“Rule for corporations, rights for people!” – activists take call for action to UN in Geneva
By Louise Eldridge At the end of October, I represented CAFOD at the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, Switzerland, where countries around the world were meeting to try to agree on a new UN Treaty to create binding rules to stop companies around the world from exploiting people and damaging the environment. CAFOD has for...
UK efforts to reduce global deforestation undermined by ignoring indigenous peoples’ rights
by Gabriela Quijano at Forest Peoples Programme On 10 November 2021, the UK government passed into law the UK Environment Act. While this law is primarily concerned with environmental protection within the UK, Schedule 17 attempts to tackle illegal deforestation overseas. Under this Schedule, certain businesses will be required to prove that their products are...
Replacing the corporate ‘architecture of impunity’ with an ‘architecture of accountability’ – what’s the UN Binding Treaty got to do with it?
Tuesday 15th March 2022. On the International Day of Action to advance the UN Binding Treaty on Transnational Corporations – the Corporate Justice Coalition is standing with civil society groups worldwide to mark the occasion and join calls for an end to corporate impunity. The idea that we need to hold increasingly powerful corporations and...
Protecting collective land rights through corporate due diligence: key principles
Lan Mei, Lawyer at the Forest Peoples Programme, explains a new guide to assist policymakers and businesses in understanding key elements of effective due diligence on collective land rights, Stepping up: protecting collective land rights through corporate due diligence. The growing momentum towards mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence (HREDD) is welcome news for...
L7 to the G7: the need for mandatory due diligence in a post-pandemic world. Guest Blog.
Stephen Russell, International Policy Officer for Business and Human Rights at the TUC, draws from the recently published L7 statement to the G7 to highlight the call that mandatory due diligence obligations on multinational companies are an essential aspect of “building back fairer”. Trade unions have released their statement ahead of the G7 summit (11-13...
We need a new law to root out corporate supply chain abuses — wherever they take place
A new law mirroring existing provisions in the UK Bribery Act, could hold companies accountable if they “fail to prevent” a wide range of harmful human rights or environmental impacts — not just forced labour — wherever they occur.
How Shell’s polluting business model in Nigeria may have to change
Oil spills have contaminated the Niger Delta for over 60 years. As courageous campaigners take the fossil fuel giant to court, will this mark an end to its polluting business model?
As garment companies scramble to limit financial damage during the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of vulnerable people living in countries without a social safety net are bearing the brunt of the crisis.
