Business and Human Rights Workshop

Friday, June 12, 2020 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM

This three-part Training Workshop provides participants with the tools to evaluate how corporations impact human rights and how they manage those impacts. Through group exercises and debate, workshop participants will gain insight into what human rights challenges look like to a business manager, and the risk management competencies they need to address those challenges, including: human rights impact assessments, internal and external communication, stakeholder engagement, grievance mechanisms, and collaborative standard-setting through multi-stakeholder initiatives. The workshop aims to replicate real-world conditions by modeling techniques of stakeholder engagement and dialogue in a trusted, participatory learning environment.

Dates:

-Friday, June 12th, from 9am – 12 pm EST
-Friday, June 19th, from 9am – 12 pm EST
-Friday, June 26th, from 9am – 12 pm EST

Participants are expected to take part in all three sessions.

Facilitators:

Joanne Bauer is Adjunct Professor of International Affairs, Columbia University, Senior Researcher, Business and Human Rights Program, Institute for the Study of Human Rights, Co-Founder at Rights CoLab, and Co-Founder and past Co-Director (2010-2019) of the Teaching Business and Human Rights Forum.

Meg Roggensack is Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University Law Center, is past board member of the Fair Labor Association, current board member of the Global Network Initiative and the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers’ Association,  and current Co-Director (2020 – present) of the Teaching Forum.

What to expect:

This Training Workshop is designed for professionals, as well as graduate students, who want to better understand:  business and human rights standards; best practice in corporate human rights compliance; how corporations manage human rights challenges in their operations and in their supply chains; the role that private enterprises are expected to play in ensuring corporate respect for human rights; and the demands on business to address their human rights impacts. 

Across the three sessions, participants will:

-grapple with real-world dilemmas faced by businesses;
-gain exposure to business and human rights normative and legal frameworks;
-consider the role of business in society and how companies should address stakeholder expectations;
-understand the key tools designed for governments, corporations, and civil society to ensures respect for human rights within the context of business operations;
-learn the human rights frameworks and tools (e.g., human rights impact assessments, reporting, etc.) that companies are expected to apply in the face of  specific challenges in a range of industries;
-be able to evaluate which business and human rights practices are emerging as best practices and recognized norms.

Past participants have included:

-Business and finance professionals
-Human rights advocates
-Development specialists
-Journalists
-Foundation staff

Certificate opportunity:

This Training Workshop is part of ISHR’s Human Rights Training Series.  A certificate of participation will be granted to those who complete all sessions of the training. Individuals who complete three workshops in the Human Rights Training Series will receive an ISHR Human Rights Training Series certificate of completion.

Registration fee and survey:

Regular rate:  $400

Register by June 1 for an Early Bird rate of  $350.  Use discount code: EARLYBIRD

A limited number of reduced rates are available for those with financial need. 

Columbia University students are eligible for a 40% discount on the regular rate if enrolled by the Early Bird deadline. Please email humanrightsed@columbia.edu for more information.

Upon registration or application for financial need, please complete this survey: https://forms.gle/fGeJejgUcTDEe9KH9