Innovation comes in many areas, and compliance professionals need to not only be ready for it but also embrace it. Join Tom Fox, the Voice of Compliance, as he visits with top innovative minds, thinkers, and creators in the award-winning Innovation in Compliance podcast. In this episode, host Tom Fox visits with Matt Friedman, who provides a 2026 update to the fight against the international scourge of human trafficking and modern slavery and discusses his latest book, Awakening the Advocate.

Friedman is a leading voice in the fight against human trafficking and modern slavery, known for founding and leading the Mekong Club and for more than 35 years of advocacy, policy work, and corporate engagement. He views modern slavery as a vast, still underaddressed crisis, where tens of millions remain trapped while the number of survivors helped and criminals convicted remains far too small to match the scale of the problem. Friedman believes the biggest barrier is not compassion but awareness and that educating employees inside companies can “wake up” lawyers, bankers, marketers, and other professionals who already have the instincts to help. From his perspective, ESG and compliance efforts can protect the business while also driving meaningful anti-slavery action, making corporate compliance a practical engine for both risk reduction and social change.

Key highlights:

Compliance Evangelists Fighting Modern Slavery Together
Leadership Briefings and Procurement Risk Assessments
Board-Level Awareness Protects Reputation and Brand Value
AI sifting data to uncover scam-center patterns
Modern Slavery Risks Make ESG’s Future Uncertain

Resources:

Matt Friedman on LinkedIn

The Mekong Club

Awakening the Advocate on Amazon.com

Innovation in Compliance was recently honored as the Number 4 podcast in Risk Management by 1,000,000 Podcasts.