Human Rights Policy Engagement: The Role of Companies

Authors

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  Salah Husseini

  Director, Human Rights, BSR

  

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  Salah Husseini

  Director, Human Rights, BSR

  

  Paris

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  Salah leads BSR’s human rights practice within the Consumer Sectors industry cluster, which includes the following sub-clusters: Food, Beverage, and Agriculture; Commodities Trading; Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality; Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals; and Luxury, Apparel, and Beauty. He supports companies in implementing human rights due diligence programs and human rights strategy and governance development, as well as aligning with regulatory, investor, and other stakeholder expectations around human rights management. Additionally, Salah leads the Partnership for Global LGBTI Equality and is a regular contributor to the Human Rights Working Group.

  Prior to joining BSR, Salah worked at a major media conglomerate where he ensured compliance with labor law requirements within the company’s manufacturing supply chain. He also worked with a standard-setting organization that developed the first auditable program for labor standards enforcement in manufacturing. Additionally, he practiced as an attorney in New York City, focusing on civil rights issues.

  Salah holds a J.D. from the American University Washington College of Law, and a B.A. in Political Science, Spanish, and Arabic and Islamic Studies from the University of Michigan. He speaks Arabic, English, and Spanish.  

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  Aron Cramer

  President and CEO, BSR

  

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  Aron Cramer

  President and CEO, BSR

  

  San Francisco

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  Aron is recognized globally as a preeminent authority on just and sustainable business. In addition to leading BSR, which has grown substantially throughout his tenure as President and CEO, Aron advises senior executives at BSR’s 300+ member companies and other global businesses and partners on the full spectrum of environmental, social, and governance issues.

  Aron joined BSR in 1995 as the founding director of its Business and Human Rights program. He later opened BSR's Paris office in 2002, where he worked until becoming President and CEO in 2004. Aron has served on advisory boards to CEOs at AXA, Barrick Gold, Marks & Spencer, Nike, Recruit Holdings, SAP, Shell, and he serves as a director of the We Mean Business Coalition and RISE.

  Aron speaks frequently at leading business and public fora and is widely quoted in top-tier media, such as the Financial Times, Le Figaro (France), The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Axios, and Politico. He is co-author of the book Sustainable Excellence: The Future of Business in a Fast-Changing World, which spotlights innovative sustainability strategies that enable business success.

  Prior to joining BSR, Aron practiced law in San Francisco and worked as a journalist at ABC News in New York. He holds a BA from Tufts University and a JD from the University of California, Berkeley.

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• Michelle Nadboy

  Former Associate, BSR

Companies around the world have embraced the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the Guiding Principles), which have catalyzed new efforts to ensure respect for human rights across business operations and beyond. However, in recent decades, there has been a global reversal of these human rights achievements, including governments pulling back from longstanding commitments and the closing of space for civil society to operate safely. This presents a new climate for business with new challenges in many parts of the world.

In this environment, it is increasingly important for business not only to maintain its commitments to respect human rights, but also to find new ways to support the work of governments for such efforts.   

Over the past year and a half, BSR has engaged with several companies to explore such opportunities as part of our Business Action Platform for Human Rights. At the conclusion of this effort, we are pleased to share our latest report, Human Rights Policy Engagement: The Role of Companies. In it, we highlight why now, more than ever, it is important for businesses to use their influence to stand up for human rights policies, institutions, and frameworks around the world—their loss or reversal would have negative consequences not just for businesses, but for the communities and societies in which they operate.