How to consider human rights in investments

PRI publishes guide to 18 human rights benchmarks

Taking human rights into consideration is increasingly a concern for ESG investors, particularly in light of the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights’ damning report this week on human rights abuses in China.

In fact, researchers at the Business for Social Responsibility found taking a human rights approach to investing can help identify risks before they become material, thereby spotting them before an ESG approach would.

But if you’re thinking about using a human rights approach to investing, where can you start? Helpfully, the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) has this week published a guide to the human rights benchmarks available to investors.

The guide outlines 18 human rights benchmarks, including Know The Chain, Racial Justice Scorecard and Global Access to Nutrition Index, and which sectors each one covers.

The PRI expects investors to consider integrating human rights into investment practices.

Other starting points for investors are to look at what due diligence checks a firm is already doing and what regulatory requirements it is meeting that have human rights elements, and align with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.