Featured Blog Posts – April 2019 Archive (23)

As the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) prepares to require member governments to publish the contracts they sign with oil, gas and mining companies, an executive for French oil major Total discusses the potential benefits of contract disclosure for investors in Myanmar.



The contracts signed between governments and oil, gas and mining companies are crucial documents. They set out many of the most important terms under which investors operate,…

Minerals in the Fight Against Climate Change
By Degol Hailu and Caroline Ngonze
http://www.africa.undp.org/content/rba/en/home/blog/2019/minerals-in-the-fight-against-climate-change-.html

Abstract

Gold mining might have contributed to socio-economic development in Ghana, but it has also exacerbated incidences of environmental degradation and fostered associated human rights violations within local communities. As a result, the government of Ghana has sought to address the incidences of environmental degradation related to mining by formulating and implementing a wide range of environmental policies. However, the extent to which these environmental policies have…

Use the database  |  Watch the trailer  |  Read about the project and…

Addressing Security and Human Right Challenges in Complex Environments

What are some challenges and good practices working with host government, public security forces, private security provider, and communities in complex environments?

Check out this DCAF-ICRC Tookit! …

Today, the London Metal Exchange (LME), the world’s largest market for minerals, launched a formal consultation on the proposed rules for responsible…

Alexandra Atkins, Director Global Mining Sustainability has presented a visionary approach to addressing gaps in board assurance in the mining industry. The Paper presents the failure of the mining industry to properly equip their boards with technical skills and proposes to develop a STEM solution.

See this Paper was presented at the 1^st Annual Mining Geomechanical Risk Symposium Perth Australia earlier this month.…

Author's introduction: In context to ethical jewelry sourcing, the UK vs US market is a study in contrasts. The former has over 250 Fairtrade Gold jewelers. There's an awareness of the importance of ethical sourcing tied to producer communities. In the US, there is only one Fairtrade Gold jeweler, and the market is focused on…

The Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI), the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), the World Bank and the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) are pleased to announce that enrollment for the massive open online course on Natural Resources for Sustainable Development: The Fundamentals of Oil, Gas and Mining Governance, starting on May 6, 2019 is now…

“There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know.” —Donald Rumsfeld

Author’s introduction: Behind the “ethical/responsible” jewelry movement, the new hot trend in North…

In just 12 years, Denmark’s largest energy company Ørsted reduced its coal use by 81 percent and became the planet’s leading offshore windfarm developer. Here’s what other companies can learn from the transition.

Ørsted’s Burbo Bank offshore wind farm, off the northeastern coast of…

Efforts to bring transparency to the commodity trading sector were given new momentum last month in Switzerland, the global centre for commodity traders. EITI Chair Fredrik Reinfeldt addressed traders at the FT Commodities Summit in Lausanne.…

Authored by Murjanatu Gamawa and Alex Gordy

The EITI Global Conference in Paris on 18-19 June will showcase emerging best practices in EITI implementation from 52 countries. Ghana has all the building blocks needed to lead Africa in systematically disclosing EITI data.

In March, Ghana EITI (GHEITI) convened a workshop to explore…

[Read the report in English or French.]

Countries across resource-rich sub-Saharan Africa are failing to reap the benefits from their wealth of endowments of oil and minerals due to an “implementation gap” between the laws…

Executive summary from my new report on direct local employment in the mining sector. The report was commissioned by The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) for The Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF). 

See local employment link on this page for full report https://www.igfmining.org/expert-papers/ or direct link here:…

Dear colleagues:

The Public-Private Alliance for Responsible Minerals Trade (PPA) is seeking expert and stakeholder insights on responsible…

Seeking Civil Society Representatives for the EITI International Board (2019-2022)

This selection process is managed by an independent Civil Society Advisory Group (CSAG) with the support of an Independent Organization (IO), the Consensus Building Institute (CBI). 

Version…

Ulaanbaatar, 5 April 2019 – With twenty per cent of the world’s gold supply produced by artisanal and small-scale miners, urgent action is needed to reduce the environmental impact of the sector, as well as to protect the health and wellbeing of the millions of men,…