29 November 2024
Heightened human rights due diligence (hHRDD) took centre stage at our private side event during the 2024 United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland. twentyfifty hosted the event in collaboration with DCAF - Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance, at the DCAF headquarters, where a panel of expert speakers discussed topics ranging from corporate culture to humanitarian law.
Held on the first evening of the UN Forum, our fully booked 'fireside chat' delivered expert insights from business and civil society to an audience of around 70 attendees from a wide range of sectors.
Ambassador Nathalie Chuard (Director, DCAF) gave opening remarks, and speakers included Jean-Michel Rousseau (Head of Business and Security Division a.i., DCAF), Anna Marie Burdzy (Programme Manager, DCAF), Nelleke Van Amstel (Senior Consultant, twentyfifty) and Sonja Patscheke (Director of Consulting, twentyfifty).
The panel comprised Anne Ollivier (Senior Global Manager Human Rights, Heineken), Donald Bray (Chief Sustainability Officer, Fura Gems) and Dr Jonathan Kolieb, (Associate Professor, Co-director of the Business and Human Rights Centre at RMIT University, Melbourne).
With the ‘Chatham House Rule’ in place, the DCAF headquarters provided a safe space for open and transparent dialogue about hHRDD approaches, and the importance of businesses coming together to learn was highlighted as a key benefit of the event.
In conversation with attendees, speakers delved into how companies can enhance their human rights approach through hHRDD and focused on practical strategies for operating in conflict-affected and high-risk areas.
twentyfifty would like to thank DCAF, speakers and all attendees for the valuable and stimulating discussions – many of which continued into the evening, long after the event concluded!
If you'd like to learn more about hHRDD, read our blog about operating in conflict-affected and high-risk areas or contact us at info@twentyfifty.co.uk.
Images:
Top: speakers Sonja Patscheke, Anne Ollivier, Dr Jonathan Kolieb, Donald Bray
Middle: attendees at the discussion on hHRDD
Lower: the UN office, Geneva, Switzerland
