Mr. Shaw is a long-time human rights advocate and a legal researcher. His current role at the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre focuses on businesses' social and environmental impact in the East Asian region, including local corporations and trans-national corporations. China, being the global manufacturing hub, is one of his main areas of focus.

Alongside its rapid economic growth, China today faces some of the toughest challenges in industrialization including safety issues in its mining industry, serious air and water pollution, labour rights abuses, etc. Major corporations are torn between respecting minimal labour rights in order to preserve brand reputation and the bid to drive prices down in order to compete in the global market. Roddy examined how NGOs, businesses and the government play their respective roles in turning challenges in China into opportunities.

Of particular interest he highlighted the link between the global concept of CSR and the concept of 'harmony' which is increasingly being promoted by the Chinese government in public forums such as CSR conferences in China, and the extent to which human rights organisations had to find a balance in presenting themselves as working towards social harmony rather than focusing on human rights in order to enable effective and positive-oriented working relationships with Chinese government authorities and corporations.