. Power has come through a collective movement against Nike. A lot of
their consumers are high-profile sportspersons who have a lot of power and have
legitimate rights. Hence, they become the Dominant Stakeholder.
5) Stakeholder 5: Greenpeace, Activist Marc Kasky
NGOs like Greenpeace which has protested against Nikes polluting the Chinese
rivers and activist Marc Kasky who sued Nike become the Dangerous Stakeholders
with a lot of power and urgency.
6) Stakeholder 6: Suppliers
Suppliers possess only urgency. They cant afford to strain relations with such a big
company as Nike. They are the Demanding Stakeholders.
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Critical Analysis
Approximately half of Nike's product line is manufactured by independent contractors in
foreign markets - including Indonesia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, China, Malaysia, Mexico and
Haiti.
Origins of allegations against Nike can been seen in the Op-ed article by Bob Herbert in New
York Times published in June 1996 criticizing the sweatshops of Nike and oppression of the
laborers.(DeTienne et al., 2005)
Since then, Nike has been under the scrutiny for outsourcing labor to developing countries to
exploit labor and thereby exponentially increase its revenues. Nikes sweatshops are known
for its safety hazards, inadequate wages and long working hours.
Campaigns have been taken up by many activists, political leaders, prominent sportspersons,
universities, as well as several anti-sweatshop groups to protest against Nike.[1]
The company was ranked 2nd in the Global Exchanges Top Ten Corporate Criminals 2013
list. [3] In comparison, Adidas, Nikes chief rival, is a constant ranker in top 10 in The Global
100 Index for CSR, the index objectively calculates and assesses the corporate sustainability.
(Rank 8th in 2014, 17th in 2013). Nike is not even featured in the top 100. [4]
In Malaysia, major worker rights violations at one of its Malaysian contract factories,
including squalid living conditions, garnisheed wages and withheld passports of foreign
workers.[5][6]
Nike in response acknowledged the problems in its report which included the falsification of
factory documents such as payroll records, lack of effective grievance systems for disgruntled
workers and hiring practices that did not ensure minimum age standards were met.
Recently, in April 2014, about 30,000 workers at the Yue Yuen factory complex in Jiangxi
province, southern China for the issue of historic underpayments for social security and
housing fund contributions. Workers at the plant Yue Yuen earn as little as $1.67 an hour
making shoes that can sell for up to 100 times as much in the US.[7][8]
Hazardous and dangerous sweatshops
Sweatshops in Vietnam have caused liver, kidney brain damage in many workers. Also,
workers suffer from exhaustion, heat, fumes and poor nutrition.
One plant in China operated with I77x the legal limit of carcinogens in the factory air. Over
75% of the workers at this plant suffered from respiratory disease. In addition, many workers
have complained of dangerous job functions that have resulted in severed fingers and maimed
limbs.[5]
Sexual Harassment and Exploitation
In the countries that Nike works in, human trafficking is on a major scale" of foreign workers
at the factory.
There have been many reports of sexual harassment of female workers by male supervisors.
In a report published by researchers from the Global Alliance for Workers and Communities
in Indonesia, female workers in one factory told that they were forced to trade sexual favours
to gain employment. Nearly 30% said they had witnessed or experienced abuse. [9]
Supports military dictatorships that crush labor unions and worker protest
In 2013, 650,000 workers that are the backbone of Cambodia's multi-billion dollar garment
industry and are key labor for Nike were demanding a doubling of the minimum wage to
$160 a month, or about $8 a day. The Cambodian police retaliated by using violence and
force against striking garment workers at some of their suppliers.
Nike kept its silence and did not condemn the issue. But, Puma came forward and released a
statement against the actions of the Cambodian police. Nikes silence demonstrates a genuine
disinterest for human rights.[10][11]
Partnership with Daewoo International
In Uzbekistan, Nike collaborated with Daewoo International, the largest processor of forced
labor cotton. Uzbek human rights activists, political leaders, and prominent
dissidents released an open letter calling on Nike to cut ties with Daewoo. The campaign
spurred Nike into action and the company has now finally cut all its ties with Daewoo.
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Though it has officially ended its partnership, the time taken for Nike to arrive on this
decision certainly raises doubts about its genuine interest to end forced labor. [12][13]
The Marc Kasky Case
In 1998, a California resident, Marc Kasky sued Nike for unfair and deceptive practices as
Nike made a number of "false statements and/or material omissions of fact" concerning the
working conditions under which Nike products are manufactured.
This court case was a huge blow to Nikes reputation. Later, Nike and Kasky agreed to settle
the case with an out-of-court settlement for $1.5 million. The settlement involved investments
by Nike to strengthen workplace monitoring and factory worker programmes. [14][15][16]
Greenpeaces Dirty Laundry
Greenpeaces latest report titled Dirty Laundry focuses on the high levels of industrial
pollutants being released into Chinas major rivers like the Yangtze and the Pearl and
commercial ties between a number of international brands such as Nike with two Chinese
manufacturers responsible for releases of those hazardous chemicals. Greenpeace has also
launched the challenge Detox Campaign, calling Nike, to take the initiative and use their
influence on its supply chain. [17]
As discussed, Nike flouted labor and human rights in several countries. At first, Nike
managers refused to accept any responsibility for the various labor and environmental/health
problems found at their suppliers plants.
But, there was severe criticism and pressures from organizations such as IBLF, Global
Exchange. Media also played an important part in the Nike campaign by reaching to a wider
audience and thereby gaining legitimacy. The campaign attracted world-wide attention and
resulted in Nike initiating and expanding CSR measures apart from the initial adoption of
codes of conduct. These measures included devoting staff within the company to the
problem, engaging external expertise and joining CSR initiatives such as Business for Social
Responsibility, the Fair Labor Association(Nike is a founding member) and the Vietnamese
Business Link Initiative.
It has also insisted that all footwear suppliers adopt US Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) standards for indoor air quality. (Segerlund, 2010)
Apart from the initiatives mentioned in its recent CSR report, it has also expanded its
independent Monitoring, raised Minimum Age Requirements - Independent of local laws,
launched Environment, Health and Safety Standards ("EHSMS") to ensure continuous
improvement of conditions at Nike factories, Jobs + Education Program, Micro-Enterprise
Loan Program, Rising Tides Program.[6]
In its first country-specific supply chain report, focusing on China for its Beijing Olympics,
Nike detailed the efforts it has been making to get suppliers to comply with its code of
conduct and with Chinese law, including a program to monitor Olympics-related suppliers.[18]
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Conclusion
Nike has made serious mistakes in the past. But, by accepting them and taking initiatives
Nike has taken the right step forward.
Introducing the Flyknit and ColorDry technology has been substantial to reduce its impact on
the environment and improve its sustainability quotient. As of 2014, it is off the Global
Exchanges Top Ten Corporate Criminals List proving that it has taken steps in the area of
social responsibility.
But, in comparison to its chief competitor Adidas, it still has a long way to go in promoting
sustainability practices and improving human rights. It has clearly failed to keep pace with
their stakeholders expectations and has to work on improving its credibility by being more
responsive to workers and initiate talks with them.
To be successful, Nike has to engage and balance all stakeholders interests. The priority
must be to establish the right culture and leadership, making human rights to their core value
for their business decisions.
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References
1. Company Report References
Nike Inc. (2013). 2012 NIKE, INC. FY12/13 Sustainable Business
Performance Summary. Retrieved from
http://www.nikeresponsibility.com/report/uploads/files/FY1213_NIKE_Inc_CR_Report.pdf
2. Book References
Segerlund, Lisbeth Dr. (2010). Making Corporate Social Responsibility a
Global Concern: Norm Construction in a Globalizing World
3. Article from a Scholarly Journal, Retrieved from an Online Database
DeTienne, Kristen Bell, Lewis, Lee W. (2005). The Pragmatic and Ethical
Barriers to Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure: The Nike Case.
Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 60, Issue 4, PP: 359-376. 18p. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/25123589
Locke, Richard M. (2002). The Promise and Perils of Globalization: The Case
of Nike. MIT IPC. Retrieved from
http://ipc.mit.edu/sites/default/files/documents/02-007.pdf
4. Website References
1. Nike Inc. (2014). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc.
2. About Nike, Inc. (2014). Retrieved from http://nikeinc.com/pages/about-nike-inc
3. Top 10 Corporate Criminals List. (2014). Retrieved from
http://www.globalexchange.org/corporateHRviolators
4. Global 100 Index. (2014). Retrieved from http://global100.org/global-100-index/
5. FACTs and FAQs about Nikes labor abuses. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://wwwpersonal.umich.edu/~lormand/poli/nike/nikelabor.htm
6. Study of Corporate Social Responsibility. (1999). Retrieved from
http://web.stanford.edu/class/e297c/poverty_prejudice/citypoverty/hedge_poverty.
htm
7. Strike spreads at Chinese supplier to Adidas and Nike. (2014). Retrieved from
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/22/strike-spreads-chinese-supplieradidas-nike-yeu-yuen-factory-jiangxi-guangdong
8. Worsening China Factory Strike Threatens Adidas, Nike Sneakers. (2014).
Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/worsening-china-factorystrike-threatens-adidas-nike-sneakers-n87951
9. Abuse rife in Indonesian Nike plants. (2001). Retrieved from
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/feb/23/indonesia.johnaglionby1
10. Cambodia: Walmart, Nike Slammed over Garment Workers Deaths Silence.
(2014). Retrieved from http://m.ibtimes.co.uk/cambodia-walmart-nike-bashedsilence-over-garment-workers-killings-1431677
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11. Cambodia's clothes makers being killed after protesting for a pay rise to make
clothes for Nike, Gap. (2014). Retrieved from
http://www.news.com.au/world/cambodias-clothes-makers-being-killed-afterprotesting-for-a-pay-rise-to-make-clothes-for-nike-gap/story-fndir2ev1226797612232
12. Daewoo International: Stop Profiting from Forced Labor & Start Respecting
Workers. (2013). Retrieved from
http://www.cottoncampaign.org/2013/08/09/daewoo-international-stop-profitingfrom-forced-labor-start-respecting-workers/
13. Cotton Crimes Campaign - Latest Action. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.antislavery.org/english/campaigns/cottoncrimes/default.aspx
14. Nike lawsuit (Kasky v Nike, re denial of labour abuses). (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://business-humanrights.org/en/nike-lawsuit-kasky-v-nike-re-denial-of-labourabuses-0#c9325
15. NIKE, INC., ET AL., PETITIONERS v. MARC KASKY. (n.d.) Retrieved from
http://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/539/654
16. Kasky v. Nike: Just the Facts. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://reclaimdemocracy.org/kasky_nike_justfacts/
17. Should Nike be Applauded for Beating Adidas on the Greenpeace Detox
Challenge? (2011). Retrieved from http://www.triplepundit.com/2011/08/shouoldnike-be-applauded-beating-adidas-greenpeace-detox-challenge/
18. Nike Sweatshops in China. (n.d.) Retrieved from
http://fashion.lilithezine.com/Nike-Sweatshops-in-China.html
Appendix
Appendix A: Environment Benefits of ColorDry
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