Course description
Classical approaches deal with the social and environmental problems specific of particular mineral development stages (exploration, mining, rehabilitation and closure).
The paradigm adopted in this course deals with the mineral asset life-cycle; potential issues and problems in the final stages are best dealt with if considered and evaluated from the projects’ onset, an approach parallel to application of the circular economy paradigm from the early stages of mineral projects.
Participants are especially encouraged to bring, share and analyse their own experiences and material during the course. Rather than presenting and discussing an ideal textbook on corporate social responsibility, the course integrates the latest methodological and paradigm developments with real-life datasets and cases in a hands-on discussion and analysis of specific topics:
- Today’s challenges and trends in society: mineral use, activism, economy, climate change, critical raw materials, responsible sourcing.
- Exploration and mining activity and their impact in Nature, people and societies – lessons from History.
- State-of-the-art and future trends corporate social responsibility, geoethics and responsible sourcing.
- Risk and environmental impacts: mineral projects risks, social risk, policy and country risks.
- Reporting to society: international standards, issues and challenges.
Course content
The organization of the themes discussed in the face-to-face work sessions is as follows:
Day 1
Morning: Challenges and trends in society: mineral use, activism, economy, climate change, critical raw materials, responsible sourcing. Exploration and mining activity and their impact in people, society and Nature – lessons from History.
Afternoon: Exploration and mining activity: managing social and environmental risks. Presentation of the Kimberley Process case – group assignment
Day 2
Morning: Corporate social responsibility and stakeholders engagement.
Afternoon: The Neves-Corvo case – group assignment.
Day 3
Morning: Reporting to society: international standards.
Afternoon: Responsible sourcing, responsible use and reuse. The Angolan diamonds case – group assignment.
Type of training
The course is combining classroom lectures, computer-based work, group work as well as self study.
Objective and outcome
Participants in the course will learn to:
- Plan corporate social management programs based on the mineral deposit lifecycle, the external environment they are located in, the perceived risks and social forces, designing the information to collect as a reliable basis to develop a minimum-conflict mining project.
- Use international corporate social responsibility standards.
- Analyse and evaluate a mineral project’s social and environmental risk.
- Select and use the appropriate methodology for the analysis of mineral projects’ interactions with the natural, social and human environment.
Language
English