GOTS Pre-Conference to 19th OWC - GOTS - Global Organic Textile Standard

Date: 08/11/2017

Description

Topics like labour rights, collective bargaining, health & safety, occupational health hazards etc. have been part of business discussions from more than a decade. But in last few years, newer concepts like modern slavery, living wages etc. have enriched this discussion even further. Moreover, the discussions have reached the living rooms from board rooms, thanks to NGO activism and social media. Social compliances have been an integral part of GOTS since version 1.0 and compliance with the same is verified during GOTS audits. As per year 2016 data, more than 1.4 million workers were working in GOTS certified facilities worldwide.

The GOTS Pre-Conference to 19th Organic World Congress (OWC) in India provides the ideal opportunity to review and discuss social impacts of organic textile processing globally and in the Indian region – the world leader in organic textile processing. This Pre-Conference will help to create and develop successful partnerships for further actions on critical areas in field of social compliances needing urgent action. It is scheduled to be held on 8th November 2017 in India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, India.

Travel Accommodation OWC-Preconference:

Travel and Accommodation is NOT included in the Participation Fee. The below details are given for information purposes only. Attendees / visitors must obtain and follow official guidelines in line with law of the land.

Travel:

Conference venue is Gulmohar, India Habitat Centre, India. To reach Gulmohar, best is to enter from ‘Vardman Marg’ side, Gate Number 3. Venue website; Google Maps Link.

Distance from Terminal 3 of New Delhi Airport is around 20 km and drive time could be 40-60 minutes.

Taxi services are available at the arrival gates at Delhi airport. App based Taxi Services like Ola and Uber are also available.

New Delhi is the political capital of India and is well connected to the whole world by air, rail, and road.

Accommodations:

We do not have a special rate arrangement with any hotel for this event. But there are plenty of hotels available in New Delhi in different star ratings. The rates are a little higher in November due to peak season, so an early booking is recommended.

Currency:

The units of Indian currency are the rupee (INR). Paper money comes in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 2,000 rupees. Coins are in denominations of 50 paise, one rupee, two rupees, five rupees and ten rupees. International airports have currency-exchange booths that are always open for arriving or departing overseas flights. It is a good idea to change a certain amount of money in small denominations.

Tourists are required to make a declaration on the Currency Declaration Form given to passengers upon arrival regarding the amount of money (currency or travelers' cheques). There are no restrictions on the amount a tourist may bring into India. Cash, bank notes, and travelers' cheques up to US$ 1,000 or equivalent need not be declared at the time of entry. Any money in convertible currencies should be exchanged only through authorised moneychangers and banks that will issue an ‘encashment certificate’ that is required at the time of reconversion of any unspent money. The encashment slip is also required when paying hotel bills or travel expenses in rupees.

Credit cards are widely accepted in Indian cities and larger towns, particularly American Express, Diners Club, MasterCard, and Visa. Credit cards can also be used to get cash advances in rupees. But it is always better to carry some cash, like few thousand rupees.

When leaving India, you can exchange the unspent rupees back to your currency. Exporting of the Indian currency by foreigners is strictly against the rules. Banking facilities are usually located in the same airport hall as the check-in counters. It is best to access these facilities before immigration, as they might not be available thereafter. Some shops also accept USD at the airport departure terminal, apart from credit cards.

Conference Theme:

GOTS Pre-Conference, with the theme Social Compliance Issues in the Organic Textile Supply Chain, shall provide a great opportunity to debate the priorities for action in the context of the IFOAM-Organics International (IFOAM OI) Organic World Congress and the vital Organic 3.0 debate initiated by IFOAM OI. The pre-conference shall discuss and debate on pertinent issues like living wages, management of compliance, etc. The conclusions from the pre-conference shall be presented in Track 7.A of the 19th OWC.

Position in India:

India is the leader in both organic cotton cultivation and processing, with the largest number of GOTS certified facilities in the world.
Though social conditions in Indian textile industry are generally known to be better than its immediate neighbours, much more needs to be done to tackle consistently continuing issues like child labour, discrimination, payment of minimum wages etc.
So far, India has ratified six out of the eight core labour standards (Nos. 29, 100, 105, 111, 138 and 182), three out of the four “Governance” Conventions (Nos. 81, 122 and 144) and 38 out of the 177 Technical Conventions.

About 19 Organic World Congress (OWC)

OWC is a series of international conferences organised by International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) held every three years in different parts of the world. 19th OWC is scheduled to be held in Greater Noida, India on 9th - 11th Nov 2017. The Congress shall hold a series of discussions and debates by leaders from the organic movement on how we can best promote and implement the organic agenda. The theme for congress is 'Global Adoption of Organic Principles for Truly Sustainable Agriculture'. Diverse topics with relevance to global and local progress would be discussed in the three days discourse. Track 7.A of the congress is focussed on Organic Textiles and Body Care Products and shall discuss ‘Challenges and opportunities for the development of organic textiles and cosmetics’. For more information on the congress, please visit the official website https://owc.ifoam.bio/2017/owc.

The 'Conference Brochure' can be downloaded here

The 'Conference Agenda' can be downloaded here

The ‘Registration Form’ can be downloaded here

The 'Conference Guide' with Speakers' Profiles and other event details can be downloaded here

Conference Sponsors