Collaborative Integrated Planning for Sustainable Mining

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The Canadian mining industry is confronted with community issues over land access, benefits, and environmental risk. The industry needs to develop a strong understanding of how it can contribute more tangible value and assurance of responsible management of the land. Adequate attention to accommodation and rights and title must be accompanied also by transparent collaborative and participatory planning to the benefit of all parties.******The first of two projects in this proposal focuses on mining industry leadership, attempting to characterize attitudes towards adopting the concept of Shared Value, beyond the current fashion of Social Licence to Operate. Many mining communities, particularly First Nations, are in remote locations, often in a state of poverty, and poor health and wellness. Shared value offers the means to collaboratively resolve how the mine can respectfully improve the health and wellbeing of the community without placing at risk traditional indigenous values, thus forming a durable and effective partnership. The project will conduct qualitative research to characterize the outlook of Canadian industry leaders and their strategies for adding value to the next generation of mining communities. The research student will spend time interfacing with industry leaders as well as a period spent at the Sustainable Mining Institute at the University of Queensland, alongside prominent and pertinent researchers. Project deliverables will be a credible strategy and framework for adapting the shared value concept into sustainable mine development.***The second project is built around existing relationships with the Tlicho Research and Training Institute (TRTI ) in Yellowknife, NWT. The Tlicho nation communities are remote, small and dispersed around several significant diamond mines. The Tlicho government mission is "to preserve and protect our lands, language, culture and way of life . for as long as this land shall last." The project will collaborate with TRTI, UofA and UVic. It will study the accelerating and widespread Canadian phenomenon of building roads to the north to support new mining development. These roads provide access to pristine areas and their routes traverse indigenous territory often in close proximity to small, remote indigenous communities. Many of these communities are currently dealing with their own significant social and health issues. Critical questions are: what are the risks to such communities and how can they be mitigated by adherence to a code that the mining industry can adapt as best practice? The project aims to highlight issues and to inform industry, government and communities. The project will be undertaken by a sequence of two Masters students who will spend an appreciable time in the communities and mines supervised by an interdisciplinary academic and community team.***