"Investing in Indigenous Peoples rights: The role of Canadian investors in driving responsible business conduct", 15th September 2020

... In the midst of the current global health crisis, Indigenous Peoples in Canada and globally are being been disproportionately impacted by the economic, social, and human impacts of the pandemic. Financial actors have a tremendous opportunity to support recovery and contribute to new systems that embed respect for Indigenous People’s rights, yet doing so requires that institutional investors take steps to ensure respect for Indigenous rights throughout their investment activities.

As business actors, institutional investors have a responsibility to respect human rights in line with the UN Guiding Principles Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and the OECD’s guidance on Responsible Business Conduct for Institutional Investors. This expectation extends to respecting Indigenous Peoples rights under ILO 169 and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), such as free, prior and informed consent (FPIC).

In practice, investors need to know the risks to human rights connected with their investment activities and show how they take action to manage those risks.

This panel forms part of the UN Working Group’s “UNGPs 10+” project, which seeks to chart a roadmap for action on business and human rights in the next decade...

This webinar is part of our RI Digital: Canada 2020 event. To view all sessions please click here.