Apply for the Business and Human Rights Internship at UNDP (Geneva or Home Based with monthly stipend)

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Closing Date: 3 March 2025

Apply for the Business and Human Rights Internship at UNDP (Geneva or Home Based with monthly stipend)

Job Description

UNDP works in about 170 countries and territories, helping to eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and exclusion, and build resilience so countries can sustain progress. As the UN’s development agency, UNDP plays a critical role in helping countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Governance, Rule of Law, and Peacebuilding Hub, a joint initiative of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) and the Crisis Bureau (CB), integrates work across governance, rule of law, and peacebuilding (GRP) to enhance UNDP’s global advocacy, resource mobilization, and support for principled, effective solutions. The Hub addresses accountable, inclusive, and effective governance, prevents and responds to crises, and enables peacebuilding and early recovery, while mitigating underlying risks. It operates through partnerships with the UN System, IFIs, donors, civil society, and the private sector, supporting country-level programming, global advocacy, and crisis response.

Organized around key thematic areas—governance of public goods and services, rule of law and security, human rights, business and peace, democratic institutions, peacebuilding, local action, and an open public sphere—the Hub ensures a cross-cutting focus on digital transformation, data for SDG16+, and gender equality. By combining knowledge management, resource mobilization, and integrated policy and programming, the Hub strengthens UNDP’s ability to anticipate, prevent, and respond to crises while advancing sustainable development and peace.

UNDP B+HR Initiative: The GRP’s programmatic work on business and human rights (BHR) is provided through the global B+HR Initiative currently implemented in 42 countries (and growing) in Africa, the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, focusing on supporting:

Governments (across sectors): in upholding their duty to protect human rights from businesses’ abuses, including by strengthening and enforcing robust regulatory frameworks on BHR;

Businesses (across industries): in embedding their responsibility to respect human rights throughout their operational policies and practices, including to carry out human rights due diligence across supply chains, through the B+HR Academy, which trains approximately 1,300 businesses per year;
Civil society and other relevant stakeholders: in monitoring businesses’ human rights performance, advocating for advancing corporate respect for human rights, and providing ‘routes to remedy’ to people adversely affected by businesses.

The UNDP B+HR Initiative is coordinated from the Geneva Office (Switzerland) and led by the Global Policy Adviser on BHR, which supports and guides Regional B+HR Focal Points. Regional Focal Points are the entry point for requests of guidance coming from B+HR Focal Points at the CO level.

Business and Human Rights Internship Duties and Responsibilities:

The UNDP internship will be with the Business, Human Rights and Peace Team. Under the overall supervision and guidance of the Global Adviser on Business and Human Rights in Geneva, and in collaboration with team members in the Geneva and New York and Regional Bureaux, the business and human rights internship is expected to support the B+HR initiative. Moreover, the intern will provide overall support to the Business, Human Rights and Peace Team and contribute to UNDP’s work and initiatives on business and human rights at the global and corporate level in line with the duties described below.

The thematic areas of interest include, but are not necessarily restricted to the following:

UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

National Actions Plans on Business and Human Rights
The right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment
Human rights due diligence

Modern slavery
Sustainable finance
Support the organization of events geared towards sustaining the UNDP community of practice bringing together practitioners from UNDP’s Country Offices, regional and HQ offices;

Duties and Responsibilities:

Provide overall support to the Business, Human Rights and Peace Team, including participating in internal and external events and meetings, and following up on action points;
Support the Team’s engagement in events, including the Global Forum on Business and Human Rights and regional fora on business and human rights;
Support the Team’s engagement with key partners, including UN agencies, civil society, businesses and others.

Prepare drafts of relevant background documents for meetings (terms of reference, concept notes, briefings, reports, discussion papers, as relevant);
Help facilitate online practitioner engagements such as online dialogues, webinars, etc.
Support reviewing internal guidance and policy papers;

Support resource mobilization efforts with research, drafting and engagement with partners;
Support the team with initiatives on business and human rights thematic issues including on the environment, finance, modern slavery, and others;
Support the communication efforts of the team on social media and online contentl

Carry out all other related tasks assigned as agreed.

No travel is envisaged for this internship. The selected intern will be required to use his/her own laptops during the internship.

Required Skills and Experience:

Education:

Applicants to the UNDP Internship programme must, at the time of application, meet one of the following requirements:

Be enrolled in a post graduate degree programme (master programme or higher) in international law, human rights law, political science, international relations, public administration, development studies, business administration, corporate sustainability, or related programme; or
Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (bachelor degree or equivalent), in above relevant field; or

Have recently graduated with a university degree, as defined in the above field and, if selected, the candidate must start the internship within one-year of graduation.

Experience:

Familiarity with the UN system, and/or other international organisations, multilateral and other academic and international institutions working on business and human rights, human rights, sustainable development, corporate sustainability;