Geneva Academy
3 December 2018
We co-organized on 29 November 2018 with the BCHR-network a consultation for the United Nations (UN) Working Group on Business and Human Rights (UN Working Group) to inform their new project on business in conflict and post-conflict settings.
This UN Working Group’s new project will look at the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) in conflict and post-conflict settings by identifying and clarifying policy options and best practices for states and businesses along the conflict cycle. Following research and consultations throughout 2019, the results and recommendations will be presented at the Human Rights Council in June 2020.
Anita Ramasastry, a member of the UN Working Group, presented this project and discussed with some 45 international experts the research components and potential contributions that may help inform the project.
The Geneva Academy will provide inputs and guidance to the UN Working Group on the implementation of the UNGPs in conflict and post-conflict settings.
‘This new project is an opportunity for us to share our work and expertise in the classification of armed conflicts and in the human rights obligations of non-state actors and therefore contribute to addressing the issue of business in conflict and post-conflict settings’ stresses Felix Kirchmeier, Coordinator of the Geneva Human Rights Platform.
‘Our expertise in transitional justice could also help the UN Working Group to look at the role of business throughout the entire conflict cycle’ he adds.
The Geneva Academy already collaborates with the UN Working Group on the gender dimension of the UNGPs.
‘It’s important for us to accompany the UN Working Group when it addresses issues that are in our areas of expertise, like we do now on gender and will do with this new project on business in conflict and post-conflict settings’ explains Felix Kirchmeier.
Our two Research Fellows Dr Jonathan Andrew and Dr Nataliia Hendel participated in a major summit in Lviv, Ukraine, to commemorate the 75th anniversaries of the Genocide Convention and of the Universal Declaration of Human Right.
Adobe
Our new Research Brief The Evolving Neurotechnology Landscape: Examining the Role and Importance of Human Rights in Regulation provides a comprehensive background analysis on the complexities of regulating neurotechnology and the role of human rights in this process and marks the inception of our research project on neurotechnology and human rights.
Adobe
Participants in this training course, made of two modules, will examine the major international and regional instruments for the promotion of human rights and the environment, familiarizing themselves with the respective implementation and enforcement mechanisms.
Adobe
This training course will examine how the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights have been utilized to advance the concept of business respect for human rights throughout the UN system, the impact of the Guiding Principles on other international organizations, as well as the impact of standards and guidance developed by these different bodies.
Adobe
This initiative wishes to contribute to better and more coordinated implementation, reporting and follow-up of international human rights recommendations through a global study on digital human rights tracking tools and databases.
Geneva Academy