The course encompasses a 5-week period. Participants are expected to engage in approximately 25 hours of active learning through readings, videos, discussions and quizzes.

The course is articulated in two parts:

Part 1 focuses on the general international framework on the relation between business and human rights. In particular, it summarily explains standards, mechanisms, benefits and challenges in the current set up, especially at the United Nations and regional level. Specific attention will be paid to the UN Guiding Principles, the UN Global Compact, and other recent initiatives, examples and practices.

Part 2 is dedicated to specific themes of pressing value: the protection of human rights defenders working on business-related abuses; the case-law emerging from recent developments; corporate responsibility to respect human rights and the development of legislation on mandatory due diligence; the challenges of intersectionality and in particular the rights of children in relation to business practices. In so doing, the course analyses the links with the international framework and provides examples from different regional areas.

Module 1 - International Framework

• 1

  A rights-based approach to business

  
  Zdzisław (Dzidek) Kędzia, GC Honorary President, Poland
  Surya Deva, UN WG on Business and Human Rights/City University Hong Kong
  Giulia Di Tommaso, President & CEO of CropLife International

Module 2 - Focus Areas

• 2

  Protecting business-related Human Rights Defenders

  
  Ana Zbona, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, UK

• 3

  Developing case-law

  
  Maria José Veramendi, Amnesty International, Peru
  Arnold Kwesiga, University of Pretoria, South Africa

• 4

  Corporate responsibility to respect human rights and due diligence

  
  Claire Methven O’Brian, Danish Institute for Human Rights, Denmark
  Ravi Prakash Vyas, Kathmandu School of Law, Nepal

• 5

  Intersectionality and groups most at risk: the case of children

  
  Nkatha Murungi, University of Pretoria, South Africa
  Maria Pia Bianchetti, UNICEF