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The Role of the Private Sector in Fostering Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions (SDG 16)

The Role of the Private Sector in Fostering Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions (SDG 16)

The Global Rule of Law Exchange (of The Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law) is hosting a conference on 2nd May 2018 at Jones Day in London (21 Tudor Street, EC4Y0DJ). Registration for the event will open at 8:30, with the conference itself starting at 9:00 and finishing at 18:00. A reception is to be held afterwards. Although the event is free to attend, advance registration is still required.

Event Summary:

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development encompass a wide range of ambitious objectives, from ending poverty, to improving global health, providing education for all, and mitigating climate change. The private sector role in achieving these goals is widely understood; however, it is often viewed as consisting exclusively of financing development initiatives, generating economic growth, job creation, or tax revenue.

SDG 16, relating to peace, justice and strong institutions, presents a set of issues of particular salience to the private sector, including a number of factors that directly foster stable business environments. This conference will consider various questions arising from the intersection of business and SDG 16, including:

• Why should the business community engage to advance SDG 16′s themes of peace, justice and strong institutions?

• In what ways might the SDGs generally, and SDG 16 in particular, be “good for business”?

• What is the business community’s role in advancing SDG 16? What tools and instruments can help the private sector work to advance the Goal? How can the private sector engage with other stakeholders, including government, in advancing SDG 16?

• What are actions, both internal and external, that business can take to concretely advance SDG 16?

• Does commitment to SDG16 conflict with or complement other compliance and reporting requirements, including on human rights?

• How and where should the private sector deploy its resources in an effective way to meet these various obligations?

Featured speakers at the event will include:

Esteban Mezzano (General Counsel Zone Americas & Legal in Sustainability & CSV Nestlé) David Croft (Global Sustainability Director, Diageo, Helen Dodds, Global Head, Legal, Dispute Resolution, Standard Chartered Bank) Nicola Port (Senior Vice President, International Counsel at Chubb), Richard Morgan (Head of Government Relations, Anglo American), Alejandro Alvarez (Chief, Rule of Law Unit, Executive Office of UN Secretary-General).

The Keynote speakers will be Manoelle Lepoutre (Senior Vice President, Civil and Society Engagement, Total) and Harriett Baldwin MP (Minister of State for Africa at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and Minister of State for International Development).

Representatives from Safaricom, Sahara Group and other distinguished speakers/thought leaders from the policy worlds (UNGC, OECD, Pathfinders Programme, etc) will also be in attendance.

Click below to read the event flyer:

https://www.biicl.org/documents/1901_160318_the_role_of_the_private_sector_in_fostering_justice_peace_and_sustainable_institutions_-_event_flyer_-_020518.pdf?showdocument=1

And click the following link to book a ticket and to visit the official webpage for the conference:

https://www.biicl.org/event/1303

 

Image source: twitter.com/biicl

Text source: www.biicl.org

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9 Bedford Row in London Legal Walk 2018

9 Bedford Row in London Legal Walk 2018

The 9 Bedford Row Chambers team for this year’s London Legal Walk, taking place on Monday 21st May, currently consists of Steven Kay QC, Patricia May, Puneet Grewal, Aneurin Brewer, Drea Becker and Alex Matthews (with more to follow). Like last year, the walk is with the Lord Chief Justice and thousands of lawyers to raise funds for the London Legal Support Trust which funds Law Centres and pro bono agencies in and around London. The route for the walk is 10km along the River Thames and starts at around 5.30pm.

If you would like to learn more and make a donation please access the link below:

https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/9BedfordRow18

 

Image source: www.ap-berkeley.com

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Mental Health in the Legal Profession

Mental Health in the Legal Profession

Research suggests that 1 in 6 employees at any one time will experience mental health issues in the UK. These account for 30-40% of absences from work and as much as 50% of all long-term sick leave cases.

Legal professionals fall within a high-risk group of individuals who are likely to experience the symptoms of mental ill-health during their professional lives.

Many professionals struggle to manage work-related stress, suffer from anxiety or depression, have difficulty sleeping, find it hard to switch off, feel overwhelmed or even ‘burnt out’. These experiences are becoming more and more common in the workplace as people struggle to keep up with technology, ensure excellent client care and meet the daily demands of litigation.

A report published by the Bar Council in 2015 stated that 1 in 3 lawyers find it difficult to control or stop worrying, 2 in 3 feel that showing signs of stress equals weakness and 59% demonstrated unhealthy levels of perfectionism.

There is a clear and growing need to address mental health issues in the workplace in a way which responds sensitively to the needs of individuals in order to ensure a healthy working environment, which in turn promotes productivity and commitment.

International criminal barrister at 9 Bedford Row and meditation teacher Gillian Higgins and Dr Sarah Swan, consultant clinical psychologist have come together to provide bespoke solutions to meet the mental health needs of lawyers in practice.

From one-to-one sessions to workshops on how to manage work-life balance, improve sleep and/or deal with stress, to sessions on mindfulness meditation in the workplace, Gillian and Sarah can help provide the practical support your lawyers need.

To book an appointment to discuss your needs, please contact Gillian at [email protected] or Sarah at [email protected]

For further details, please go to www.practicalmeditation.co.uk and www.swanconsultancy.co.uk

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Gillian Higgins is an international criminal barrister at 9 Bedford Row, a civil and commercial mediator and meditation teacher who has designed and delivered “Introduction to Meditation” classes for barristers at Gray’s Inn, solicitors, accountants and mediators at her Chambers in London. Over the past 20 years, Gillian has worked on high-profile, challenging cases dealing with evidence of war crimes in tough environments and as a result, turned to mindfulness meditation to help relieve stress in her working life at the bar. She is currently the head of the International Practice Group.

In 2016, she launched her website Practical Meditation which aims to provide tailor- made courses for professionals. Gillian’s courses are aimed at beginners and supported by the latest scientific research. She also designs themed courses to tackle issues such as how meditation can help to reduce anxiety, deal with issues of perfectionism, relieve stress, increase creativity, productivity and improve a sense of wellbeing.

Dr Sarah Swan is a consultant clinical psychologist with over 20 years experience in mental health and substance misuse. Sarah is able to analyse and formulate your firm’s needs, policies and systems in relation to staff emotional wellbeing.

Sarah has extensive experience in developing and delivering a range of training and other interventions to raise awareness of mental health issues and to support emotional wellbeing. Examples include awareness and management of stress, depression, anxiety and substance use, working with perfectionism and increasing resilience. Sarah also has expertise in delivering therapeutic interventions to support individuals with more complex emotional issues and working with teams in public and private sector settings. Sarah’s training and therapeutic work is all based on current best-practice evidence.

 

Image supplied by Gillian Higgins

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2018 Global Freedom of Expression Prize Nominations Are Now Open

2018 Global Freedom of Expression Prize Nominations Are Now Open

Columbia Global Freedom of Expression is delighted to announce a call for nominations for the 2018 Global Freedom of Expression Prizes that celebrate judicial decisions and legal services around the world that strengthen freedom of expression by promoting international standards. We feel that at a time when freedom of expression is threatened globally, there is a particular need to celebrate victories in defense of this fundamental right. We are inviting nominations from jurists, academics, and non-governmental organizations actively engaged in protecting freedom of expression. Nominees from around the world are eligible. The deadline for nominations is January 31, 2018. Preference shall be given to decisions and legal service rendered in the last 24 months, although older ones may also be considered.

The nominees are reviewed on the basis of significance of impact on freedom of expression and information, sound legal reasoning, and a global understanding of freedom of expression, including through references to international, regional and non-jurisdictional standards, laws, policies, or jurisprudence.

The Nominations Announcement could be found HERE
General information about the Prizes could be found HERE
Información en español: https://globalfreedomofexpression.columbia.edu/updates/2017/10/2018-global-freedom-expression-prize-nominations-open/?lang=es

 

Image sources: globalfreedomofexpression.columbia.edu

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The Legal 500 Supports the Billable Hour Campaign to Help Save the Children

The Legal 500 Supports the Billable Hour Campaign to Help Save the Children

The Legal 500 has teamed up with the Billable Hour campaign, set up by Sean Jones QC. This year the campaign is supporting Save the Children which is raising money in order to aid children across the world who are facing persecution, injustice and hunger. In 2016 Save the Children helped more than 22 million kids dealing with these kinds of struggles.

Since 2015, the Billable Hour has raised £250,000, but more could be done so the campaign is keen for legal professionals to participate. Those that donate one hour of their billable time will be added to the “Billable Hour Heroes” list.

To learn more about the Billable Hour campaign and to donate, click below:

http://www.legal500.com/assets/pages/billable-hour/billable-hour.html

 

Image source: twitter.com/thelegal500

Text source: www.legal500.com

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