KEY POINTS:• Acollaborativeapproachtohumanrightsimpactassessments(HRIAs)isanewapproachthatbringstogetherproject-affectedpeople,acompany,andotherstakeholderstojointlydesignandimplementanassessment.

• AcollaborativeHRIAcouldhelpaddressoneofthekeychallengesofcurrentHRIApractices:limitedstakeholderengagementandparticipation,whichcanundermineeffectivenessandtrust.

• AcollaborativeHRIAcouldresultinimprovedcommunication,increasedaccesstorelevantinformation,greaterengagementwithanHRIA’sfindingsandrecommendations,andincreasedpreventionormitigationofnegativehumanrightsimpacts.

• Tobesuccessful,acollaborativeHRIAwillrequireparticipantstocarefullynavigateaseriesofissuesthatrangefromensuringmeaningfulparticipationtogoverningandfundingtheprocess.

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS

AUTHORS: COLUMBIA CENTER ON SUSTAINABLE INVESTMENT, DANISH INSTITUTE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, AND SCIENCES PO LAW SCHOOL CLINIC

MARCH 2017

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS2

INTRODUCTIONHumanrightsimpactassessments(HRIAs)areincreasinglyusedbycompaniesandcommunitiestoassesstheactualorpotentialimpactsofabusinessprojectoroperation.Whilemethodologiesandstandardshaveevolved,currentHRIApracticesfrequentlyconfrontasetofcommonchallenges.Thisnotesetsoutanew,collaborativeapproachtoconductingHRIAsofbusinessprojectsoroperationsinanefforttoaddressoneofthekeychallengesofcurrentpractices:thelimitedengagementofrelevantstakeholders,whichcanundermineeffectivenessandtrust.Acollaborativeapproachseekstobringproject-affectedpeople,acompany,andotherrelevantstakeholderstogethertojointlydesignandimplementanassessment,withtheobjectivesofimprovingcommunication,increasingtheinformationsourcesthatcanbedrawnupon,andencouraginggreaterengagementbyallparticipantsintheHRIA’sfindingsandrecommendations.Theintendedultimateresultofsuchanapproachisthemoreeffectivepreventionormitigationofaproject’snegativehumanrightsimpacts.

ThisbriefingnoteprovidesanoverviewofwhatacollaborativeHRIAwouldentail,reasonsforundertakingone,andfactorsthatmayaffectitsfeasibility.ThenotethenbrieflyexplainshowacollaborativeHRIAcouldworkinpractice:fromensuringmeaningfulparticipation;tostructuring,governing,andfundingtheprocess;throughtoconductingtheassessment,developingandimplementinganactionplan,anddisclosingresults.

WHAT IS A COLLABORATIVE HRIA?AcollaborativeHRIAisajointprocessundertakenbyproject-affectedpeopleandacompany,andpotentiallywithinvolvementofthehostgovernmentorotherstakeholders,toinvestigate,measure,andrespondtoabusinessprojectoroperation’spotentialoractualhumanrightsimpacts.Itrequiresformalprocessestofacilitatecollectivedecision-makingamongparticipatingstakeholders,whotogetherdesignandconducttheHRIA.Thisdiffersfromexistingapproaches,whereHRIAsaregenerallyundertakenorcommissionedbyeitheracompanyorproject-affectedpeople,withlimitedinteractionamongstakeholders,exceptaspartofstandardstakeholderconsultations.Suchpractices,particularlywhencoupledwithexistingtensions,canleadtosuspicionofHRIAresults,renderingthemineffectiveorcontentious.Todate,nocollaborativeHRIAhasbeencarriedoutandtested,althoughsomeHRIAshaveincorporatedparticularlystrongeffortstoincreasestakeholderengagement.

REASONS FOR UNDERTAKING A COLLABORATIVE HRIA AND FACTORS TO CONSIDERCollaborativeHRIAsoffersharedincentivesforstakeholders.Theycould,forexample,improveinformationsharing,leadingtodeeperunderstandingsofimpacts.Theycouldalsofacilitateeffortsbystakeholderstoengageindialogue,identifysharedpriorities,andreachagreementonkeyissues.

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS3

Inaddition,forcompanies,collaborativeHRIAscouldreducetheriskofsocialconflictsandassociatedfinancialandreputationalcosts.Theycouldalsoimprovethecompany’shumanrightscapacities,engagementstrategies,anddecision-making,includingforfutureprojects.CompaniesengagingincollaborativeHRIAsandother“bestpractices”maybeabletodifferentiatethemselvesfromcompetitors.

Forproject-affectedpeople,collaborativeHRIAscouldprovideanewavenuefordirectcommunicationwiththecompany,whichcouldhelpthemmoreeffectivelyinfluencedecision-makingrelatedtothedesignorimplementationofaprojectoroperationthatstandstoaffectthem.ParticipationinacollaborativeHRIAcouldalsoprovideopportunitiestofurtherdeveloprelevantknowledgeandskills.

Whengovernmentsparticipate,theirinvolvementcouldsendanimportantsignaltocompaniesregardingthenecessityofrespectinghumanrights.GovernmentinvolvementcouldalsoincreasethepotentialthatitwillengagemeaningfullywiththeHRIA’srecommendations.Workingbothwithcompaniesandwithproject-affectedpeoplecouldalsohelpgovernmentstoreconciletheirobligationstorespect,protect,andfulfillhumanrightswiththeirinvestmentpromotionobjectives.

WHEN WILL A COLLABORATIVE HRIA BE APPROPRIATE?ThesuitabilityofacollaborativeHRIAdependsonvariousfactors,includingspecificsrelatedtotheprojectoroperationbeingassessed,thecharacteristicsofparticipatingstakeholdersandthepre-existingrelationshipsbetweenthem,andthepoliticalcontextinwhichtheassessmentwilltakeplace.

Relevantcharacteristicsoftheprojectoroperationincludetheamountofmoneyalreadyinvested,whetheritistiedtoaspecificlocation,anditsoverallcomplexity.Thecompany’srelevantcharacteristicsincludeitshumanrightssensitization,itsresourcesandexpertise,anditsinternalstructure.Factorsconcerningproject-affectedpeopleincludetheextenttowhichinternaldivisionsexist,whetherproject-affectedpeopleuncompromisinglyopposetheproject,andtheavailabilityofcapacitiesandskills.Meanwhile,thesuitabilityofagovernment’sparticipationinacollaborativeHRIAwilldependoncharacteristicssuchasitsattitudetowardhumanrightsobligations,itscommitmenttotransparencyanddisclosure,anditsdemocraticlegitimacy,aswellastheattitudeofproject-affectedpeopletowardgovernmentalinvolvementintheprocess.

STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT AND MEANINGFUL PARTICIPATIONAccuratelyidentifyingallrelevantstakeholdersandensuringtheireffectiveparticipationiskeytounlockingthevalueofacollaborativeHRIA.Caremustbetakentoensurethatrelevantsubgroupsofstakeholders—includingthosewhomaybemarginalizedormorevulnerabletoaproject’simpacts—are

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS4

appropriatelyengagedandrepresented.Thevariousinternalcomponentsofaparticipatingcompany(suchasitsheadquartersandin-countryoffice,andthedifferentdepartmentsandhierarchieswithineach)and,ifinvolved,thegovernment(national,regional,andlocallevels,eachwiththeirownagenciesandinstitutions)alsoneedtobeproperlyunderstoodtoensureappropriaterepresentation,coordination,andengagement.

Oncetherelevantstakeholdersandtheirrepresentativesareidentified,capacitybuildingwillbeneeded—especiallyforrepresentativesofproject-affectedpeopleand,potentially,forrepresentativesofthecompanyorgovernment—toensureeffectiveparticipation.Assistanceforsuchcapacitybuildingcouldcomefromlocalornationalcivilsocietyorganizations(CSOs),aswellasfrominternationalorganizationsandexpertswithexpertiseincapacitybuilding,inHRIAmethodologies,orinspecificissuesrelevanttotheassessment.Theseactors,aswellasothers,mightalsojoinasparticipantsintheHRIAorremaininvolvedonanad hocbasis.

STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITIONThestructureofacollaborativeHRIAwillinfluencehowtheassessmentfunctions,andshouldbedesignedtoencouragecollaborationandtoavoidreplicationofexistingpowerimbalancesbetweenparticipatingstakeholders.Rulesofconductwillbeneeded,aswellasentitiesthatcanassistwithoversightoftheprocessandcompliancewiththerules.WhileacollaborativeHRIAcouldtakemanyforms,thefollowingthreecomponentsareproposed:

•Asteering committee, composedofrepresentativesfromproject-affectedpeople,thecompany,andotherparticipatingstakeholders,tosetupthecollaborativeHRIAandoverseetheprocess,aswellastoprovideaforumforimprovedcommunicationbetweenparticipatingstakeholdersand,potentially,fordisputeresolution.Thesteeringcommitteeshouldhaveoneormoreindependentfacilitatorstomanagemeetingsandbuildconsensus,toassistwithprojectcoordination,andtooverseecompliancewiththerulesofconduct.

•Atrusteeorothertrustedentitytoreceiveanddisbursefundsasneeded.

•Animpact assessment (IA) team,alsocomposedofrepresentativesfromproject-affectedpeople,thecompany,andotherparticipatingstakeholders,tocarryouttheactualassessment,aswellastodesigntherecommendationsandactionplantoaddresstheproject’shumanrightsimpacts.TheIAteamshouldalsohaveoneormoreindependentIApractitionerstoensuresufficientskillsandexpertise,toactasprojectmanager,andtoconductinterviewswhenitisnotappropriateforrepresentativesofproject-affectedpeopleorthecompanytobepresent.

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS5

GOVERNANCEParticipantscantakestepstoensurethatthecollectivedecision-makingprocessesinboththesteeringcommitteeandIAteamoperateinanequitablemanner.Thisisimportantgiventhatparticipantswillhavevaryingdegreesofexperiencewithformalprocesses,andunevenaccesstosupportandresources.ThedecisiontocarryoutacollaborativeHRIAshouldberecordedinanagreement,whichcansetoutthestructureandtherulesofconduct.Therulesshouldincludeprocessesfordecision-makinganddisputeresolution;theycanbeenforcedbythesteeringcommittee,withtheindependentfacilitatortakingtheprimaryroleofoverseeingcompliance.

InthecourseofacollaborativeHRIA,disputesandgrievancesmayarise.Forinstance,membersoftheIAteammaydisagreeonhowtocarryoutaspecificpartoftheassessment,representativesonthesteeringcommitteemayreachanimpasseonaparticularissue,ornon-participatingstakeholdersmayhavegrievancesregardingtheconductoftheIAteam.StakeholdersestablishingacollaborativeHRIAmaydecidetohavesomeorallofthesetypesofissuesresolvedbythesteeringcommitteeaccordingtoclearprocesses,ortheymayagreetoturntoanexternaldisputeresolutionprocess.Whenthesteeringcommitteeistaskedwithresolvingcertaindisputes,thereshouldbeaprocessinplacetoaddressanyfailuretoreachconsensus.

FUNDINGEnsuringsufficientfundingfortheassessmentiscritical.Equallyimportantisensuringthatthesourceoffundingdoesnotadverselyinfluencetheprocessandoutcomes,oraffecttheassessment’scredibility.Eachfundingsourcehasitsownadvantagesanddrawbacks.Sourcingfundingfromthecompany,forexample,mayencouragecompanybuy-in,andmightalsobethemostscalableapproach.However,companyfundingalsocarriesthegreatestriskofinadvertentlyinfluencingtheassessment—orcreatingtheperceptionofdoingso.Thehostgovernment,astheprimaryduty-bearerofhumanrightsobligations,mightbealogicalfundingsource,butalsopresentschallengesregardingactualorperceivedinfluence.Neutral-partyfunding—fromphilanthropicorganizationsorfoundations,bilateraldonors,orotherentitiesthatarenotdirectstakeholdersinaproject—couldhelpshieldacollaborativeHRIAfromproblematicinfluenceandprotectperceptionsoftheassessment’slegitimacy.Neutralpartyfundingis,however,lessreplicableandscalablethanrelyingonfundingfromaninvolvedstakeholder.

Despiteitsdrawbacks,fundingfromoneormoreneutralpartiesistherecommendedoption.Wherethisisnotpossible,theprocesscouldadoptaphasedapproachthatcombinesneutral-partyfundingforthescopingphase(todetermineissuessuchaswhichrightswillbecoveredandwhatmethodologywillbeused)withfundingfromthecompanyforalladditionalphasesofthecollaborativeHRIA.Athirdoptionwouldbetoseekfundingfrommultiplesourcesforallphasesoftheproject,withthegoalofdilutinganysinglefunder’scontributionandthuspotentialinfluence.

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS6

IMPACT ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGYAswithexistingHRIApractices,acollaborativeHRIAwillhaveanumberofphases.Theseinclude:planningandscopingtheissuestobecovered;investigatingandcollectingdata;analyzingimpactsandmakingrecommendations;andundertakingmonitoring,evaluation,andfollow-upactivities.AllphasesofthecollaborativeHRIAprocessrequireongoingstakeholderengagementandaccesstodisputeresolutionprocesses.

TheparticipatorynatureoftheIAteamcancreatecomplicationsregardingwhofromtheteamcaninterviewwhichtypesofstakeholders.Forinstance,companyrepresentativesontheIAteamgenerallyshouldnotbepresentduringinterviewsofproject-affectedpeopletoensurethatintervieweesarecomfortableandopenduringinterviews.Similarconcernsmightariseregardingthepresenceofrepresentativesofproject-affectedpeopleduringsomeinterviewsofcompanyrepresentatives—forexample,whensensitivecompanyinformationmightbeshared.Insomesituations,oneoftheindependentIApractitionersontheteamwillbebestplacedtoconductinterviews.

DESIGNING THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND ACTION PLANOncefindingshavebeenassembled,allmembersoftheIAteamwillworktogethertodeveloprecommendations,andtoconverttheseintoactionitemsinanactionplan.Theactionplanshouldincludeprovisionsformonitoringimplementation,foradaptingtounforeseenissuesandimpactsthatsubsequentlyarise,and,potentially,forundertakingfollow-upmeasuresand/orotherformsofongoingengagement.

TRANSPARENCY AND DISCLOSUREEnsuringthatproject-affectedpeoplehaveaccesstorelevantinformationisanimportantaspectofconductingarights-respectingprocess.Transparencyisanessential(althoughnotregularlyobserved)componentofHRIAs.Disclosureofinformationthroughouttheassessmentprocess—particularlyregardingmethodology,findings,andtheactionplan—isimportantforthelegitimacyofacollaborativeHRIA.Insomecases,acompanyparticipatinginthecollaborativeHRIAmayhaveconcernsregardingfulldisclosureofinformationgatheredduringtheHRIA.Solutionsshouldbeestablishedtoaddressthoseconcernswhilestillaffordingopportunitiesforproject-affectedpeopletoaccessrelevantinformation.Whileitisrecommendedtoalwaysdiscloserelevantinformation,theidentitiesofintervieweesshouldalwaysbekeptconfidentialandprotected.

CONCLUSIONAcollaborativeapproachtoHRIAscreatesamechanismforcollaborationandcommunicationbetweenkeystakeholders.Thiscanminimizeknowledgeasymmetries,contributetoadeeperunderstandingofeachstakeholder’sperspectiveandpriorities,helptobuildtrust,andresultinmoreeffectiveactionplanstoaddressaproject’shumanrightsimpacts.

BRIEFING NOTE: A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT ASSESSMENTS7

Theneedforcapacitybuildingandsensitization,andtheradicallydifferentbackgroundsofparticipatingstakeholders,meanthatacollaborativeHRIAwillbetime-intensiveandwillrequirestablefunding.Inaddition,stronggovernancestructureswillbecriticaltoensurethattheprocessdoesnotreplicateorexacerbateexistingpowerimbalancesbetweenstakeholders—anissuewithwhichothermulti-stakeholdereffortshavestruggled.

Despitethesechallenges,acollaborativeapproachtoHRIAsofferssignificantpotential.Suchanapproachcouldprovideanewwayforcompanies,project-affectedpeople,andotherstakeholderstoworktogetheronunderstandingandaddressingpotentialoractualhumanrightsimpacts.Bydoingso,acollaborativeHRIAcouldsupportarangeofstakeholdersseekingbetterandmoreeffectivewaysofassessingimpactsandprotectingrightsinthecontextofbusinessprojectsandoperations.

Thisbriefingnotedrawsfromalongerpaper:ColumbiaCenteronSustainableInvestment,DanishInstituteforHumanRights,andSciencesPoLawSchoolClinic,A Collaborative Approach to Human Rights Impact Assessments,March2017,availableat:http://ccsi.columbia.edu/work/projects/CHRIA/ThisnotewaspreparedwithfinancialsupportfromTheTiffany&Co.Foundation,althoughtheviewsexpresseddonotnecessarilyrepresentthoseoftheFoundation.