International Code of Conduct for Private Security Providers

Last week in Geneva, nearly 50 global private security firms came together to sign an International Code of Conduct (ICoC) with the objective of strengthening respect for human rights and humanitarian law within their operations. In addition to...

Universal Children’s Day - End the Worst Forms of Child Labour

November 20 marks Universal Children’s Day. Established by the United Nations over 50 years ago, it is a day to encourage countries to initiate action to promote the welfare of children. This year Anti-Slavery International is calling upon the...

Rural Economies - The Keystone of Food Security

The topics of hunger, poverty, and food security dominate the headlines as the Committee for World Food Security meets in Rome this week leading up to World Food Day on October 16. Last month, world leaders met at the United Nations Summit on the...

Rough Business - Diamonds and Conflict

The campaign to halt ‘conflict diamonds’ began in the early part of the 2000s, several years before Leonardo DiCaprio’s Blood Diamond film, and long before Naomi Campbell and Mia Farrow testified at the war crimes trial of former Liberian President...

Controversy Over Niger Delta Oil Pollution Study - Getting to the Facts

The gaps between stakeholders embroiled in the ongoing debate over the curse of oil in Nigeria crystallized again when The Guardian turned the spotlight in a recent article on a UN Environment Programme (UNEP) study assessing the environmental...

Are Current Approaches to Responsible Supply Chain Management Working?

Sustainable or responsible supply chain management (RSCM) emerged in the 1990s as an important part of the corporate responsibility (or corporate social responsibility - CSR) discourse. Over the past two decades, leading corporations have...

Where is CSR Heading?

The global economic crisis has shaken the manufacturing industry to its core over the last couple of years, and the impact on workers has been palpable around the world.

The economic and social turmoil placed a tremendous responsibility on all of...

Responsibilities Beyond Borders

Efforts to stop the biggest environmental disaster in US history continue in the Gulf of Mexico with few signs of progress. The explosion on an oil rig in April which was operating one of the Gulf’s deepest oil wells killed eleven workers. The flow...

World Cup, South Africa 2010 – Facing up to Responsibilities

The World Cup is a major event for South Africa. Appropriately enough, it is being celebrated as an international vote of confidence not only in the country, but also the continent. While stories of despair often dominate news from Africa, many of...

Checking in on Corporate Human Rights Reporting

At the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) biennial conference last week, one of the sessions was dedicated to “the Future of Human Rights Reporting”. The panelists, drawn from diverse sectors, covered a wide range of issues.

These included the...

Further Steps Taken to Operationalise the Protect Respect and Remedy Framework

On 9 April the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General on human rights and business, John Ruggie (the SRSG), issued his 2010 Progress Report [24 pages, 146kb] (the Report) on the operationalisation of the “protect, respect and remedy”...

Towards Responsible Corporate Behaviour in Conflict Zones

With the globalization of economic activities, in certain areas of poor governance, power has effectively shifted from State to corporations. In these permissive environments, corporations have the potential of getting involved in the commission of...

Next UK Government Must Show Leadership on Human Rights

The outcome of this week’s election in the UK (6 May 2010) looks as if it will be close. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the links between human rights and business are not prominent in the manifestos of any of the main parties. But corporate responsibility...

Putting the Protect, Respect, Remedy Framework into Practice

Last week, the latest report under my mandate as Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General on business and human rights was released in advance of the June session of the U.N. Human Rights Council. This is my last interim report before I...

How the Global Compact Can Better Address Human Rights

This commentary was originally published in EthicalCorporation.

John Ruggie, has released his latest report taking forward the "Protect, Respect, Remedy" policy framework for business and human rights.

In June, the Human Rights Council will...

Vulnerable Workers, Vulnerable Brands - Migrants in the Supply Chain

“All our employers are interested in is our work. When there’s no work, they kick us out. We want to be treated like human beings, not like animals.”

Abdelilah, a 28 year old Moroccan, works in the Spanish agricultural town of El Ejido, on the...

Relax the Grip - A Role for Mediation in Business and Human Rights Disputes

Have you ever tried to climb a palm tree? I did once. Try, that is. Here’s the thing about it. You look up that tall, straight trunk to the coconuts that hang under the palm fronds – your tantalizing objective. And so you launch yourself upwards....

ISO 26000 - A New Standard for Human Rights?

ISO 26000 will be a standard for social responsibility produced by the International Standards Organisation (ISO). In the last few weeks a vote was taken by the national standards bodies that compose ISO’s membership. It was closely fought - but...

Have the Voluntary Principles Realised Their Full Potential?

Extractive industries have little choice but to operate where they find resources. As a result, they may find themselves in conflict zones, facing human rights abuses taking place in their area of operations. Many have argued that since these abuses...

The Voluntary Principles at 10

As the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights plenary convenes in London this week, a pivotal agenda awaits participants that will frame the issues and decisions which must be made if the Voluntary Principles (VPs) are to fulfill their...