CRECHT

On December 11, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) named the Borders, Trade, and Immigration Institute as its first Academic Center of Excellence in Countering Human Trafficking. Later, this designation was changed to the Center of Research Excellence to Counter Human Trafficking (CRECHT).

Mission

To provide impactful research and analysis, create innovative technology solutions, and develop educational resources in support of law enforcement efforts and victim services to enhance our Nation’s ability to combat human trafficking and end slavery.

Vision

To be the premier academic research center for a nation-wide network of researchers and innovators, attuned to the needs of law enforcement and trafficking victims, working in collaboration to end human trafficking and slavery.

Objectives

Objective 1: Ally institutions of higher education with Federal, State, Tribal, regional, and local law enforcement agencies to combat human trafficking.

Objective 1a: Respond to requests for research and information by the National Targeting Center and law enforcement agencies;
Objective 1b: Create an international network of interested researchers in colleges, universities, and think tanks. This network, with access available to law enforcement agencies, would contain information on names of researchers/subject matter experts, their qualifications, contact information, associated university(ies), relevant past publications, and research area(s) of interest. Network would also include university colleges and/or departments with special focus in combating human trafficking.

Objective 2: Foster research in institutions of higher education to aid in combating human trafficking.

Objective 2a: Provide funding (made available through the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security) to promising research topics;
Objective 2b: Create a Research Committee to review, critique and ensure quality control of funded research projects;
Objective 2c: Conduct an annual conference to highlight recent research and technological advancements to assist law enforcement officers engaged in combating human trafficking.

Objective 3: Foster the development of technology to assist law enforcement and intelligence officers in investigations and prosecutions.

Objective 4: Create online resources for best practices, published research, and promising technology that may be used to combat human trafficking.

Objective 5: Promote the use and growth of best practices and existing programs in combating human trafficking (as identified/approved by the DHS Center for Countering Human Trafficking).

Objective 6: Promote awareness in the community of the scourge of human trafficking, indicators, and methods to detect it, and how to report it.

Objective 6a: Create periodic social media postings and quarterly Center of Excellence newsletter to keep researchers informed of research needs and opportunities, recent publications, and advances in technology;
Objective 6b: Create a multi-lingual training website, by which workers of various industries (commercial drivers, taxi drivers, hospitality sectors, medical sector, etc.) attain a desired standard in knowledge of human trafficking indicators for their industrial sector – and how to report instances quickly and to the appropriate authorities. Website may be used to identify those individuals who have successfully undergone training and attained the desired threshold of knowledge before licensing (CDL drivers, employees in hotels and restaurants, workers in medical clinics, etc.)