In this report...
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“The climate crisis is upon us and accelerating with each passing day...Indigenous Peoples have a long history of defending our rights to lands and resources, often against unscrupulous corporate actors operating under lax regulatory frameworks...The time is ripe for renewable energy companies and their investors to learn from Indigenous leadership and environmental stewardship.”
This is how Indigenous Peoples' leader Joan Carling introduced our human rights benchmark for renewable energy companies in June 2023.
The statement encapsulates the stark countervailing forces in business and human rights in 2023. We can celebrate unprecedented progress in government regulation and business incentives to advance human rights, supported by leading companies and investors; and greater cooperation within our diverse global movement for change. In contrast, 2023 also saw other governments seeking to block progress on human rights in business; the sustained lobby of irresponsible business associations to stymie constructive initiatives; and no let-up in the scale and scope of business abuse of workers’ and communities’ rights.
In 2023, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre sought to offer robust support for our diverse global movement. With allies, we took up over 1,100 allegations of corporate abuse worldwide; provided compelling evidence and analysis of key trends in corporate behaviour in the transition to net-zero economies, tech revolutions, labour rights, and the protection of human rights defenders; and helped to catalyse change by joint advocacy for policy change with civil society groups, investors, and corporate actors.
This Annual Impact Report highlights how the Resource Centre's Global Team, in over 30 locations worldwide, has worked to deliver solidarity for those facing repression, insights and propositions for those developing policy, and evidence for those seeking accountability – from repressive supply chains in Myanmar, to the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, to the dispossession of Indigenous Peoples' communities for mining concessions and renewable energy projects.
As Joan Carling warns, our world faces major crises – not least in climate, technology, inequality, and democracy. This report highlights the work of the Resource Centre and our partners across all of those domains.
Phil Bloomer, Executive Director
Chris Jochnick, Chair of the Board
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre
Who we are
Vision
Our vision is a world where business respects human rights and provides redress for abuse, where people are leaders in shaping a rights-respecting and sustainable future for markets and business, and where shared prosperity through greater equality of power and wealth is enjoyed by all.
Mission
We work to strengthen partners, allies, and movements so that our collective work ensures businesses respect and advance human rights.
We build evidence to influence decision-makers in governments, investors and businesses towards effective laws, regulation and norms that transform exploitative business behaviour into a rights-respecting economic model.
We amplify and support the voices and work of partners, allies, and movements to drive accountability for abuse.
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“I encourage everyone to visit the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre and sign up for the Weekly Update, which I read every week. It consistently offers very informative updates on the business and human rights dimensions of conflicts, including the current situation in Gaza and the dynamics between Ukraine and Russia.”
- EU-Mission Diplomat stationed in Kampala, Uganda
The Resource Centre works with partners worldwide to put human rights at the core of companies’ business models; to empower communities and workers to secure their rights and gain accountability for abuse; and to encourage effective regulation – policy and legislation – to facilitate these outcomes. We are a global organisation committed to cooperation with diverse actors in our movement. The organisation comprises a Global Team of more than 80 people based around the world who work with a wide network of human rights advocates. With our global network of allies, our primary global approaches to deliver this vision are:
- Work to achieve equality of power in negotiations which further human rights between workers and communities, with business and governments;
- Use the evidence and data we generate to positively influence decision-makers including business, investors, and national and regional governments;
- Strengthen corporate accountability, due diligence, and effective remedy for abuse; and
- Build transparency of the advances, challenges, and abuse of human rights in business.
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“The Resource Centre is the centrepiece of the business and human rights movement.”
– BHR movement ally
Voluntary measures will not ensure corporate accountability on their own – we have a compelling body of evidence, collected and collated over the past 20+ years, which proves this. Therefore, the recent momentum towards corporate regulation and green industrial strategy is welcome, from Europe’s CSDDD, to the USA’s Inflation Reduction Act, Brazil's proposed Corporate Accountability Bill, Mexico’s improved Mining Regulation - and South America’s Escazú Agreement more comprehensively – to Sierra Leone’s Mines and Mineral Development Act. These advances have changed thinking in some leading companies regarding their human rights duties; and some investors’ expanding definition of what ‘fiduciary duty’ means in a world of ecological crisis, inequality, and authoritarian threat. With responsible business among those calling for improved regulations to level the playing field, adding their voices to affected communities and workers advocating for effective implementation of the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights, momentum towards stronger due diligence legislation, the judicious use of import bans, and a consistent effort to ensure effective access to remedy for those harmed must be maintained.
Advocacy for due diligence regulation in Europe – knowledge hub, business voice, and compelling evidence from our data
This year, we worked with our allies in all regions to ensure an effective EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) as well as promote due diligence regulation with progressive governments in the south and north. During the negotiation phase, we placed a particular focus on promoting the voice of the grassroots and the importance of stakeholder engagement through workshops and meetings with EU policymakers. This included bringing labour rights activists and human rights defenders (HRDs) from Global South countries to Brussels and Berlin in an effort to ensure that testimony of lived experience in supply chains and at the frontline of corporate abuse informed the final text. We also facilitated and hosted supportive business and investor statements throughout the process, including a recent call on member states to adopt the political agreement from businesses across Germany, Ukraine, Italy, and the Nordic countries, among others.
Outside Europe, we are monitoring the development of due diligence initiatives, including the Colombian Ombudsman, Japan’s new due diligence guidelines, South Korea’s draft due diligence law, a draft Mexican Corporate Responsibility and Due Diligence Law, Brazil’s corporate accountability bill, Sierra Leone’s natural resources law, major Inter-American Court rulings, and sustained action by US Customs and Border Patrol to enforce import bans on goods suspected to be contaminated by forced labour.
Businesses make urgent call for support for #CSDDD ahead of crunch @EUcouncil vote this week, following German Govt's announcement it may abstain.@Bayer,@MarsGlobal, @Tchibo_presse, @VAUDE_sport & others affirm business support for Trilogue result ⬇️ https://t.co/SSg4yA4Svz pic.twitter.com/L4RtYFaXNj
— Business & Human Rights (@BHRRC) February 7, 2024
Tackling forced labour and promoting due diligence in Australia
The Resource Centre and partners have been at the centre of civil society’s efforts to shift the Australian approach towards due diligence. Our publication "Australia's Modern Slavery Act: Is it fit for purpose?" released in April 2023 delivered compelling evidence to support calls for changes to strengthen existing laws and press for new and more ambitious approaches, including due diligence. A month later, the Australian Government conducted a review of the Modern Slavery Act's performance and impact, which recommended this shift.
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Climate change is a growing catastrophe and an enormous opportunity for the world. It requires a rapid, global energy transition. The speed of the shift will depend on the scale and scope of investment available. It will also depend on retaining broad public support, and particularly from those directly affected by its vast new mining operations and renewable mega-projects – including workers and local communities upon whose land developments are occurring. Impacts of the global climate breakdown are multiplying quickly, particularly for Indigenous and marginalised communities – those who contributed least to the crisis. But the transition cannot come at their expense. A fast transition will also be a fair one. The alternative is abuse, distrust, delay, and cost.
Supporting the just energy transition with our transition minerals tracker (TMT)
Our Transition Minerals Tracker spotlighted the human rights implications of mining six minerals key to the energy transition: cobalt, copper, lithium, manganese, nickel, and zinc. Critical findings include that less than half of the companies associated with allegations of abuse during 2022 had human rights policies in place. Published in June 2023, the updated allegations tracker and associated analysis received significant media coverage, with three in-depth interviews featured in InsideClimateNews, The Verge, as well as in Mongabay, and other mentions in Bloomberg, Euractiv, and EnergyMonitor.
Our TMT research is also increasingly referenced in important policy publications, which is a sign of its growing impact among influential global thought leaders including the OECD, the IEA, and the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights. In May 2023, we published an analysis of nickel supply chains for electric vehicles. One of the cases we featured examined the situation in Halmahera, Indonesia – highlighting the impacts of nickel mining on the Hongana Manyawa Indigenous people. German chemical giant, BASF, was looking to partner with French mining company, Eramet, to build a refinery in Halmahera, which would have further consequences for Indigenous Peoples rights. We approached BASF and Eramet, and they responded by saying that they are still evaluating the project and have not yet decided on whether or not to implement it. Recently, BASF announced, after thorough evaluation, that it will not continue with the planned nickel refinery.
“The Renewable Energy & Human Rights Benchmark [is] an important report that the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre has now published for the third time. In Ørsted, we are committed to drive a green energy transformation that works for people, across the full value chain…While the task ahead of us may seem overwhelming, I am full of confidence… Ørsted will be able to deliver strong and lasting improvements to our human rights management system approach. Not because of simply scoring more points in a benchmark, but because we in Ørsted believe that human rights are foundational for enabling a rapid and just green energy transition.”
- Jens Christian Roth, Head of Sustainability, Due Diligence and Compliance, Ørsted
Shared prosperity and Indigenous Peoples' leadership for a just transition - knowledge hub
Working closely with Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI), over the past few years, we have observed that Indigenous Peoples' community-owned or co-owned models are on the rise: from microgrids and small-scale renewable projects to Indigenous ownership and co-ownership of larger commercial-scale projects. There is growing evidence that these models offer a significant opportunity for an energy transition that is just and equitable, as well as fast – an energy transition that places Indigenous Peoples at the forefront of climate decisions and ensures respect for human rights, fair negotiations, and shared prosperity. As a result, we launched the Shared prosperity and Indigenous leadership for a just transition knowledge hub, in partnership with IPRI. This hub provides a deep dive into the shared prosperity pillar of our Just Transition Principles, with a particular focus on Indigenous Peoples' leadership – and is our first public communication about this new area of our work. The hub gives an overview of our growing work in this area, highlighting the nascent but growing trend of co-ownership models between commercial enterprises and Indigenous Peoples, against the backdrop of the energy transition challenges for Indigenous Peoples.
“Indigenous and rural communities, enlightened companies and investors, and public-spirited governments are already demonstrating that it is not only possible but advantageous to build renewable energy projects that deliver shared prosperity and recognise Indigenous leadership.”
Joan Carling, Executive Director, Indigenous People’s Rights International; and Phil Bloomer, Executive Director, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre
IPRI/BHRRC
Regional transition minerals work
Regionally, the Resource Centre is leveraging existing momentum to conduct thorough investigations into areas of the Global South deemed high-risk, seeking to illuminate unique challenges and narratives while amplifying the voices of local communities and labour forces. Our collaborative research has revealed considerable human rights concerns within the electric vehicle (EV) battery supply chains in Indonesia and the Philippines, linking them directly to international automobile manufacturers. Concurrently, our scrutiny of China's foreign investments in critical minerals for energy transition sheds light on potential avenues for positive change alongside pressing issues that require attention. In South America, our focus is on human rights risks faced by Indigenous and Afro-descendant populations, whereas in Africa, we examine both the potential benefits and risks posed by the dual objectives of accelerating clean energy adoption and capitalising on mineral resources.
“The technical support from BHRRC has been very productive, especially with our work with communities, companies, and government agencies. The support has further enabled us to engage with renewable energy companies on the human rights dimensions in the sector which are usually overlooked, engaging with them on how to conduct human rights due diligence and the need to establish effective grievance mechanisms. Through these engagements, we have received more requests from the companies for us to help them better address the issues emanating from communities where their projects are based.”
- Ruth Getobai Nchagwa, Assistant Director & Regional Coordinator - Central Regional Office, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights
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Global inequalities in power allow the profit maximisation model of businesses to shape a global economy that prioritises profit over people. The dominance of this model facilitates various forms of exploitation, including poverty wages, discrimination and violence, crackdowns on trade unions and collective organising, rising precarity of work, and lack of social protections. This labour exploitation and the relationship with lead brands and retailers is often obscured by the complex and opaque network of global supply chains. Multiple crises, including widespread economic shocks, global conflict, and advancing climate breakdown have only exacerbated these challenges and inequalities.
Amid major transition in technology and clean energy in apparel, workers' voice is essential. We work with partners to advance the labour rights demands of workers and the organisations representing them, focusing on tackling forced labour and supporting at-risk groups, including women and migrant workers.
Identifying risk of forced labour in garment supply chains
Collaborative engagement between KnowTheChain (KTC), a BHRRC initiative, and the Interfaith Centre on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) centred on 30 investor engagements with companies included in the KTC Apparel & Footwear Benchmark. In the first year of the engagement, KnowTheChain provided new insights for investors on company performance across several aspects of human rights due diligence ahead of company engagements. This has proved an invaluable resource for investors to understand specific gaps in corporate practice in addressing supply chain forced labour issues and key areas of improvement. KnowTheChain data was also used in two shareholder proposals in 2023 (Nike and Capri). Although neither proposal passed, they sent a strong signal to companies about evolving investor expectations regarding corporate responsibility to protect human rights in the supply chain.
Myanmar: Labour rights in garment supply chains
With trade unions and other allies, we continue monitoring the situation in Myanmar closely, given the extraordinary risks to workers in global supply chains based there. Our Myanmar Allegations Tracker, which has tracked over 400 allegations of abuse affecting more than 130,000 workers since the 2021 coup, has been widely used and shared by the Industrial Workers Federation of Myanmar union activists, including in negotiations with some brands on a responsible exit framework. Our August 2023 report on the state of the apparel industry in the country, preceded by monthly engagement with linked fashion brands over nearly a year, was swiftly followed by H&M’s announcement of its intention to responsibly exit Myanmar. The report and the H&M announcement received exclusive coverage in Reuters, resulting in a broad range of syndicated coverage.
H&M said: “All the cases raised in the report by BHRRC are being followed up and, where needed, remediated through our local team on the ground and in close cooperation with relevant stakeholders.”
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International Migrants Day: Global allegations analysis
Ahead of International Migrants Day 2023, we analysed publicly reported human and labour rights abuses against migrant workers from the past year. Our research revealed a concerning snapshot of how migrant workers have been mistreated globally – with companies failing to detect, mitigate, and remedy harms against this highly vulnerable workforce, whose often cheap labour contributes to their soaring profits. Agri-food supply chains continue to be highly represented, particularly linked to supermarket brands in the US and Europe.
Targeted media outreach resulted in the findings being featured across international and local media. The release was reported in Hungarian, Polish, Greek, Chinese, Czech, and Portuguese-language media outlets. The Guardian dedicated an entire article to the analysis on its homepage.
Over the last year, people across the globe took to the streets demanding governments protect their and future generations’ right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Scientific evidence shows humanity is exceeding most of the planetary boundaries within which we can develop and thrive for generations to come, driven by an economic paradigm grounded in profit maximisation and unsustainable resource extraction and consumption. The triple planetary crisis – climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss – threatens all our rights. Through engaging in direct action, protecting their lands and territories from fossil fuel projects, reporting about pollution, and filing lawsuits against companies for environmental damage, HRDs continue to assert that true climate justice can only be achieved when human rights are respected, protected, and fulfilled. Listening to HRDs is vital to understanding the risks and harms associated with business activity and to ensuring the transition to green economies is just and benefits workers, environmental defenders, and their communities.
The scale of attacks shows that corporate voluntary action to protect human rights is failing and states need to urgently pass robust mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence legislation. They must also enact and implement legislation recognising the right to safely defend rights and the vital role of HRDs in realising a just and sustainable future.
Free, prior and informed consent in Kenya’s Rift Valley
The Ilchamus is an Indigenous pastoral community in Kenya’s Rift Valley. Power lines from geothermal sources are earmarked to pass through their territory, but they have not been consulted. We have been supporting Baringo Women and Youth Organisation (BWYO) to document and articulate grievances to prepare for engagement with the Kenya Energy Transmission Company (KETRACO), the state-owned agency that is charged with electricity transmission. After several engagements with BYWO on their rights and the company's obligations, we encouraged them to take their grievances to the company’s headquarters in the capital. Their initial engagement was fruitful and they obtained crucial information the company had not made available to them. We are supporting them to engage the company further.
“Thank you very much for sharing this important analysis with us. It is definitely useful for our work. I already shared the report with colleagues and our network.”
— Romchat Wachirarattanakornkul, UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), on our annual analysis
Supporting human rights defenders in Latin America
In September 2023, we published the report Guardians at risk: Confronting corporate abuse in Latin America and the Caribbean, which explores the situation of HRDs in Latin America and the Caribbean. The report is available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. In disseminating this report, we submitted observations to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights as part of its process to release the advisory opinion. We have also presented observations in the public consultation phase opened by the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) as part of an upcoming report they plan to release on the situation of defenders in the region. Additionally, in March 2024, we participated in a public hearing before the IACHR on the impacts of business operations on human rights in the region and shared the findings from this report. Our evidence and messaging is reaching key stakeholders and decisions makers; they must follow up with action.
Capacity building to collect regional data on attacks against human rights defenders
In Liberia in January 2024, we co-organised a workshop bringing together civil society representatives from all 16 West African countries to build capacities and co-create a tool to collect regional data on attacks against human rights defenders. The West African Frontline Grassroot Defenders’ Directory will allow defenders in West Africa to systematically document the attacks they face. The Resource Centre participated as co-leads of the Data Working Group in ALLIED. Other partner organisations present during the workshop were Green Advocates, International Land Coalition, Natural Justice, and Global Witness.
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The tech revolution continues to accelerate. With it, the emancipatory potential of access to knowledge and an end to much drudgery increases - alongside threats to privacy, workers’ rights, democracy, and protection from misinformation driving polarisation and conflict. Holding companies to account for abuse – from surveillance to hate speech, to coercive algorithms at work, has been a priority. We have been working with partners to promote regulation at a regional and global level, with a particular focus on insisting that investors and companies – whether start-ups or giants – demonstrate human rights and environmental due diligence before and after they release new tech, including artificial intelligence, on to markets and into our societies.
Building relationships and driving impact in public fora
Building on the Resource Centre’s data and analysis concerning the impacts of artificial intelligence (AI), we were able to help shape discussions at critical platforms such as the UN B-Tech Generative AI Summit, GNI Annual Learning Forum, and Amnesty International’s Tech & Inequality Working Group. Similarly, we were able to contribute to and shape discussions at the CyberPeace Institute’s Multi-Stakeholder workshop on measuring the societal harm of cyberattacks. These networks and organisations are core partners in our work on tech accountability and draw on the data produced by us.
Media Whale Stock via Canva
Due diligence, responsible investments, and keeping check on surveillance technology
Together with Heartland Initiative, we co-organised the event, ‘Rights, Regimes and Regulations: Advancing corporate accountability for misuse of surveillance technologies in MENA’, which convened multiple days of conversations with civil society actors from MENA and four investors who have investments in companies involved in the development and sale of surveillance technologies. During the event, we discussed current challenges and the way forward for ensuring greater accountability by investors. Utilising the data in our Tech Company Dashboards, the Resource Centre’s database, and previous analyses, we were able to contribute tangible cases and examples of salient human rights risks associated with targeted and mass surveillance in the MENA region.
We also published joint research with Amnesty International which revealed most leading venture capital (VC) firms and start-up accelerators are ignoring their responsibility to respect human rights when investing in Generative AI start-ups. To raise awareness about the outcomes of this research, we met with the US Department of Commerce, Securities and Exchange Commissioner, presented findings to the US Department of State, and publicised the report findings among our investor contacts and civil society networks.
Businesses have a responsibility to respect human rights - even when States do not fulfill their obligations. As the UN noted, business is ‘never neutral’. As geo-politics and global cooperation are strained, these responsibilities can have specific requirements, particularly in conflict-affected areas and in high-risk sectors, value chains, and regions. The past year has seen a continued rise in military aggression, and far from being on the sidelines, the behaviour of companies can play a direct role in worsening conflict or reducing tension. We are tracking emerging and urgent risks in areas of conflict, including Russian military aggression against Ukraine, the war on Gaza, and the continuing fallout from the 2021 military coup in Myanmar.
“A big thank you to the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre because you are making our lives so much more informed and so much easier in this work.”
– International Committee of the Red Cross, at the 2023 UN Global Forum on Business and Human Rights
Russian military aggression in Ukraine
The Resource Centre is part of the Business for Ukraine Coalition (B4Ukraine). B4Ukraine is a global coalition of civil society organisations driven by a common goal: blocking access to the economic resources behind Russian aggression. The coalition seeks to restore the peace and security of Ukraine by asking responsible businesses to respect human rights. During the reporting period, the Resource Centre worked closely with the coalition, including by participating in various working groups, engaging with companies, and co-authoring/contributing to reports.
In November 2023, the Resource Centre, together with B4Ukraine partners, conducted a workshop as part of the Business and Conflict Community of Practice Workshop organised by the ICRC, with UNDP support. ‘The Business of Leaving: How multinationals can responsibly exit Russia’ report, co-authored by the Resource Centre, was presented. The report assessed some of the most common justifications used by companies that continue operations in Russia, including disruptions in access to essential goods and employee welfare. It concluded that despite challenges, a responsible exit from Russia is possible.
“Your presentation was fantastic! I really hope other investors are going to join this initiative and engage with companies. I think they understood the extent of the issue, thanks to your presentation. I remain fully available to discuss this subject again and would be thrilled to receive news of your research!”
— Camille Bisconte de St Julien, La Banque Postale, AM
Tech companies' human rights responsibility amid Israel’s war in Gaza
The Resource Centre swiftly responded to the war on Gaza by tracking the role of companies operating or providing services to the region and highlighting international standards for responsible business conduct in conflict concerning human rights. We developed a landing page where related abuse allegations, responses, and resources can be accessed. We have consistently highlighted tech companies’ responsibility to comply with international human rights and humanitarian laws, and raised concerns about the opacity of the sector as an obstacle to accountability. This became even more evident when we invited 104 tech companies to respond to a survey on human rights due diligence during this conflict, receiving only four responses – but three of which were strong responses from TikTok, HPE, and Ericsson. As a result of our consistent data tracking, we were able to support a group of digital rights defenders including 7amleh, SMEX ,and Global Campaign based in the MENA region. They were able to engage with civil society partners, company representative/bodies, UN mechanisms, and states at the UN Global Forum on Business and Human Rights on the failure of tech companies to safeguard rights of civilians in the OPT/Israel.
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The overall income has grown 18% to £5,075k (FY 2022-23 £4,315k).
Our total expenditure increased by 18% from £3,964k (FY 2022-23) to £4,673k.
Staffing levels, which, when including regional researchers, remain at about 70% of the costs of the organisation, have grown proportionately to the overall spend.