Event information

30 November 2021, 10:25-11:40

Building Blocks for Tech Regulation – A Business and Human Rights Approach

Event

Silhouette in front of a screen Silhouette in front of a screen

The state duty to protect against human rights abuses by business, including from the tech sector, requires states to adopt appropriate measures to prevent and address such abuses.

According to Pillar I of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) – which reflects human rights obligations that states have under international human rights law –, states should consider the ‘full range of permissible preventative and remedial measures, including policies, legislation, regulations and adjudication’. Therefore, the UNGPs provide a useful roadmap for governments in addressing technology-related human rights issues. Through a smart-mix of measures, the state has a critical role in ensuring good corporate conduct, facilitating multi-stakeholder engagement, and driving the corporate responsibility to respect through measures that foster the uptake of human rights due diligence among technology companies.

As regulatory efforts to require technology companies to respect human rights intensify worldwide, the OHCHR B-Tech project and the Geneva Academy are consulting on the idea of a so-called ‘UNGPs check’. Aimed at guiding the legislative process and at informing the design of tech regulation to foster rights-respecting regulatory frameworks, it would serve as a tool to inform engagement with policymakers.

This panel at the 2021 United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights – co-organized with OHCHR B-Tech project – will:

  • Discuss the regulatory landscape: approaches by states aiming at protecting human rights in the context of digital technologies and with regard to business conduct
  • Consult on the drafting of building blocks for regulatory options for states to incentivize the tech sector to fulfill their responsibility to respect human rights.

Panelists will notably address the following questions:

  • How can the UNGPs inform the development of regulation that aims at addressing tech company-related human rights abuses arising in the context of rapid technological transformation?
  • What should be the building blocks of a legislative process for addressing adverse human rights impacts stemming from technology company conduct?

Moderation

  • Lene Wendland, Chief, Business and Human Rights, OHCHR

Panelists

  • Anita Ramasastry, Member, UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights
  • Owen Bennett, Mozilla
  • Abdul Z. Abdulrahim, University of Oxford, Stears
  • Sebastian Smart, Regional Director, Instituto Nacional de Derechos Humanos, Chile
  • Diana Vlad Calcic
  • Giovanni De Gregorio, University of Oxford
  • Imane Bello, Paris Bar, Lawyer

Background to the Discussion

This event forms part of our research project on disruptive technologies and rights-based resilience – funded by the Geneva Science-Policy Interface – that aims at supporting the development of regulatory and policy responses to human rights challenges linked to digital technologies.

MORE ON THIS THEMATIC AREA

Human Rights Tiles News

From Signals to Action: Strengthening the UN's Conflict Prevention Efforts

31 March 2025

Our recent research brief series explores how the United Nations' human rights system can enhance its role in early warning and conflict prevention.

Read more

ECHR Logo News

In Highlight: ECHR Knowledge Sharing Platform

13 May 2025

Via its DHRTTDs Directory, the Geneva Human Rights Platform provides a comprehensive list and description of such key tools and databases. But how to navigate them? Which tool should be used for what, and by whom? This interview helps us understand better the specificities of the current highlight of the directory: ECHR Knowledge Sharing Platform

Read more

Warzone Event

Advanced IHL Seminar for Academics and Policymakers

25-29 August 2025, 09:00-17:30

Co-hosted with the ICRC, this event aims to enhance the capacity of academics to teach and research international humanitarian law, while also equipping policymakers with an in-depth understanding of ongoing legal debates.

Read more

Local Government Event

Enhancing National Reporting and Implementation of Human Rights through Coordinated Engagement at the Local and Regional Levels: The Role of NMIRFs

23 July 2025, 10:00-17:00

This seminar explores how national mechanisms for implementation, reporting and follow-up can better integrate the capacities, data, and experiences of local and regional governments in advancing human rights implementation and reporting.

Read more

Open dump Training

Protecting Human Rights and the Environment

15-19 September 2025

Participants in this training course will gain practical insights into UN human rights mechanisms and their role in environmental protection and learn about how to address the interplay between international human rights and environmental law, and explore environmental litigation paths.

Read more

A general view of participants during of the 33nd ordinary session of the Human Rights Council. Training

The Universal Periodic Review and the UN Human Rights System: Raising the Bar on Accountability

10-14 November 2025

This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.

Read more

Panel Discussion: Project

Treaty Body Members’ Platform

Started in January 2014

The Treaty Body Members’ Platform connects experts in UN treaty bodies with each other as well as with Geneva-based practitioners, academics and diplomats to share expertise, exchange views on topical questions and develop synergies.

Read more

Project

Follow-up Review Pilot Series

Started in November 2021

Read more

Cover of the publication Publication

Briefing N° 25: Localizing Multilateralism

published on March 2025

Domenico Zipoli, Ludovica Chiussi Curzi, Kamelia Kemileva

Read more

Cover page of the working paper Publication

AI Decoded: Key Concepts and Applications of Artificial Intelligence for Human Rights and SDG Monitoring

published on January 2025

Milica Mirkovic, Jennifer Victoria Scurrell

Read more