Over the course of two days, researchers from Queen’s University Belfast School of Law and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission convened a diverse group of participants, including the Department of Finance and the Department for the Economy and representatives from a wide range of civil society organisations.

The workshops provided an opportunity to engage critically with the theory and practice of business and human rights (BHR), including in-depth exploration of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, human rights due diligence, and the evolving landscape of BHR in a post-Brexit context. Facilitated by Dr Marisa McVey, the sessions featured expert contributions from Dr Ciara Hackett (QUB), Dr Boris Verbrugge (Mobius/KU Leuven), Professor John Ferguson (University of St Andrews), and Professor Harry Van Buren (University of Tennessee/QUB). Together, participants examined pathways for the co-creation of practical resources to support the implementation of BHR standards across sectors.

This collaborative initiative was made possible through the support of the Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) Leading Impact Award.

This engagement builds on research commissioned by the NIHRC and conducted by Dr Marisa McVey and Anna Montgomery, which, for the first time, examined how businesses in Northern Ireland are implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

The resulting report is available [https://pure.qub.ac.uk/en/publications/ni-business-and-human-rights-index-assessing-the-corporate-implem]. It is hoped that this work will contribute to a broader and ongoing dialogue around responsible business practices in Northern Ireland and further afield.