Companies are increasingly recognizing climate change as an issue that can result in financial risks (and opportunities) for their business performance. There is growing recognition that climate change is integrally related not only to other ‘environmental’ issues – but also to a range of ‘social’ and ‘governance’ factors under the ‘ESG’ components of sustainability. As the impacts of climate change become more evident, the human rights impacts of climate change, and of business responses to climate change are becoming increasingly clear.
Yet, climate change is complex and many businesses find it challenging to develop an integrated approach to managing climate change and human rights risks. In this report, Climate Action and Human Rights: How the UN Guiding Principles can help companies respect human rights when responding to climate change, we explore how the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) can help companies to layer a human rights lens into their climate change strategies.
Not yet familiar with all the key climate change concepts? Check out the accompanying Climate Background document for an overview of these, and how they affect businesses.
