From ‘Small Places’ to New Frontiers: Marking 75 years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

On Monday 11 December 2023, IHRB hosted an event at the Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice in New York to mark 75 years since Eleanor Roosevelt and others presented the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. 

The Declaration calls for "all organs of society" to respect human rights, and during the rest of her life Eleanor Roosevelt spoke about making human rights a reality "on the farm, in the factory and in the office".

How far have we come in making this vision a reality, and what are the responsibilities of businesses to advance human rights in these places?

Two panels made up of leading thinkers from business, civil society and academia discussed this topic by exploring the role of businesses in the ‘small places’ and new frontiers where human rights are profoundly impacted, from the factory to the digital world, to the green economy.
 

Agenda and speakers
 

Part I: The ‘Small Places’: How has the Business Role in Advancing Human Rights Evolved Over the Last 75 Years?

Moderator: Julia Batho | Deputy CEO, IHRB

Speakers:

• Lucas Benitez | Coalition of Immokalee Workers/Fair Food Program

• Marcela Manubens | CEO Roxbury Global, former Unilever and PVH Corp

• Jason Judd |Executive DIrector, ILR Global Labor Institute, Cornell University
   

Part II: New Frontiers: How Can Business Leadership Address Emerging Human Rights Challenges?

Moderator: John Morrison | CEO, IHRB

Speakers:

• Professor Usha Ramanathan

• Iain Levine | Director, Human Rights Policy team, Meta

• Priyanka Motaparthy | Director of the Armed Conflict, Counterterrorism, and Human Rights Project at Columbia Law School’s Human Rights Institute

• Haley St. Dennis, Head of Just Transition Programme, IHRB