Vote for Human Rights!

(New York, 10 December 2008) – On the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR) and the UN Global Compact Office are pleased to announce a new interactive project designed to promote awareness by business of human rights risks and opportunities in all aspects of their operations. It will also provide information on what Global Compact participants and other businesses perceive as the greatest human rights risks for their business.
 
The work of the Special Representative on Business and Human Rights has highlighted that virtually all human rights can potentially be impacted (positively or negatively) by business. In order to manage human rights risks and seize opportunities to support human rights, it is thus more important than ever that businesses be able to identify and manage the specific risks and opportunities for their own operations and supply chains. 

The Human Rights Compliance Assessment (HRCA) is a practical human rights diagnostic tool that can assist companies with this exercise. The HRCA Quick Check comprises approximately 10 percent of all the questions contained in the entire HRCA database and relates to some of the most essential human rights issues a company should consider in relation to its activities. It is available free of charge at www.humanrightsbusiness.org/020_project_publications.htm (in Chinese, Danish, Dutch, English, Spanish, and Ukrainian).  A Best Practice guide to the HRCA is also available at the same location. 
 
The joint project takes the form of a voting exercise that will enable businesses to anonymously provide their own ranking of the most challenging human rights risks to their business and sector. The results will be contextualized and compiled into a Top 10 list with explanations of each issue and its relevance for human rights and business. The opportunity to vote will be available on the Global Compact website from mid-January 2009.  Further information will be available in the next Global Compact monthly bulletin.

Contact

Mike Baab
Danish Institute for Human Rights
mba@humanrights.dk
+45 3269 8952

Ursula Wynhoven
UN Global Compact
wynhoven@un.org
+1-212-963-5705