Posted by Lise Kingo, Executive Director, UN Global Compact on the Huffington Post Blog on 12 December 2016

Over the past 15 years at the UN Global Compact, we have seen how human rights and robust public-private partnerships matter to the bottom line of business, and there are a number of ways that responsible businesses are taking steps to respect human rights. These include:

1. Ensuring their business activities are not interfering with the ability of civil society organizations and human rights defenders to operate.
2. Participating in responsible lobbying efforts to governments to ensure an open civil society space.
3. Speaking out when governments do not respect or are infringing upon human rights.
4. Striving to adhere to international human rights standards when operating in countries where rule of law is weak or there are governance gaps.

While businesses can make important progress in supporting and advancing human rights, it’s not on the shoulders of business alone. Respecting human rights is an ongoing challenge that requires creative solutions and collaboration from multi-stakeholder partnerships.

As the global community works towards achieving the SDGs, we are reminded that an active, open civil society is at the very foundation of progress.

World events of 2016 call for unprecedented leadership from all sectors on the protection of human rights. Today, we urge companies everywhere to respond to our call: to lead and partner with the UN and civil society to foster a more just and more prosperous world for all.

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