Business & Human Rights

UN Agency Criticizes EU Policy on Shipping Emissions

January 18, 2017

Secretary General of the UN's International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Kitack Lim has criticized European Parliament efforts to include the shipping industry in the EU's emissions trading scheme, which imposes a tax on companies to offset their greenhouse gas emissions, arguing that regional approaches to shipping emissions threaten action at the global level.
NGO Pushes for "Green" Chinese Infrastructure Initiative

January 17, 2017

Friends of the Earth United States has published a report calling for fellow nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to consult on the Chinese government's Belt and Road Initiative, an infrastructure investment project that will seek to connect regions of Asia and Central and Eastern Europe, to ensure the initiative complies with global social and environmental norms.
OECD Prepares Guidance on BHR Due Diligence

January 17, 2017

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has released draft guidance for public comment seeking to "provide practical support to enterprises" on how to implement due diligence processes in fulfilling the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (BHR).
WEF Handbook Pushes Investments in Renewables

January 16, 2017

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has released a Renewable Infrastructure Investment Handbook explaining to global investors that renewable energy costs have reached a "tipping point," making such energy sources a "compelling investment opportunity" that will help countries meet their promises under the UN climate deal agreed in Paris in 2015.
Paper Explores Global Governance of Internet Companies

January 16, 2017

A paper published by the Centre for International Governance Innovation discusses the creation of new international institutions to regulate the transnational human rights impacts of internet companies and considers how human rights ranking systems open such businesses to global scrutiny.