Who We Are
Common Rights is a mission-driven advisory firm.
Founded by a former U.N. Special Rapporteur, Common Rights builds unrivaled teams to meet our clients’ needs for effective, lasting solutions.
Common Rights was founded in 2017 by Baskut Tuncak, an internationally recognized expert in international law and policy. He has 20 years of experience advising the United Nations, governments, labor unions, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on contentious scientific and legal issues concerning pollution, human rights, public health, and international relations. Baskut served as the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur on human rights and toxics, Executive Director of the Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI) of Massachusetts, as well as holding senior attorney positions with the non-profit Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) in Washington, D.C., and the law firm of Leigh Day in London.
Common Rights builds custom teams to meet our clients’ needs. We partner with leading experts and focus on sustainability to drive our success. Our roster of experts spans all regions of the world, including a wide variety of disciplines in science, law, and international relations, among others. This enables us to quickly and efficiently bring together project teams that are appropriately tailored to the technical, legal, and political realities of each issue we work on, giving our clients the greatest chance of a successful outcome.
Recent Projects
Common Rights supports a range of organizations in their efforts to secure a healthy environment and social justice.
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Common Rights supported the UN in securing “a safe and healthy working environment” as one of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO’s) five fundamental principles and rights at work.
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Since 2023, Common Rights has served as legal advisor to Greenpeace on the development of a legally-binding instrument to end plastic pollution.
At the request of UNEP. Common Rights provided specialized research and analysis on the development of safer and more sustainable alternatives to certain plastics and plastic additives.
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Common Rights was commissioned by UNEP to develop strategies and analysis to support the efforts to advance green and sustainable chemistry globally.
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Common Rights is actively advising governments and other organizations on strategies to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of global treaties for chemicals, waste, and pollution. For example, we have advised NGOs and labor unions on strategies to increase the effectiveness of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions.
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Common Rights was commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to develop an integrated strategy for nitrogen management.
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Working with leading organizations, Common Rights was commissioned to develop pesticide-reduction targets for the United Kingdom.
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Common Rights was commissioned to draft key reports to support efforts to reduce childhood exposure to various toxic pollutants.
Contact Us
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