The NATSO Foundation in coordination with Truckers Against Trafficking will host a regional meeting in Tucson, Arizona, May 21 aimed at coordinating ways to fight human trafficking.
Truck stop, travel center and convenience store managers and owners in the area are invited to join this meeting, which will bring together trucking, bus, transit and travel center industry stakeholders along with law enforcement and government agencies for network building and to collaborate on shared strategies to combat human trafficking in communities.
The event is scheduled to be held May 21 at 11:30 a.m. at the Tucson Police Department and is closed to press. Co-hosts include the Arizona Anti-Trafficking Network, Love’s Travel Stops, Arizona Transit Association, Arizona State University-Office of Sex Trafficking Intervention and Research, and the Arizona Counter Terrorism and Information Center.
All travel plazas and truck stops are invited to attend, regardless of NATSO membership. Advance registration is required.
Since 2013, NATSO has co-sponsored regional Coalition Builds with Truckers Against Trafficking, state trucking associations and law enforcement.
State coalition meetings provide an opportunity to educate members of the business community, transportation and law enforcement about human trafficking as well as serve as an open forum to discuss human trafficking trends in regional areas and to explore collective ways to combat this crime.
The NATSO Foundation provides the industry with the tools to train staff so that those individuals are equipped to help if they encounter a victim of this horrible crime.
NATSO members are encouraged to train their employees to recognize and respond to suspected incidents of human trafficking using the NATSO Foundation’s online course, "The Role of Truckstops in Combating Human Trafficking." The course is free to anyone in the truckstop and travel plaza community. Non-NATSO members should call Kimberly Roberts at 703-739-8573 or kroberts@natso.com to establish an account.
The NATSO Foundation also offers a “Combating Human Trafficking” toolkit that provides truck stops and travel centers a roadmap for implementing an anti-human trafficking education and awareness program at their individual locations.
The NATSO Foundation partnered with the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign to provide the industry with awareness materials that meet state requirements. Those posters can be found here.
NATSO works closely with the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Transportation, Polaris Project, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Truckers Against Trafficking and other local organizations to gain insight into best practices on how to educate our members.
Truckstops seeking additional information or who would like to learn about future coalition meeting locations should contact Tiffany Wlazlowski Neuman at 703-739-8578 or twlazlowski@natso.com.
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