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NOVA BHRE Newsletter
November 2024
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| 4th Annual Conference of the NOVA Centre BHRE |
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The opening session featured the Dean of NOVA School of Law, Margarida Lima Rego, the Portuguese Secretary of State for the Economy, João Rui Ferreira, the Ambassador of Canada in Portugal, Elise Racicot, the Chair-Rapporteur of the UN Working Group on Enforced or involuntary Disappearances, Aua Baldé, Managing Partner at PLMJ, Bruno Ferreira, and the Founding Director of the NOVA BHRE, Claire Bright.
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The 4 panels of the conference featured the following experts:
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| Panel 1: Meaningful human rights and environmental commitment |
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Keynote Speaker: Fernanda Ferreira Dias, General Director of the Portuguese Ministry of Economy
Chair: Bernardo Ivo Cruz, Invited Professor at Universidade Católica Portuguesa and at Nova School of Law, Former Portuguese Secretary of State for Internationalization
Panel:
- Nichole Solomons, Global Lead of Business & Human Rights, United Nations Global Compact
- Salah Husseini, Human Rights Director, BSR
- Joana Freitas, Board Member, Transparency International Portugal
- Paulo Câmara, Professor of Law at Católica Global School of Law and Partner at Sérvulo & Associados
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| Panel 2: Identifying and prioritizing impacts |
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Keynote Speaker: Paulo Câmara, Professor of Law at Católica Global School of Law and Partner at Sérvulo & Associados
Chair: Anaïs Tobalagba, Visiting Researcher at the NOVA BHRE and Legal and Policy Researcher at Raid
Panel:
- Céline da Graça Pires, Human Rights Specialist and Research Associate at the NOVA BHRE
- Francisco Granja de Almeida, Legal Counsel & Human Rights Specialist, Galp
- Cannelle Lavite, Co-Program Director Business and Human Rights, ECCHR
- Chiara Macchi, Assistant Professor of Law and Coordinator of Education at Wageningen University & Research – Law Group
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| Panel 3: Taking appropriate measures to address adverse impacts |
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Keynote Speaker: Caroline Lichuma, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Luxembourg
Chair: Alison E. Holm, Assistant Professor, NOVA SBE
Panel:
- Olena Uvarova, Associate Professor at Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University (Ukraine) and Visiting Researcher at Wageningen University, Law Group
- Jenny M. Hoobler, Professor of Human Resource Management and Academic Director of the Leadership for Impact Knowledge Center, NOVA SBE
- João Mestre, Head of Sustainability, Fidelidade
- Grace Camara, Senior Legal Advisor & Garment Sector and Apparel Lead, Global Rights Compliance
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| Panel 4: Tracking and reporting/Communicating |
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Keynote Speaker: Lucila de Almeida, Professor holder of the Abreu Chair in ESG at NOVA School of Law and Director of the NOVA Green Lab
Chair: Laura Iñigo Álvarez, Postdoctoral Researcher and Lecturer at NOVA School of Law and Scientific Coordinator at the NOVA BHRE
Panel:
- Paula Guimarães, Sustainability Director, The Navigator Company
- Sophie Grenade, Senior Policy Advisor, IndustriAll European Trade Union (online)
- Rebecca Burton, Deputy Director, Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA)
- Catherine McDonald, PhD Candidate at the Institute for Business Ethics, University of St Gallen
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The concluding remarks featured Angus Warren, Chief Executive Officer for Advanced Procurement for Universities and Colleges, Beata Faracik, Business & Human Rights Expert, and Ana Duarte Santos, Lawyer, and Research Associate at the NOVA BHRE.
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The NOVA BHRE is very grateful to its Youth Ambassadors for their active participation throughout the event: Gabriel Araújo and Malindi Assubuji, Sita Krenzke and Luís Prata Castro, Sofia Braga and Viola Weis, Luiza Rocha and Sara Pacheco.
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The NOVA Centre on Business, Human Rights and the Environment had the pleasure of receiving Chiara Macchi, Assisting Professor of Law and Coordinator of Education at Wagemingen University & Research - Law Group, as a guest speaker in Claire Bright's Private International Law class at NOVA School of Law on the 12th November.
Chiara gave an insightful guest lecture on corporate-related environmental and climate change cases, exploring the evolving landscape of litigation and the increasing accountabilility of multinational companies for environmental impacts.
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On the 8th November, the NOVA BHRE had the pleasure of welcoming the Portuguese National Contact Point for Responsible Business Conduct (DGAE) to the Business, Human Rights and Sustainability module coordinated by Claire Bright for an engaging guest lecture.
During the session, Carla Pinto and Pedro Marques from the National Contact Point conducted a unique simulation and role play exercise that offered students an immersive experience of handling Specific Instances, a key mechanism under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.
This pratical approach gave students a first-hand understanding of how the National Contact Point mediates disputes and addresses human rights and environmental issues involving businesses.
Professional mediator Filipa Reis also offered some feedbacks to the students on the mediation strategies used.
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Inclusion Day
On the 11th November, the NOVA BHRE was delighted to take part in the Inclusion Talks as part of the Inclusion Day of the NOVA School of Law.
This inspiring event, co-hosted by the NOVA Centre of Gender, Family, and the Law, the NOVA SBE Inclusive Community Forum, and the NOVA SBE Leadership for Impact Knowledge Center, brought together students, staff, and faculty to promote an inclusive and dicrimination-free community.
Claire Bright chaired an engaging panel on Inclusion in the Private Sector, exploring the role of companies in fostering diversity and inclusivity, featuring insights from Anaïs Tobalagba, PHD, our Visiting Researcher, Margarida Castro Caldas, Manuela Doutel Haghighi, Catarina Mendanha, and Jeff Redding.
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On the 25-27th of November 2024, the NOVA BHRE was at the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva. Claire Bright chaired a BHR Informal Dialogue on Just Transition organised by the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights as part of the event.
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II SÉRVULO ESG Congress - Reporting and Due Diligence: New Duties and New Challenges
On the 26th November 2024, Ana Santos Duarte participated on the II SÉRVULO ESG Congress, which was held in person at the Pousada de Lisboa.
This year, the event focused on the theme Reporting and Due Diligence: New Duties and New Challenges, addressing the challenges faced by companies in light of recent European and national developments related to environmental, social, and governance sustainability. Ana contributed valuable insights on the topic of due diligence duties and the activity chain.
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| ESG Reporting and Due Diligence E-course (Portuguese Edition) |
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The ESG Reporting and Due Diligence Course (Portuguese Edition) coordinated by Claire Bright and Lucila de Almeida started on the 25th September and ended on the 27th of November. It featured Claire Bright and Ana Santos Duarte on the regulatory framework on business and human rights, with a special focus on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, the EU Forced Labour Ban, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, Responsible Contracting Practices and Audits, as well as Social Indicators and by Céline da Graça Pires on the Human Rights Due Diligence Process in practice.
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As our Centre grows and its activities expand, so do our resource needs.
Everyone involved in the NOVA BHRE is deeply committed to the mission of driving more responsible and sustainable business practices which uphold human rights, decent work and environmental standards throughout global value chains, and is driven by passion and a sense of purpose.
However, in order to maintain this level of engagement, we require support. We warmly invite new partners to join our current and previous sponsors, which include PLMJ, the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Canadian Embassy in Portugal, FCT, and CEDIS in supporting some of the activities of the NOVA BHRE.
For more information our donations, please contact us at: novabhre@novalaw.unl.pt
Many thanks!
The NOVA BHRE Team
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