How we are governed and operate
Members of the Initiative are organized into three pillars: corporate, government, and NGO. We also have a category of Observers, which are admitted if they meet certain criteria such as demonstrating relevant expertise in human rights or in the industries that are the focus of the Voluntary Principles. A Steering Committee, formed by participants of all three pillars, is responsible for the Initiative’s executive decisions. The Annual Plenary meeting, attended by all members, is the main decision-making body of the Voluntary Principles Initiative. The day-to-day administration of the Initiative is conducted by a Secretariat based in Ottawa, Canada. The Voluntary Principles Association, domiciled in the Netherlands, is the entity that addresses the financial and administrative needs of the initiative.
Our Members
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Argentina
Australia
Canada
Colombia
Democratic Republic of the Congo (Engaged)
Ghana
Republic of Mozambique (Engaged)
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States of America -
Agnico Eagle
Alcoa
Alphamin Bisie Mining SA
Anglo American
AngloGold Ashanti
Barrick Gold Corporation
BHP Billiton
BP
Canacol Energy – Engaged
Chevron
ConocoPhillips
Dinant
Endeavour Mining – Engaged
Eni
Equinor
ExxonMobil
Fortescue
Freeport-McMoRan Inc.
Frontera Energy
Gemfields
Glencore
Gran Tierra Energy – Engaged
MMG
Newmont
Pan American Silver
PanAust
Repsol
Rio Tinto
Shell
Sherritt International
TotalEnergies SE
Tullow Oil
Vale
Woodside Energy -
African Law Foundation – Engaged
CDA Collaborative Learning Projects
Centro Guaman Poma de Ayala – Engaged
Centro para Democracia e Direitos Humanos (CDD) – Engaged
COMPPART
Foundation for the Conservation of the Earth (FOCONE) – Engaged
The Fund for Peace
Global Rights – Engaged
Green Advocates
Human Rights and Forest Brain Africa (HURIFBA) – Engaged
Human Rights Watch
IEPADES – Engaged
IMPACT
International Alert
LITE-Africa
Motherhen Development Foundation – Engaged
New Nigeria Foundation
Pact
PAX
Prisoners’ Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA) – Engaged
SaferGlobe – Engaged
Search for Common Ground
UNICEF Canada
USALAMA – Engaged
West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, Ghana (WANEP) – Engaged -
CME – Seguridad y Derechos Humanos
DCAF – Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance
ICMM – International Council on Mining & Metals
ICoCA- International Code of Conduct Association
ICRC – International Committee of the Red Cross
IFC – International Finance Corporation
IHRB – Institute for Human Rights and Business
IPIECA
OECD – Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Steering Committee Members
Government representatives
Government of Switzerland
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
Frédéric Chenais
Government of the United Kingdom
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
Paul Smith
Joan Fontaine
Government of the United States
State Department, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
Alyson Finley
Megan Anderson
Corporate representatives
BHP
Ben Mace
Daniel Jones
BP
Sabuhi Maharram
Newmont
Shari Gittleman
Shell
Anaïs DeMeulder
Civil society representatives
Green Advocates
John Brownell
Francis Colee
LITE-Africa
Joel Bisina
Austen Bisina
New Nigeria Foundation
Prof. Obafemi Ajibola
Olayide Adesanya
Fred Nwogu
Pact
Dr. James McQuilken
Roger-Mark De Souza
The Secretariat
The Secretariat is responsible for the general administration of the Initiative and facilitates the work of all pillars and members. Our team also supports the Steering Committee and all Working Groups, assist with the admission of new applicants, develops outreach activities, supports the implementation process, and is responsible for communications, including this website.
Secretariat services are provided by Compass Consulting International Ltd. Learn more about our team below.
Mora Johnson
Head of Secretariat
Speaks English, French
+1 613 519-5684
Read bioAs Head of Secretariat, Mora is responsible for the management of the team, and provides strategic advice and support to the Steering Committee and the Working Groups. She performs a liaison and support function with all Members of the VPI (Government, Corporate and NGO pillars).
Mora is an international human rights lawyer and a leading expert in responsible business practices. She currently serves as a Board member to the Canadian Commercial Corporation, a Crown Corporation. As a former Government of Canada official, she served as Chair, OECD Forum on Responsible Mineral Supply Chains, participated in the VPI Steering Committee, and led Canada’s efforts on Business and Human Rights.
Patricia Jacopucci
Deputy Head of Secretariat
Speaks English, Portuguese
+1 613 519-5685
Read bioPatricia Jacopucci is the Deputy Head of the Voluntary Principles Initiative Secretariat. She supports the Head of Secretariat on strategic planning, and is responsible for leading the development and execution of outreach activities and events, and for overseeing implementation of communications activities. She also supports VPI In-Country Working Groups and other projects relating to VPs implementation.
Patricia possesses a strong track record on strategic planning, as well as longstanding experience in multi-stakeholder engagement, including working with governments, private sector, non-profit organizations, and communities affected by oil and gas projects. She has deep experience leading internal and external communications, public relations, and event management in the oil and gas sector, as well as communicating effectively with all categories of stakeholders.
Tristy Mallette
Finance & Administration Manager
+1 613-519-8369
Read bioTristy supports the Secretariat and the members of the Voluntary Principles Initiative with finance & administrative matters and events activities.
Tristy is a former Professional Engineer. She has worked in the fields of mining and oil & gas, specifically in research. Tristy holds a Bachelors degree in Engineering & Management – Chemical from McMaster University.
Bann Tabbara
Grants Manager
Speaks English, French and Arabic.
+ 1 613-519-8370
Read bioBann Tabbara is the Grants Manager of the Voluntary Principles Initiative Secretariat. She is responsible for managing the grants process with the VPI In-Country Working Groups. She also works on strengthening on-the-ground practices, coordinates technical and policy support to working groups and supports information sharing between the groups.
Bann has been working for more than 10 years with international NGOs on projects funded by different international donors like World Bank, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (BPRM), European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Global Affairs Canada, Sida Secure, and UN agencies. She has extensive experience in project implementation, project management, monitoring, evaluation and learning.
Kiki Zheng
Senior Communications Officer
Speaks English, Mandarin
+1 613 519 5686
Read bioAs the Senior Communications Officer, Kiki is responsible for managing the VPI’s internal and external communications functions, including content development, social media management, and event coordination. She also supports the Deputy Head of Secretariat in strategic communications planning and the overall execution to advance the Initiative’s outreach and communications goals.
Before joining the Secretariat, Kiki spent the last decade working in the public sector and not-for-profit organizations in Singapore, specializing in corporate communications, media relations, and event management.
Advisors
Kaveh Shahrooz
Senior Advisor
Speaks English, Persian
+1 416 432-4191
Read bioAs Senior Advisor to the Secretariat, Kaveh periodically assists the Secretariat on a variety of issues including governance, membership admissions, remedies and grievance mechanisms.
Kaveh is a lawyer and a former Senior Policy Advisor to the Human Rights Policy division of Global Affairs Canada. In that role, he served as a member of the Government of Canada delegation to the VPs. He also has corporate experience in human rights and corporate social responsibility initiatives in the mining sector. He lives in Toronto, Canada.
Jonathan Drimmer
Strategic Advisor
Read bioJonathan Drimmer is a Strategic Advisor for the Secretariat. He is a lawyer and partner in a leading international law firm. He is a recognized international expert in anti-corruption compliance, as well as business and human rights. He most recently was the Deputy General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at a leading gold mining company where he helped oversee the company’s anti-corruption and human rights programs, global investigations, and major disputes. Before, he was Deputy Director in the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of Special Investigations. For the past 19 years, he has taught courses related to international humanitarian law at Georgetown University Law Center.
Jonathan is an advisor to the ISR Committee of the Mining Association of Canada. He serves on the boards of directors of the UN Global Compact’s Canada Network, Transparency International Canada, Fund for Peace, and the TRACE Foundation. He is on the steering committee of the UN Global Compact Business for Peace Initiative, on the expert advisory board for the US OECD National Contact Point, a subject matter expert at Canada’s Centre for Excellence on Anti-Corruption, and on the faculty of Competent Boards. Among his awards and recognitions are the Charles Fahy Award for teaching at Georgetown, and the first U.S. Department of Justice Assistant Attorney General Award for Human Rights Law Enforcement.