View this email in your browser FES GENEVA NEWSLETTER The Geneva Office of the Friedrich ‐ Ebert ‐ Stiftung(FES Geneva) presents its latest newsletter, designed to inform you about our activities and publications as well as of upcoming events and developments within the Geneva-based international organisations. Das Genfer Büro der Friedrich ‐ Ebert ‐ Stiftung(FES Genf) freut sich, Ihnen unseren jüngsten Newsletter vorzustellen. Dieser enthält Informationen über unsere Veranstaltungen und Neuerscheinungen sowie anstehende Veranstaltungen und Ereignisse innerhalb der Genfer Internationalen Organisationen. Upcoming Events| Recent Events| International Agenda UPCOMING EVENTS Access to Remedy: Roles and Responsibilities of Interested States in Relation to Cross-border Business Related Human Rights Abuses 28- 29 January 2016, Geneva, Switzerland This workshop is the first of a series of workshops with government and civil society actors in support of OHCHR’s Accountability and Remedy Project. The workshop series is intended to explore current state approaches, attitudes and barriers to more effective action in the case of business related human rights abuses, as well as potential points of agreement that could help inform future practical and legal developments. This first workshop is aimed at clarifying roles

and responsibilities between home, host and other interested states in such situations and comes a month prior to a stakeholder consultation on OHCHR’s draft recommendations. Participation is by invitation only. Read More Gender Related Dimensions of Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction 29 February 2016, Geneva, Switzerland In the aftermath of COP21, a debate on climate-resilient livelihoods and gender inequalities is particularly timely. Unequal distribution of rights, resources and power constrain many women’s capacities to adapt to cl imate change and disaster. This public event, co-organized with CARE International, will strive to identify next steps towards climate resilience and outline the respective roles of civil society, states and UN human rights mechanisms in moving towards gender sensitive responses to the effects of climate change. Read More The Social Protection Floor: Information and Strategy Meetings 07- 08 March 2016, Geneva, Switzerland The Core Team of the Global Coalition for Social Protection Floors will have its regular strategy meeting from 7th to 8th March 2016. The Coalition has been effective in its collective international advocacy efforts to demand social security. At this meeting, future projects and working areas will be discussed. During the same week, social security specialists from various FES offices around the world will participate at an information seminar on human rights based social protection floors.

Participation is by invitation only. Read More FES-WTO Incoming for English Speaking Journalists from Africa and Asia 11- 15 April 2016, Geneva, Switzerland What exactly is the World Trade Organization and what is it not? How does the multilateral trading system work? What are the most current developments at the WTO? What is the outcome of the last WTO Ministerial Conference? Which other international organizations based in Geneva are involved in trade policy? And how do non-governmental organizations and trade unions assess developments in and around trade policy? These and other questions will be dealt with during an intense week of information for journalists from Asia and Africa. Participation is by invitation only. RECENT EVENTS Strategy Meeting of the Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation 15 January 2016, Zürich, Switzerland The Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation(ICRICT) is a group of leaders from around the world who believe that there is both an urgent need and an unprecedented opportunity to bring about significant reform of the international corporate taxation system. The Commission aims to promote the reform debate through a wider and more inclusive discussion of international tax rules than is possible through any other existing forum; to consider reforms from a perspective of global public interest rather than national advantage; and to seek fair, effective and sustainable

tax solutions for development. At this meeting, the Commission continued to strengthen its strategy for various activities in 2016. Participants were amongst others José Antonio Ocampo, Magdalena Sepúlveda, and Joseph Stiglitz. Read More Side Event at 10th WTO Ministerial Conference: a Human Rights Perspective on the CFTA 17 December 2015, Nairobi, Kenya Transparency and participation are key human rights principles and generally also good rules of thumb that can transform a trade negotiation from a secret, exclusive process to an open, inclusive one that is acceptable to a wide range of stakeholders. As the CFTA process moves forward and the negotiations begin, it will be useful to envision in advance a plan for transparent negotiations that is inclusive and participatory. By early 2016, a first scoping study of such an assessment will be published thanks to a joint project of OHCHR, UNECA and FES. At this sideevent, some of the study’s analyses and recommendations were presented to the public for the first time. Read Expert Recommendations Side Event at 10th WTO Ministerial Conference: Mega-Regional Trade Agreements and their Impacts on Developing Countries and the Multilateral Trading Regime 16 December 2015, Nairobi, Kenya As most developing countries, particularly those from Africa, are excluded from Mega Regional Trade Agreements, their position in the international trading system could face daunting challenges. In addition to lowering tariff rates among their participants, these“mega regionals” are expected to cover a wide range of beh ind-

the-border trade-related areas. Furthermore, it is crucial for all WTO members to analyse carefully the geopolitical implications of such mega RTAs. The event stimulated discussions about developing countries’ opportunities to address their critical economic and development needs in the context of such agreements. Speakers included Eveline Herfkens, Heribert Dieter and others. Read More Read Publication by Heribert Dieter Side Event COP21: Climate Change as One of the Greatest Human Rights Challenges of Our Times 10 December 2015, Paris, France This public side event at the United Nations Conference on Climate Change COP21, co-organized with numerous civil society organizations, lend support to the core human rights language in the operative text of the agreement. High-level state, UN and civil society representatives provided a unique perspective on the impacts of climate change on human rights and outlined why human rights are crucial to the Paris agreement. Read More Utilizing the UN Guiding Principles in the Context of Extractive Industries – Benefits and Challenges 18 November 2015, Geneva, Switzerland This public side event to the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, coorganized with the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association, brought together business, civil society and UN representatives to analyze experiences of different

stakeholders with the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The session particularly focused on the examination of current practice of states and business enterprises in the area of extractive industries and outlined the potential and remaining challenges for the UNGPs in the context of stakeholder consultations. Read More More Events: LDC-journalists at the 10th WTO Ministerial Conference 15- 17 December 2015, Nairobi, Kenya Mining Communities in Post-Conflict Settings: New Challenges and Opportunities for Peacebuilding 17 November 2015, Geneva, Switzerland Arabic speaking Training Course on International Human Rights Mechanisms 02- 06 November 2015, Geneva, Switzerland Global Tax Reform Beyond BEPS- Side Event During the Meeting of the UN Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters 20 October 2015, Geneva, Switzerland Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals 16 October 2015, Geneva, Switzerland INTERNATIONAL AGENDA 31 st Session of the UN Human Rights Council

29 February- 24 March 2016, Geneva, Switzerland Read more Geneva Office Hubert René Schillinger 6 bis, Chemin du Point-du-Jour CH- 1202 Geneva Tel:+41(0)22 733 34 50 Email: info@fes-geneva.org Web: www.fes-geneva.org Forward to Friend Share Tweet Share FES NEWSLETTER You are receiving this email because you're a friend of FES Geneva. Unsubscribe from this list Our mailing address is: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung 6 bis, Chemin du Point-du-Jour Geneva 1202 Switzerland Add us to your address book Copyright© 2016 Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, All rights reserved.