On 17 February 2023, EIRIS CRN sent a letter to the Global Sustainability Standard Board (GSSB) commenting on its draft Work Program 2023-2025, specifically Consultation Annex 2 regarding the development of new Topic Standards. In 2022, the Australian Red Cross and RMIT University reached out to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the GSSB to suggest that there should be greater integration of humanitarian law and conflict sensitivity in their reporting standards. This opinion was received by the GSSB – the board which oversees the drafting of the GRI standards – and was included in their draft work program for 2023-2025. Below is the excerpt from Consultation Annex 2:
“Australian Red Cross and RMIT University presented the possibility of integrating international humanitarian law into GRI Standards and guidance: A recommendation is to develop a topic-specific IHL standard as a natural continuation of GRI’s commitment to strengthening human rights-related standards to reflect the increased attention given to conflict settings. In the interim, the following actions are for consideration: a commitment to research into the relevance of IHL to responsible business practices; a gap analysis of existing GRI Standards to identify potential areas for IHL inclusion; the development of practical guidance on IHL for reporting; the inclusion of IHL into education and training for businesses, including in relevant GRI Academy courses; and strengthening of other relevant GRI Standards’ conflict sensitivity.” – access the full Work Program here.
To read the letter EIRIS CRN sent to the GSSB to show its support for the greater integration of international humanitarian law (IHL) and conflict sensitivity into the GRI Standards and guidance, please access it here.