Responsible Supply Chain (Fireside Chat)

Critical minerals such as cobalt, germanium and tantalum are necessary for semiconductor manufacturing, and procurement of these minerals poses special challenges that are constantly shifting.  Manufacturers must consider costs, government regulations, availability, quality and ethics when assessing their supply chains.  In this session, we will discuss the changing landscape of ethical procurement of critical minerals with two experts in the field.  Sahar Hafeez is Senior Counsel of International Trade at Pillsbury Law group.  Sahar advises companies across multiple industries, and leads Pillsbury’s Minerals, Metals and Materials practice.  Prior to her work with Pillsbury, she served in government for four years as a senior advisor and Director of International Economics at the White House National Security Council, where she led and advised on semiconductor and mineral supply chains and digital trade.  We will also be joined by Sam Jones, president and co-founder of Heartland Initiative where he assists investors in the prevention and mitigation of human rights harms across their portfolios.  Prior to his work with Heartland Initiative, Sam worked as Associate Director of the Human Rights Program at the Carter Center where he managed programs in the middle east and the Democratic Republic of Congo focused on corporate accountability for human rights harms in industrial mining.  During this session, we will dive into the policies and regulations surrounding a small set of the most challenging critical minerals, and explore how semiconductor companies can respond to the modern challenges of ethical mineral procurement.