Business and Human Rights Young Researchers Summit

The Business and Human Rights (BHR) Young Researchers Summit provides an international platform for young scholars in the field of BHR. It brings together 10-15 excellent Ph.D. students and early post-doc researchers (cut-off is one year after graduation) who engage in research in the business and human rights field.

The objective is for participants to present their research project in an interdisciplinary, collaborative workshop setting. Scholars from all disciplines are invited to apply including ethics, law, business and global affairs. Submissions from non-law disciplines are particularly welcome.

The Summit is hosted by the Geneva Center for Business and Human Rights at the Geneva School of Economics and Management (GSEM), the Institute for Business Ethics at the University of St. Gallen, the NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights, and the Business and Human Rights Journal (BHRJ).

The first BHR Young Researchers Summit was held in 2016 and has taken place every year since then either at the University of St. Gallen, New York University or the University of Geneva. The Summit provides PhD students and early post-doctoral researchers with an opportunity to discuss interdisciplinary research in the business and human rights field with experts and other young scholars from around the globe.

Florian Wettstein, Professor for Business Ethics at St. Gallen University and Editor in Chief at the Business and Human Rights Journal and Dorothée Baumann-Pauly, Director of the Geneva Center of Business and Human Rights and Research Director at NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights, are the founders and principal organizers of the event.

Each year interest in the Summit rises. Generally we receive over 50 applications and choose 10-15 projects for presentation. All applicants are invited to join a global network of emerging Business and Human Rights scholars. The current network comprises over 100 emerging scholars from different academic disciplines and geographies.

The 9th Business and Human Rights Young Researchers Summit took place in Geneva, Switzerland, in August 2024.

The 10th Summit will take place in St. Gallen, Switzerland, on September 4-5, 2025. The call for applications (PDF) is available.