Business & Human Rights

New Zealand Directors' Manual Pushes BHR Agenda

September 21, 2017

Rob Stock writes that, in its recently published Four Pillars of Governance Best Practice, New Zealand's Institute of Directors include a chapter on how companies must implement the global business and human rights (BHR) agenda by, among other things, addressing and reporting on BHR risks in their operations and supply chains.
NGOs: Lower Legal Barriers to BHR Remedies

September 21, 2017

A report from Amnesty International and the Business & Human Rights (BHR) Resource Centre examines recent legislative initiatives seeking to lower barriers to remedies for alleged victims of BHR violations and calls for further reforms to enhance access to remedy, including permitting corporate liability for subsidiary conduct and expanding corporate disclosure requirements.
Editorial Seeks "Legal Warfare" Against Carbon Emitters

September 21, 2017

Referring to global warming as a "crime scene" and a "human rights emergency," an editorial in The Guardian calls for the expansion of "legal warfare" against companies that contribute to climate change and extreme weather events through their greenhouse gas emissions.
NGO Pushes for Global Rules on Labor Due Diligence

September 20, 2017

A report from the Business and Human Rights (BHR) Resource Centre calls for the development of "robust" and "harmonised" global standards for national legislation combating "various forms of modern slavery" by imposing broad BHR due diligence requirements on companies to rid their complex, global supply chains of forced labor.
NGO, UN Framework Examines "Carbon Asset Risk"

September 20, 2017

The World Resources Institute and the UN Environment Programme have produced a report examining how financial intermediaries and investors can manage "carbon asset risks," or the financial risk posed by investments in companies with a significant stake in fossil fuels, in light of expanding global action aimed at combating climate change.