Business and Human Rights Accelerator 2023

The idea of human rights is as simple as it is powerful: All people have a right to be treated with dignity.

Businesses often impact the human rights of their employees and contract workers, workers in their supply chains, the communities around their operations and even the end users of their products or services. Whether directly or indirectly, they impact virtually the entire spectrum of internationally recognized human rights.

As a result, companies have both a responsibility and an opportunity to advance human rights across operations, supply chains, and beyond.

The Business & Human Rights Accelerator is a six-month program activating companies participating in the UN Global Compact across industries and regions. This hands-on program encourages companies to move from commitment to action on human rights and labour rights through establishing an ongoing human rights due diligence process.

In Indonesia, B&HR Accelerator involving 26 companies was launched in the end of 2022 with the list of participants comprising:

1. PT Austindo Nusantara Jaya Tbk (ANJ)
2. Daemeter Consulting
3. PT Pertamina (Persero)
4. PT Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper (RAPP) 
5. Asia Pacific Rayon
6. PT Bank Aladin Syariah Tbk
7. PT Tandan Sawita Papua
8. PT Industri Jamu dan Farmasi Sido Muncul Tbk 
9. PT Pabrik Kertas Tjiwi Kimia Tbk 
10. Torajamelo
11. PT Indah Kiat Pulp & Paper Tbk
12. PT Aicon Global Indonesia
13. Bank Jago Tbk 
14. PT Ekamas Fortuna
15. PT Pindo Deli Pulp and Paper
16. PT Lontar Papyrus Pulp & Paper Industry
17. PT Musim Mas
18. PT Cendekia Edukasi Citra Tritunggal
19. Dynapack Asia
20. PT Freeport Indonesia
21. PT TBS Energi Utama Tbk
22. PT Rajawali Corpora
23. PT Singaland Asetama
24. Fortune PR
25. PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk
26. PT Vale Indonesia Tbk

Overall activities in B&HR Accelerator comprise:

A. On-Demand E-learning Modules

Participating companies have access to four e-learning modules that are available on UN Global Compact Academy platform (on-demand). Participants had the opportunity to learn more about business and human rights focusing on how companies can operationalize the UN Guiding Principles. This learning plan is composed of four interactive, 30-minute modules, including:

Module 1: Introduction to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

Module 2: Getting Started with Human Rights Due Diligence

Module 3: Taking Action on Impacts, Tracking, and Communicating

Module 4: Access to Remedy

B. Global Kick-off

On 2 Feb 2023, the Global Compact Network Indonesia (GCO) held a Business & Human Rights Accelerator Global Kick-Off. The aim of the online interactive session was to provide participants with an overview of the BHR Accelerator program, heard from global partners, and helped participants understand program expectations and outcomes.

C. Deep Dive Sessions

1. The Accelerator program included several Deep Dive Sessions that took place online. The first Deep Dive session, held on 7 Feb 2023, focused on Gap Analysis and Alignment with UNGPs. The interactive session facilitated participants to understand the UN Guiding Principles, core concepts, and expectations of companies. It also provided an overview of the Human Rights Due Diligence process and supported participants understand where they were on their human rights journey. The session had global attendance, including 28 participants from Indonesia.
   
2. The second Deep Dive session took place on 7 Mar 2023, focusing on Value Chain Scoping and Identifying Potential Impacts. The interactive session encouraged participants to understand the first Human Rights Due Diligence step and how to narrow down complex value chains for human rights due diligence work. It also provided guidance on how to identify the long list of potential human rights risks. The session had global attendance, including 25 participants from Indonesia.
   
3. The third Deep Dive session, held on 4 Apr 2023, focused on Prioritizing Salient Human Rights Impacts and Understanding Company Involvement. The interactive session encouraged participants to complete the first step of HRDD, ‘assess’, by prioritizing the long list of potential impacts based on severity and likelihood. It also facilitated participants understand the ways in which their business might be involved with each impact (caused, contributed to, or linked to) and the implications was purposed for the actions they should take. The session had global attendance, including 23 participants from Indonesia.
   
4. The fourth facilitated Deep Dive session that was held on 03 May 2023, participants learned about what it takes to move to action relating to at least one salient human rights issue, discuss the ‘Theory of Change’ approach, and understood the different types of leverage.
   
5. In the facilitated Deep Dive session 5 on 30 May 2023, participants learned what ‘stakeholder engagement’ means and involves and discuss characteristics of meaningful human rights communication. This session highlighted alignment between United Nations Guiding Principles (UNGPs) and the UNGC Communication on Progress, provided useful resources for human rights disclosure, and provided the key considerations for scenarios requiring heightened due diligence.
   
6. In the last facilitated Deep Dive session 6 on 28 Jun 2023, participants learned about the term ‘Remedy’ – when it is required, who should take a role in it, and the different types of remedy available. This included a discussion on how Operational Level Grievance Mechanisms (OLGMs) are important to an effective HRDD and company decision-making, while taking a role in enabling remedy.

D. Peer-to-peer Learning Sessions

1. The Peer-to-Peer Learning Session #1 took place on 15 Feb 2023. The session was aimed to recap the core concepts covered in the Deep Dive session and provided peer discussion on where companies were on their human rights journey, key learnings to date, information, policy, process gaps, and what needs to happen to address these gaps.
   
2. The Peer-to-Peer Learning Session #2 took place on 15 Mar 2023. The session included a recap of the stage 2 Deep Dive facilitated session, ensuring participants understand the steps involved in scoping their value chain and identifying the list of potential human rights impacts. Peer discussions provided spaces for participants to discuss important challenges, share examples of their own practice, and learn about good practice.
   
3. The Peer-to-Peer Learning Session #3 took place on 18 Apr 2023. The session included a recap on Deep Dive session 3 and provided opportunities for participants to discuss important challenges, share examples of their own practice, and learn about good practice in depth. The session focused on prioritizing potential impacts based on severity and likelihood and included case studies.
   
4. The Peer-to-Peer Learning Session #4 took place on 17 May 2023. This session was hosted by Pertamina and became the first hybrid session, with 19 attendees offline and 33 attendees online. The objective of the event was to assist the participating companies in establishing and monitoring a human rights action plan.
   
5. The Peer-to-Peer Learning Session #5 took place on 7 Jun 2023. The session that was attended by 25 participants virtually, was intended to recap on clarifying what “stakeholder engagement” means and involves. This also included discussion towards meaningful human rights communication, alignment between UNGPs and the UNGC Communication on Progress.
   
6. This final peer-learning session on 28 Jun 2023 recapped Deep Dive session 6 which explains the term ‘Remedy’, when it is required, and the different types of remedy available. This included how Operational Level Grievance Mechanisms play a key role in HRDD and company decision-making, while taking a role in enabling remedy. Participants discussed what steps could be taken to prepare for remedy within their own organization, what opportunities exist to strengthen existing grievance mechanism(s), with whom to engage to build out the GM infrastructure, and what examples of good practice they are aware of.

E. Special Session

The Accelerator program also included a special session with the International Labour Organization (ILO) on 9 Mar 2023. The “Ask the Expert” session gave participants a unique opportunity to engage the ILO directly and discuss labor rights issues that companies might be grappling with. This special session was facilitated by Emily Sims, Senior Specialist and Manager, International Labour Organisation (ILO) Helpdesk for Business.