Manushya Foundation at the OECD: Bringing Grassroots Realities into Global Standard-Setting Spaces

PARIS, FRANCE (20 November 2025) — On 27-30 October 2025, Manushya Foundation’s resident human right lawyer and member of the Corporate Accountability and Climate Justice team, Cherry Waranya, joined the OECD Watch delegation in Paris for a series of critical meetings at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). These discussions brought together over seventy governments, civil society, and business actors to shape global standards on responsible business conduct, corporate accountability, and climate justice.

Over the course of the week, the delegation participated in three key meetings at the OECD Headquarters:

• the Inclusive Platform on Due Diligence Policy Cooperation,

• the Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct, and

• the National Contact Point Network.

  
  

Together, we called for stronger focus on human rights, environmental protection, climate justice, and the prevention of harm to rightsholders. 

Key Issues that Emerged in the Discussions

One of the key discussions involved the OECD’s draft principles for a Just Transition.

We raised concerns about the proposed shift in terminology from “just transition” to “people-centred transition.” This change risks weakening the framework’s focus on fairness, justice, and accountability. A Just Transition is not only about people, it is fundamentally about justice, and about addressing the structural roots of the climate and environmental crises.

In these discussions, we amplified a message long voiced by grassroots communities: climate action and corporate responsibility must be rooted in justice, not profit.

Drawing from our work with communities across Thailand and Southeast Asia, we also stressed the importance of:

• Applying the guidance to all sectors, not only energy.

• Integrating circular economy approaches that place responsibility on businesses, not consumers.

• Reintroducing the term “rights-holders” to maintain a rights-based approach.

• Recognising FPIC as a collective right, and reinstating clear guidance on meaningful engagement with Indigenous Peoples consistent with international standards.

Why Global Majority and Grassroots Voices Matter at the OECD

The OECD is a powerful agenda-setter. Its standards shape national laws, influence corporate behaviour, and guide how governments understand and enforce accountability. Without the participation of Global Majority and grassroots organisations, these standards risk becoming detached from reality.

We bring grassroots perspectives into OECD spaces to remind governments that their decisions must remain anchored in justice, not in convenience. Centering lived experiences shifts conversations toward real solutions that prevent harm, protect people, and address structural inequalities.

As a decolonial intersectional feminist organization, Manushya Foundation remains committed to advancing rights-based and community-led approaches in global policymaking spaces, ensuring that those most impacted by corporate and climate harms are meaningfully included and heard.

#WeAreManushyan ♾️ Equal Human Beings