August 2007, Australian Government Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources
This handbook provides guidance for resource developers on how to work effectively with Indigenous communities. It is one of a series of complementary handbooks that have been produced as part of the Leading Practice Sustainable Development Program. This program aims to:
- identify key issues affecting sustainable development in the mining industry;
- provide information for resource developers; and
- demonstrate good practice in building a more sustainable basis to the industry through the use of practical case study examples.
The importance of the social dimension of sustainable development is acknowledged in key industry policy statements such as the International Council on Mining and Metals’ Sustainable Development Principles (ICMM, 2003) and the Minerals Council of Australia’s Enduring Value framework (MCA, 2004). Among other things, signatories to these frameworks undertake to ‘contribute to the social, economic and institutional development of the communities in which (they) operate’ and to ‘engage with and respond to stakeholders through open consultation processes’.
A growing number of small, medium and large companies are developing corporate policies that align them with the principles adopted by the ICMM and espoused in Enduring Value. In particular, these companies emphasise that community considerations are integral to each stage of a mining operation, from design and construction, through to operation and closure. The purpose of this handbook is to provide guidance to mining industry practitioners on how to translate these higher level policy commitments into improved practices on the ground.
Specifically, this handbook focuses on the challenges that companies may encounter as they engage with Indigenous communities. Effective community engagement depends on the development of relationships based on trust. If companies are to contribute to the sustainability of Indigenous communities and earn exploration access and mine development consents for their operations, they need to develop trusting and mutually respectful relationships with local communities. This handbook provides case studies to illustrate how companies have engaged successfully with Indigenous communities in a range of contexts.
The aims of the handbook are to:
- provide a history of Australia’s and resource developers’ interactions with Indigenous peoples that establishes the context for a contemporary understanding of ‘working together’;
- provide a benchmark for Indigenous community engagement to help companies and operations assess the maturity and appropriateness of their current approaches;
- articulate key principles to guide resource developers working on Indigenous lands and alongside Indigenous communities;
- describe the benefits to companies and operations of entering into sustainable and durable agreements with Indigenous communities that are based on mutual respect and recognition;
- set out the basic steps for planning and engaging in mutually beneficial agreement making; and
- provide examples of good practice.
This handbook is primarily intended for use as a management tool. It is intended to assist corporate managers in designing effective engagement strategies with relevant Indigenous parties. For management at the operations level, the handbook contains guidance and practical examples on how to implement good practice in working with Indigenous communities at the site level.
The handbook is also relevant to people with an interest in leading practice in the mining industry, such as community relations practitioners, environmental officers, mining consultants, governments and regulators, non-government organisations, neighbouring and mine communities, and students. All users are encouraged to take up the challenge to continually improve the mining industry’s sustainable development performance and apply the principles outlined in this handbook.
