The Magnitsky Effect – Economic Consequences for Human Rights Abuse?

What do 25 Russians, 20 Saudis, 2 Burmese Generals and some North Korean institutions have in common?  They are the first names on the newly-issued list under the UK’s ‘Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020’, the latest of several so-called...

Rights and Wrongs - Where Does the Buck Stop?

Last week, Bank of America announced that it would no longer lend to companies that run the controversial centres where the United States Government is detaining refugees and migrants who have entered the country without proper documentation  (such...

The Power of Collective Investor Action to Safeguard Human Rights

We are living in a time of tremendous upheaval, and also great promise.

From existential threats like the ravages of climate change that threaten public health and global water and food supplies, to an unprecedented migrant and refugee crisis...

Standing Rock Sioux - A Model for Protection of Planet and its People

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe met with representatives of Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) on October 30, 2014 and learned of their plans to build the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), a 1,172 pipeline from North Dakota to Illinois that would carry...

Why Does the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark Matter?

The Corporate Human Rights Benchmark (CHRB) aims to measure the human rights performance of the world’s 500 largest publicly listed companies. Nearly three years in the making, the CHRB is in a critical phase of its evolution.

All of the...

Draghi Must Accept ECB Contributes to Inequality

This letter was originally published in the Financial Times (subscription needed).

Sir, We were intrigued to read your report, “Draghi makes appeal for those left behind” (September 14, subscription needed), on the speech by Mario Draghi, president...

Impact Investing - A New Player in Protecting Human Rights?

This commentary was originally published on openDemocracy.

In 2007, the Rockefeller Foundation devised the term “impact investing”, officially inaugurating a new era in finance and development.

This form of investing channel funds privately to...

Where have the UN Guiding Principles Taken Us and Where Do We Go Next? 

On June 16, 2016, IHRB and the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (ICAR) co-organised a commemorative event to mark the five-year anniversary of the unanimous adoption of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)....

Central banks and human rights - Signs of alignment

This commentary was originally published on RightingFinance and reproduced here with permission.

The work of central banks is not easily understood and often takes place out of direct public view. Equipped with traditional macroeconomic tools of...

Designing a Better Global Financial System – Why Do Human Rights Matter?

How would you design a global financial system that is fit for purpose in the 21^st century? What steps are required to ensure more inclusive and sustainable financial decision-making that can serve the needs of economies and societies? 

Over the...

Evolving Expectations: The role of Export Credit Agencies in promoting and exemplifying responsible business practices

Export Credit Agencies are a significant source of global financing and insurance, specifically with regard to financing of large scale projects and business opportunities in developing countries.  

For example the Economist Intelligence Unit...

Five Things that can Promote Transparency in Public-Private Partnerships

This article was originally published on Heinrich Böll Foundation North America.

Transparency is an important but easily overlooked agenda in the mix of challenges facing Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) that aim to tackle a range of development...