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Globally, it is often Indigenous Peoples who bear the brunt of harmful business activities. This project explores the intersection between Indigenous Peoples’ rights and the human rights responsibilities of business enterprises. Focusing on the distinctive collective rights to which Indigenous Peoples are entitled, such as rights over lands, territories, and resources, and the right to free, prior and informed consent, it investigates the legal channels this opens up for ensuring the voices of Indigenous Peoples are heard as well as heeded, and how these complement individual human rights. One strand of analysis pursued is therefore the extent to which the voices of Indigenous Peoples add a distinctive dimension to the human rights responsibilities of business enterprises, and, conversely, the recognition of business responsibility for human rights enhances the rights of Indigenous Peoples. Given the global presence of Indigenous Peoples, the project aims to cover both the Global North (defined as including settler-majority states in the Southern Hemisphere such as Australia) and the Global South. We aim to do this through case studies of litigation arising on each continent and in diverse regions. These case studies will be carefully selected to reflect also the range of business activities and impacts as well as the range of affected rights and the varied litigation pathways Indigenous Peoples are using to make their voices heard. The project will accordingly explore litigation in both domestic and international courts, as well as in fora other than courts (such as the UN Human Rights Committee), and include transnational efforts to make voices from the South heard in the North. Research results will be disseminated through online seminars, briefing papers, and an edited collection.

The steering committee is located at Leicester Law School. Members are: Dr Olalekan Bello; Professor Francois du Bois; Dr Joycelin Eze-Okubuiro; and Dr Beth Kamunge-Kpodo.

Expressions of interest and case-study proposals are warmly invited. Contact email: francois.dubois@le.ac.uk.