Work Streams

The finance sector in general and banks in particular, due to the wide-ranging nature of their financial activities, come into daily contact with a broad selection of private companies and public institutions, across all industry sectors and all regions of the world. These organisations have a variety of values and behaviours that often conflict with internationally accepted norms. The most serious of these pertain to fundamental human rights. Human rights extend into many areas where financial institutions have an influence, for instance employment practices, health and safety and security, poverty alleviation and respect for disadvantaged groups.

Many of these human rights have a direct link to environmental issues, especially as part of the social aspects of sustainable development. Environmental justice is a topical example, with the rights of whole communities often infringed by inappropriate natural resource use and pollution.

UNEP FI's Work

A group of UNEP FI signatories committed to exploring the intricacies between human rights and financial sector practices work together UNEP FI’s Human Rights Work Stream. UNEP FI’s Human Rights & Finance work aims to address human rights as they relate to the activities of finance institutions, including those linked to environmental sustainability, and responds to declarations to pursue sustainable development made by UNEP FI members to the WSSD in Johannesburg in 2002.

Aim

To de-mystify the language and jargon surrounding the human rights agenda, and clarify how human rights relate to the activities of finance institutions, including those rights linked to environmental sustainability.

Objectives

• To develop and maintain an understanding of human rights and how they apply to financial institutions worldwide, so that we, as financial sector professionals, are equipped to make responsible decisions within our spheres of influence (as an employer, provider of financial services, or purchaser of goods and resources).
• To produce internationally applicable guidance for finance sector organisations on identifying and addressing human rights issues relevant to their businesses, highlighting relevant international laws, standards and initiatives, and examples of best practice.

Members

Co-chairs
Philippa Birtwell, Head of Public Issues, Department Corporate Affairs, Barclays Group plc
Rory Sullivan, Director, Investor Responsibility, Insight Investment

Partners
INCAE - CLACDS Business School

Projects

The Human Rights Work Stream is currently working on two projects to achieve its objective of providing guidance for the financial sector on human rights issues:

• UNEP FI's online Human Rights Guidance Tool for the Financial Sector is now available for use by UNEP FI's global partnership. This is a "one stop shop" resource, providing guidance, which is commercial, feasible, practical and relevant to the finance sector. It includes background information/context and a focus on specific issues relating to:
  • different industry sectors, and
  • different cultures and geographies.
  Key questions to assist in impact assessment are included. The online tool is designed to assist frontline business and client officers in the lending and investment community.
• A Briefing aimed for the CEO level, to introduce human rights issues relating to the broader finance sector. The aim of this CEO Briefing is to explain
  • what human rights are,
  • why human rights are relevant to financial institutions, and
  • the basic systems and processes that financial institutions should have in place to effectively manage human rights issues.

Contact

humanrights [at] unepfi.org