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Company & investor support for HRDs

One of the most important and urgent opportunities for responsible business is to support civic freedoms - freedoms of association, assembly, expression and privacy - and the people who exercise the rights to defend all human rights. There is a clear normative responsibility for companies to respect human rights, as set forth in the Guiding Principles on Business & Human Rights (UNGPs), and companies also have a discretionary opportunity to go above and beyond these defined responsibilities and expectations. The UNGPs are a hard floor, not a low ceiling, for company action to support civic freedoms and human rights defenders (HRDs).

This page gathers the latest news on business action in support of human rights defenders and our Policy Tracker features publicly available policy commitments in support of HRDs, primarily in the extractives (mining and oil), apparel, information and communication technology (ICT), food and agricultural products and automobile sectors based on assessments by the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark (CHRB) and the Renewable Energy Benchmark.

"Supporting civic freedoms and human rights defenders is an essential element in the sustainability of enterprises and society as a whole."
John Ruggie, former Special Representative of the UN Secretary General on Business and Human Rights & author of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

Our recommendations for companies

  • Adopt and implement public policy commitments,  which recognise the valuable role of HRDs, reference specific risks to HRDs, ensure effective engagement and consultation with HRDs at all stages of the due diligence process, and commit to zero-tolerance for reprisals throughout the company’s operations, supply chains and business relationships.
  • Accompany policy commitments by implementation guidance and plans, in line with the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights’ guidance, and civil society advice on appropriate indicators to monitor progress.
  • Engage in and report on the results of human rights and environmental due diligence that integrates a gender perspective throughout and ensure effective access to remedy for those harmed by business activity, in accordance with the UNGPs, the UN Working Group’s guidance on ensuring respect for HRDs, and the UN Working Group’s gender guidance.
  • Recognise Indigenous defenders are disproportionately at risk and create and implement public commitments to respect Indigenous Peoples’ rights, grounded in their rights to self-determination (lands, territories and resources), and right to FPIC, including their right to define the process by which FPIC is achieved and to withhold consent (more detailed recommendations available here).
  • Publicly commit to remedy adverse impacts on HRDs it has caused or contributed to and to work with suppliers to remedy adverse impacts directly linked to its operations, products and services. This includes establishing and adequately resourcing safe, effective and accessible UNGP-aligned grievance and accountability mechanisms that include protections for HRDs and whistle-blowers, handle third party complaints and provide robust follow-up to address and provide redress for grievances.
  • Publicly recognise HRDs have a right to defend human rights and are essential allies in assisting businesses to adhere to their responsibilities under the UNGPs.
  • Refrain from any lobbying, political spending and other direct or indirect forms of political engagement to support limits on civic freedoms, or to weaken laws to hold companies accountable for human rights abuses and environmental destruction.

Our recommendations for investors

  • Publish a human rights policy which recognises the valuable role of HRDs in identifying risks associated with business activities and commits to a zero-tolerance approach to attacks against them. Clearly communicate the human rights expectations included in this policy to portfolio companies, including that companies:
    • disclose human rights and environment-related risks;
    • engage in ongoing consultation with communities, workers and HRDs;
    • have policies and processes to respect Indigenous Peoples’ rights (including land rights and FPIC);
    • respect the rights of HRDs; and
    • ensure effective access to remedy when harm occurs.
  • Undertake rigorous human rights and environmental due diligence that integrates a gender perspective throughout and review potential investees for any past involvement with retaliation. This includes consulting with rightsholders and not relying on company self-disclosure as to whether Indigenous Peoples’ right to FPIC was respected.
  • Avoid investing in companies with a history of human rights and environmental harms and retaliation against HRDs.
  • Use leverage with investee companies which cause, contribute to or are directly linked to human rights and environmental harms, including attacks on HRDs, so the company mitigates negative impacts and provides access to remedy to those affected.

Webinar: Defending rights and realising just economies: Human rights defenders and business (2015-2024)

Francisco “Eco” Dangla III, environmental human rights defender from the Philippines, Natali Segovia, Esq. of Water Protector Legal Collective, and Mary Beth Gallagher of Domini Impact Investments LLC join the Resource Centre to explore trends and the scale of attacks faced by human rights defenders (HRDs) raising concerns about business-related harms across the globe over the past decade.

Guidance for Business and Investors

Human rights defenders policy tracker

This tracker documents publicly available policy commitments in support of HRDs, primarily in the extractives (mining and oil), apparel, information and communication technology (ICT), food and agricultural products and automobile sectors based on assessments by the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark (CHRB) and the Renewable Energy Benchmark.

Defending rights and realising just economies: Human rights defenders and business (2015-2024)

From January 2015 to December 2024, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (the Resource Centre) recorded more than 6,400 attacks across 147 countries against people who voiced concerns about business-related risks or harms. This is close to two attacks on average every day over the past ten years. In 2024 alone, we tracked 660 attacks.

Exploring shared prosperity: Indigenous leadership and partnerships for a just transition

To avoid climate catastrophe, renewable energy capacity must triple in the next six years. The private sector plays a critical role in this energy transition – as do Indigenous Peoples. If the opportunity of a just transition is to be realised, private sector and state commitment to Indigenous Peoples’ rights and transformative business models designed to deliver shared prosperity for and with Indigenous Peoples is non-negotiable. These need to be in alignment with Indigenous Peoples’ self-determined priorities.

The Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: guidance on ensuring respect for human rights defenders - Report of the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises

In the present report, submitted to the Human Rights Council pursuant to its resolutions 17/4, 26/22, 35/7 and 44/15, the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises highlights the need for addressing the adverse impact of business activities on human rights defenders. It unpacks for States and business the normative and practical implications of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights in relation to protecting and respecting the vital work of human rights defenders.

Shared space under pressure: Business support for civic freedoms and human rights defenders: Guidance for companies 2018

This guidance advises companies as they address the challenges as well as opportunities to support civil society and HRDs. It explains the normative framework, the business case and the moral choice that should inform company engagement and action. It focuses on factors companies should consider when deciding whether, and if so how, to act in response to certain issues and situations. It identifies risks for both action and inaction − and observes that managing the risks of inaction may be greater than managing the risks of action for many companies. And it spotlights examples of how companies are acting across countries and sectors, as well as new initiatives and critical actors in the arena.

Safeguarding Human Rights Defenders: Practical Guidance for Investors

Institutional investors can be connected to harmful impacts on defenders through their investments in companies that cause, contribute to or are directly linked to actions that undermine the rights of defenders. By protecting and supporting the work of human rights defenders, investors and companies contribute to advancing their human rights performance, improving supply chain resilience and managing financial, legal and reputational risks, while promoting peace, justice, and sustainability.