"Justice is everybody's business. The story of campaigners taking corporate giants - and winning," 21 October 2024

In May 2024, the European Union took a significant step towards greater corporate accountability. The new Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) introduces new rules for big corporations to identify and mitigate risks to human rights and the environment in their activities.

The new law results from a hard-fought campaign by civil society in the face of years of fierce industry lobbying, political backsliding and broken promises...

This is the story of the campaign to hold European corporations to account and secure a path to justice for victims of corporate abuse. It’s a story of how corporate lobbying and political games continue to jeopardise the well-being of people and the planet for the sake of private gain. 

But it’s also a story of how solidarity between activists and communities across the globe can shift the needle on ‘business as usual’.

The CSDDD is just the beginning of stronger international standards for business conduct. With EU Member States set to transpose the legislation into national law before July 2026, they must now close the CSDDD’s loopholes, secure access to justice for all victims of corporate exploitation and hold large companies accountable for their contribution to the climate crisis...