Wilson Quarterly Fall 2022 Edition | As Strong as Our Weakest Link: Strengthening global supply chains in a rapidly changing world

WASHINGTON – As an era of hyper-globalization and complex global supply chains confronts multiple global events—the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and multiple weather related catastrophes—supply chain vulnerabilities have become increasingly clear as they upend individual lives, US and global economies, and everything in-between. For American business, the priority was how to source goods and services at the lowest cost. World events have accelerated a focus on trust and reliability. For governments, disruptions in the supply chain have jeopardized food and health security, and the need to transition to a greener economy is increasingly dependent on critical minerals largely available in remote or unstable areas of the world. Consumers have fewer options and growing uncertainties that are making it harder to find food, cars, medicines, and other products that fit the budget.

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“There are few issues equally as complex as they are vital to our daily lives as global supply chains. Every expert we spoke with says supply chains challenges will persist,” says Stephanie Bowen, editor of the Wilson Quarterly. “Our latest issue highlights these complexities alongside innovative solutions through the use of original photography, skilled storytelling, and thoughtful analysis.”

Drawing on the impressive work of Wilson Center scholars and programs, and its network of journalists and industry leaders, the Wilson Quarterly establishes current supply chain thinking and highlights streams of innovation that suggest a better path ahead to help policymakers in this defining moment in history.

In this issue:

• As Strong as Our Weakest Link - by Wilson Center President & CEO Mark A. Green Ambassador Green previews the issue and reinforces the Wilson Center’s commitment to providing bipartisan solutions for this vital and challenging issue.
  
   
• The New Values of Supply Chain Thinking -  by Duncan Wood and Saskia Bonnefoi - From economic value to social and environmental values, global supply chains have a new bottom line.
  
   
• Trust in Values-Based Supply Chains - by Shihoko Goto - A resilient supply chain requires having the right technology and partners you can trust.
  
   
• Building Resilience in Supply Chains – by Stephanie Bowen - A primer on supply chain resiliency with Yossi Sheffi, PhD, director of MIT’s Center for Transportation Logistics.
  
   
• Engineering Around the Supply Chain - by Andy McMillan - This truck top camper company weathered supply chain challenges by making their own. Now, they are innovating to help other small businesses.
  
   
• North America in the Global Car Chase – by Christopher Sands - The director of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Canada Institute asks, “Will we drive the future, or crash and burn?”
  
   
• Confronting Challenges in Supply Chain Policy - Tune in as the Wilson Center’s Duncan Wood leads a conversation between Jasper Jung, Head of Strategic Initiatives and Global Public Policy for General Motors, and Cordell Hull, former Deputy Undersecretary of Commerce, about why it’s so hard to get supply chain policy right.
  
   
• The Changing Threshold in North American Supply Chains - by Andrew Rudman - The director of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute asks if the López Obrador administration will be able to capitalize on USMCA, and offers thoughts on the future.
  
   
• The Role of Nearshoring in Shoring Up Supply Chains - by Jerry Haar - From manufacturing to tech to critical minerals, can Latin America rival Asia for sourcing goods and services?
  
   
• Could the Uyghur Human Rights Crisis Finally Force Fashion to Reveal Its Supply Chain? - By Alden Wicker - New legislation might finally push the fashion industry into a new era of transparency.
  
   
• Meeting Family Planning Supply Chain Challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa - by Stephanie Bowen and Kimberly Whipkey - When Eless Limani couldn’t get her regular contraceptive because it was out of stock, she ended up pregnant, and her life took a turn she wasn’t prepared for. We talk with several experts to examine the challenges and solutions for these life-saving commodities.
  
   
• COVID-19 Brings Lessons and Challenges for Vaccine Supply Chains - by Nataliya Shok - The COVID-19 pandemic upended global supply chains for many goods and services. But it also shed new light on vaccine supply chains and how to improve them for increased health equity.

Notes to editors:

1. The Wilson Quarterly, one of the nation’s premier journals since 1976, offers fresh takes, on-the-ground reporting, and thought-provoking perspectives through carefully curated articles and multimedia pieces. A unique narrative publication to emerge from the Washington think tank world, each issue takes a deep dive into a single topic or theme shaping our reality. The publication became digital-only in 2012. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Wilson Center.
2. The Wilson Center provides a strictly nonpartisan space for the worlds of policymaking and scholarship to interact. By conducting relevant and timely research and promoting dialogue from all perspectives, it works to address the critical current and emerging challenges confronting the United States and the world.

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