Date & time: Thursday 12 September 2024, 09:00 New York | 14:00 London | 16:00 Gaza & Kyiv | 19:30 Naypyidaw

Each year the Resource Centre's Mary Robinson Speaker Series spotlights emerging issues in the field of business and human rights. It looks to move forward the debate by bringing together people from business, investment, legislative and human rights communities, as well as voices speaking on behalf of those most impacted by egregious human rights abuse.

This free online event will focus on the responsibilities of corporate actors in conflict – exploring how they can be involved in harm, but also have the opportunity to play a constructive role in these crises. Our panel of expert speakers will explore the role and impact of business in conflict, and the opportunity and need for leadership by business and investors in respect of better practice across all sectors in conflict.

The event will include rightsholders from conflict frontlines, company and investor voices, and academic experts. The discussion will explore core corporate human rights responsibilities in conflict zones, focusing on preventing exploitation, adhering to international standards of heightened human rights due diligence, and guiding decision-making, including responsible exit strategies. Perspectives from Ukraine, Gaza, and Myanmar, among others, will feature.

Host - Mary Robinson

Mary Robinson is Adjunct Professor for Climate Justice in Trinity College Dublin and Chair of the Elders. She served as President of Ireland from 1990-1997 and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997-2002. She is a member of the Club of Madrid and the recipient of numerous honours and awards including the Presidential Medal of Freedom from the President of the United States Barack Obama. Between 2013 and 2016 Mary served as the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy in three roles; first for the Great Lakes region of Africa, then on Climate Change leading up to the Paris Agreement and in 2016 as his Special Envoy on El Niño and Climate. Her Foundation, the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice, established in 2010, came to a planned end in April 2019.

A former President of the International Commission of Jurists and former chair of the Council of Women World Leaders she was President and founder of Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative from 2002-2010 and served as Honorary President of Oxfam International from 2002-2012. She was Chancellor of the University of Dublin from 1998 to 2019.

Mary Robinson serves as Patron of the International Science Council and Patron of the Board of the Institute of Human Rights and Business, is an Ambassador for The B Team, in addition to being a board member of several organisations including the Mo Ibrahim Foundation and the Aurora Foundation. Recently she became joint Honorary President of the Africa Europe Foundation. Mary’s memoir Everybody Matters was published in September 2012 and her book Climate Justice - Hope, Resilience and the Fight for a Sustainable Future was published in September 2018. She is also co-host of a podcast on the climate crisis, called ‘Mothers of Invention’. She is founding Chair of the Resource Centre's International Advisory Network.

Keynote speaker – Marwa Fatafta

Marwa Fatafta, MENA Policy and Advocacy Director at Access Now, will reflect on her personal experience of business and human rights in conflict.

Opening remarks – Volker Türk

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk will provide opening remarks on business operation in conflict.

Mr. Türk is the current United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. He took up his official functions as High Commissioner on 17 October 2022. He has devoted his long and distinguished career to advancing universal human rights, notably the international protection of some of the world's most vulnerable people - refugees and stateless persons.

Prior to this, Mr. Türk was the Under-Secretary-General for Policy in the Executive Office of the United Nations Secretary-General where he coordinated global policy work. He also ensured UN system-wide coordination in the follow-up to the Secretary-General’s “Call to Action for Human Rights” and his report, Our Common Agenda, which sets out a vision to tackle the world’s interconnected challenges on foundations of trust, solidarity and human rights. He previously served as Assistant Secretary-General for Strategic Coordination in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General (2019-2021).

As Assistant High Commissioner for Protection in the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva (2015-2019), Mr. Türk played a key role in the development of the landmark Global Compact on Refugees.

Over the course of his career, he held a number of key positions including at UNHCR headquarters where he served as Director of the Division of International Protection (2009-2015); Director of Organizational Development and Management (2008-2009); and Chief of Section, Protection Policy and Legal Advice (2000-2004). Mr. Türk also served UNHCR around the world, including as Representative in Malaysia; Assistant Chief of Mission in Kosovo and in Bosnia and Herzegovina, respectively; Regional Protection Coordinator in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and in Kuwait.

Mr. Türk holds a doctorate in international law from the University of Vienna and a Master of Laws degree from the University of Linz, Austria. He has published widely on international refugee law and international human rights law. He is fluent in English and French and has a working knowledge of Spanish.

Panelists

Ryosuke Mizouchi

Ryosuke Mizouchi is an Adviser at Kirin Holdings Co., Ltd. From 2017 to 2024, he served as the Chief Sustainability Officer of Kirin Group. He joined Kirin in 1982 and has experience in marketing insights and overseas businesses. He is currently also a member of The Nourinchukin Bank Sustainability Advisory Board and the Japanese National Commission for UNESCO. He holds an MBA from the Sloan School of Management, MIT (1988), and a BA in Economics from Hitotsubashi University (1982).

Kiran Aziz

Kiran Aziz is Head of Responsible Investments at Norway’s largest pension company KLP.  She is responsible for ownership and responsible investment activities.

Prior to joining KLP, Ms Aziz was a lawyer, lecturer and researcher. She also has extensive board experience. She is among on board for Norwegian Refugee Council which is one of the world`s largest humanitarian organizations for displaced people and Dagbladet which is one of Norway's largest newspapers.  She is also a columnist for Norway’s largest online newspaper for finance and business. Ms Aziz holds a law degree from the University of Oslo.

Pichamon Yeophantong

Pichamon Yeophantong is the Head of Research and Associate Professor at the Centre for Future Defence and National Security, Deakin University at the Australian War College.

She also leads the Responsible Business Lab and the Environmental Justice and Human Rights Project, which are funded by an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellowship. In 2022, Pichamon was appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council as an Independent Expert, serving as the Member from Asia-Pacific States on the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights.

Ella Skybenko

Ella Skybenko is the Head of Eastern Europe and Central Asia at the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre. She is responsible for research and outreach in Eastern Europe & Central Asia and has conducted regional missions to the Czech Republic, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia and Armenia. Over the last two years Ella has been working on the issue of corporate responsibility in the context of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, including a survey on heightened human rights due diligence among companies operating in Russia/Ukraine, parallel imports and partial mobilization surveys, contribution to Business of leaving report, opinion pieces on lack of effective due diligence by companies operating in Russia and the need for decisive action by Western countries to ensure responsible business conduct, and development of a checklist on responsible business conduct for companies operating in Ukraine.

Ella formerly worked as a regional manager at American Red Cross, HIV/AIDS program manager at Holt International Children’s Services and program coordinator at American International Health Alliance. Ella holds an MSc in Global Health from the University of Manchester; Master's degree in International Relations with a concentration in International Law from the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv; and MA in International Human Rights from the University of Denver. Her mother tongue is Ukrainian. She speaks fluent English and Russian. Ella is a national of Ukraine.