The Global Network Initiative (GNI) is pleased to announce that Heartland Initiative and Sarasin & Partners LLP have joined GNI as members of our investor constituency. In acknowledgement, GNI’s Executive Director Jason Pielemeier expressed, “We are very excited to welcome Sarasin & Partners and Heartland Initiative to GNI. Their experience and expertise in using investor influence to encourage company efforts to respect human rights will strengthen GNI in many ways.”
Heartland Initiative is at the forefront of transforming how investors engage with and advance human rights in a complex and ever-changing global landscape. As a mission-driven, nonprofit organization headquartered in the United States, Heartland is dedicated to addressing the intersection of human rights and financial risks within investment portfolios. In a world where investments cross borders and industries, Heartland drives systemic change through strategic peer learning and collaborative efforts involving investors, civil society organizations, and policymakers.
“Heartland works with investors to advance corporate accountability for human rights harms in the ICT sector, with an emphasis on the use of emerging technologies in conflict-affected and high-risk areas (CAHRA). GNI’s commitment to advancing freedom of expression and privacy rights in ICT — through standard-setting and shaping company practice — is a natural complement to our work on targeted and mass surveillance technologies, the growing risks posed by the military application of AI in CAHRA, and the rise of ‘defense tech’ more broadly.”
– Samuel Jones, President, Heartland Initiative
Sarasin & Partners LLP is an independent partnership based in London, serving a global investor base. They take a global, long-term, thematic approach to investing – with responsible investment at its core. Sarasin & Partners identifies powerful trends that will shape the investment landscape for years to come, and embed stewardship into their investment process.
“Sarasin & Partners LLP are excited to join forces with other members of GNI to help promote good standards of freedom of expression and data privacy among big tech sector companies. We believe this is becoming more and more crucial with the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI). As investors, we want to play a role in fostering corporate responsibility and accountability, aiming at minimizing risks and maximizing opportunities associated with AI.”
– Julia Shatikova, Ownership Lead, Sarasin & Partners LLP