Skip to main content
NORC at the University Chicago
Fighting human exploitation with hard evidence.

It may be the 21st century, but modern slavery—including labor exploitation and sex trafficking of children and adults—persists in almost every part of the globe. NORC’s subject matter experts and statisticians help decision-makers worldwide combat trafficking and exploitation by surveying hard-to-reach exploited populations. 

Our cutting-edge sampling techniques and ability to conduct rapid ad-hoc studies on people in vulnerable situations allow us to identify victims, estimate prevalence, assess the effectiveness of anti-trafficking interventions, and develop unparalleled evidence-based policy recommendations and strategies.

Program Area Director

Kareem Kysia
Program Area Director

Hard-to-Reach Populations & People in Vulnerable Situations Experts

Our Expertise

Discover Our Research

NORC’s ability to study people in vulnerable situations has informed anti-trafficking and anti-exploitation efforts around the globe.

Most Kenyan Migrants Experience Workplace Abuse in Gulf States

NORC Article

A NORC study finds that almost all Kenyan migrant workers returning from six Gulf Cooperation Council countries report being victims of forced labor.

2CXTA7K A construction worker erects a scaffolding on a tunnel along the Nairobi-Thika highway project, under construction near Kenya's capital Nairobi, September 23, 2011. The road, which is being built by China Wuyi, Sinohydro and Shengeli Engineering Construction group, is funded by the Kenyan and Chinese government and the African Development Bank (AFDB). The project will cost 28 billion Kenyan shillings ($330million), according to the Chinese company. AfDB has cut the expected economic growth rate for Kenya in 2011 to 3.5-4.5 percent from an earlier forecast of 4.5-5 percent due to high inflation

Laying a Foundation for Combatting Tech-Driven Gender-Based Violence in Asia

NORC Article

The study reveals key trends and gaps related to technology-facilitated GBV in Asia, which is becoming increasingly concerning as internet usage expands across the globe.

A woman looks out of a barred window

Assessing Child Labor in West Africa Cocoa Farming

The largest-ever examination of child labor in the cocoa sector in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana

Client:

Bureau of International Labor Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor

USAID PRO-IP Policy: Research Supporting Indigenous Peoples’ Rights

Assessing and measuring the involvement of Indigenous Peoples in USAID programming

Client:

U.S. Agency for International Development

Child Sex Exploitation in Kenya

Examining the prevalence of child sex exploitation and the effectiveness of programs to fight it.

Client:

Global Fund to End Modern Slavery