Media coverage highlights
We regularly provide commentary, case studies and analysis on key issues relating to business and human rights.
From expert spokespeople to extensive datasets and analysis of corporate human rights practices, our work frequently features in leading media outlets across the globe.
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Workers in global supply chains
"The era of hollow commitments is ending... Companies that persist in treating forced labour as a box-ticking exercise are increasingly out of step with legal reality, investor expectations and public tolerance. Those that fail to adapt will find themselves not only exposed to regulatory sanction, but struggling to secure stable supply in a world where climate stress, labour shortages and social scrutiny are only intensifying. "Áine Clarke, Co-Head, Labour Rights in Supply Chains & Investor Strategy
Extractive model reliance exposes agrifood companies to business risk
Op-ed illustrating how our data shows little effort by largest food and drink companies to address forced labour risks.
CSRD and CSDDD: Why businesses must tackle migrant worker abuse in supply chains to comply
Migrant workers are being persistently and systemically abused across supply chains globally, new data has revealed. For sustainability and risk professionals, the question is no longer whether this is a material risk, but one of whether governance systems are fit for what comes next in terms of compliance and best practice.
‘Crisis after crisis’: Brands silent as rariff and oil shocks devastated garment workers
When the Business and Human Rights Centre queried 25 of the U.S. market's biggest fashion companies—including Gap Inc., H&M Group, Nike and Zara owner Inditex—about labor impacts from President Donald Trump's erratic tariff rollout, not a single brand responded, not even to decline.
Just energy transition
"The renewable energy industry stands at a decisive moment: not only is it building the infrastructures of our future global energy system, but it also has the potential to contribute to a fairer global economic order through a rights-respecting energy transition. This is an all-hands-on-deck moment."Caroline Avan, Head of Natural Resources and Just Transition
Comment: Respect for human rights offers renewables companies a competitive edge
Leading businesses are laying out the blueprint for what a rights-respecting energy transition could look like.
Mining sector sees surge in human rights abuse allegations: report
The US and the European Union have intensified efforts to secure the minerals needed for a clean energy transition. But as investment grows, so does conflict throughout the sector.
Clean energy, dirty mining: Rights abuses rise across Africa
The race to extract critical minerals essential for clean energy is leading to an increase in rights abuses linked to major mining operations, the Business and Human Rights Centre said this week.
Large rise in abuse claims at mines that may be vital to EU’s energy transition, report says
The Business and Human Rights Resource found 270 allegations of environmental and human rights abuses in transition mineral projects across 13 countries in Europe and central Asia last year, up from 92 the year before.
Digital tech & human rights
“Tech companies, with a few exceptions, are opaque and largely unwilling to provide information and disclosures, especially around this conflict, in a way that is incomparable to most other sectors. Increasingly, we’re seeing the central role that technology is playing in conflict, and this role is only going to get more embedded as we go forward."Gayatri Khandhadai, Head of Tech Accountability
Anthropic and Washington: investors cannot ignore defence AI risks
Human rights due diligence, military AI transparency and linking capital to data safeguards can shift markets towards rights-respecting innovation.
Human rights groups cheer ‘watershed’ verdict in social media addiction trial
The Business and Human Rights Centre, a global non-profit, said that Wednesday’s verdict was a “watershed moment for corporate accountability in the digital age”. Michael Clements, the group’s executive director, stressed that the verdict “reinforces longstanding concerns about the sector’s business models, and highlights the urgent need for companies to undertake robust human rights, due diligence to identify, prevent and mitigate harm – and not to engineer it for profit”.
AI and the associated risks are challenging policymakers to develop regulations quickly
Governance of AI has to extend to the financiers that enable its most controversial uses. Without this, efforts to manage AI’s “dangerous power” will fall short.
Human rights defenders and civic freedoms
"When people raising concerns about corporate harms are attacked – through intimidation, legal threats, or physical violence – these are not a series of isolated incidents, but a global pattern of retaliation against people exercising freedom of expression and advocating for rights-respecting economies. These voices also provide vital information to businesses, without which companies and their investors risk remaining unaware about the risks embedded within their supply chains. This often leads to increased risk of conflict, delays and financial losses, which could be avoided by ensuring respect for human rights and working towards shared prosperity with people affected by their operations."Christen Dobson, Co-Head of Civic Freedoms and Human Rights Defenders
Attacks on business conduct campaigners hit record high in 2025
A record number of people faced judicial harassment, intimidation, surveillance and physical violence in 2025 for raising concerns about businesses, shows research published by international non-profit the Business and Human Rights Centre.
Surge in crackdown on environmental defenders, report finds
A record number of people faced judicial harassment, intimidation, surveillance, and physical violence in 2025 for speaking out against businesses, a new report found — and most cases were tied to the energy sector.
Are businesses ignoring a crucial early warning system?
Most boards would not knowingly ignore their best source of early risk intelligence, but that is exactly what is happening. While geopolitical instability, supply chain exposure and regulatory changes feature prominently in board-level conversations, there remains an extremely consequential oversight: the treatment of people raising concerns about a company’s operations and supply chain.
News from around the world
How should businesses navigate human rights in a more fragmented world?
In this episode of Sustainable Views, editor Philippa Nuttall sits down with Michael Clements, executive director at the Business and Human Rights Centre, to discuss the growing expectations on companies to protect workers, manage supply chain risks, and respond to political and regulatory pressure. From mandatory due diligence to reputational risk and stakeholder activism, we explore how the human rights agenda is evolving — and what it means for boards, investors and sustainability leaders today.
Africa bears growing human cost of the world's rush for critical minerals
As demand for copper, cobalt and other minerals needed for electric vehicles and renewable energy surges, a new report warns that allegations of human rights abuses linked to mining in Africa are rising even faster
Rights group scrutinises tire giants after Pulitzer Center investigation into problematic rubber in Southeast Asia
The Business and Human Rights Centre (BHRRC) questioned major tire companies after a Pulitzer Center-supported investigation exposed the environmental toll of rubber plantations in the Mekong River basin in Southeast Asia.
TikTok’s massive data centre in Brazil raises concerns
Campaigners and academics have scrutinised the TikTok data centre’s use of water and power in a drought-prone region, a lack of consultation with indigenous communities and data security concerns. “Brazil may be losing environmental and participatory safeguards in order to attract these big tech companies and AI-related investments," says Marina Novaes, São Paulo-based representative at the Business and Human Rights Resources Centre.
Comment: Corporate human rights policies still matter in the US
Leading US firms continue to conduct human rights due diligence, maintain access to grievance mechanisms and participate in the multistakeholder initiatives that have shaped responsible business standards over the past two decades.