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Corporate Social Responsibility

NEWS RELEASE: International sustainable mining institute launched

A new Canadian institute that will help developing countries benefit from their mining resources in environmentally and socially responsible ways was officially launched in Vancouver today.

The Canadian International Institute for Extractive Industries and Development (CIIEID) is a coalition between the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, and École Polytechnique de Montréal (EPM). Institute Interim Executive Director Bern Klein was joined for the launch in Vancouver by UBC’s Vice President Research & International John Hepburn, SFU President Andrew Petter, and EPM CEO Christophe Guy.

“Nations want to develop their mineral, oil and gas resources,” says Klein, also a professor of mining engineering at UBC. “But many lack the regulatory and policy frameworks to make the most of their natural resources, while also considering the needs of affected communities. We want them to have the capacity to use their resources to enhance livelihoods, improve dialogue and mitigate environmental harm.”

In November 2012 the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (then CIDA) announced the award of $25 million to a coalition of the three academic institutions to form the Institute.

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PRESS RELEASE: BC’s Mining Community Kicks Off 2014 Fundraising for BC Children’s Hospital

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwired – Jan. 27, 2014) – Mining for Miracles, BC’s mining community’s longstanding fundraising campaign for BC Children’s Hospital, kicked off this year’s fundraising efforts by launching the Diamond Draw at the Mineral Exploration Roundup Conference January 27 in Vancouver.

A 1.01-carat round brilliant-cut De Beers diamond, valued at $10,940, has been generously donated for the Diamond Draw by De Beers Canada Inc. The entire package is worth over $15,000, and includes gold donated by Teck Resources Limited and a designer setting by Costen Catbalue. Mining for Miracles thanks these supporters for their generosity.

“Mining for Miracles works closely with BC Children’s Hospital Foundation to make donations count. We support research, capital investment and the provision of outstanding health care at the many centres of excellence within BC Children’s Hospital,” says Jason Weber, 2014 chair of Mining for Miracles. “Over the past 26 years BC’s mining industry has raised more than $21.9 million for the children and families who visit the hospital, and 100 per cent of the funds raised by Mining for Miracles go directly to the areas of need.”

In 2014 Mining for Miracles will be raising funds to support the BC Children’s Hospital BioBank. Biobanking is a new and indispensable research tool with the potential to improve treatments and find cures for diseases affecting millions of children around the world.

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PRESS RELEASE: Teck Named to the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations List

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Jan 22, 2014 (Marketwired via COMTEX) — Today at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Teck Resources Limited TCK -2.63% (“Teck”) was recognized as one of the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations for 2014 by media and investment research company Corporate Knights. Teck was the only mining company named to this year’s Global 100 list. This is the second straight year Teck has been included on the list.

“This ranking recognizes the dedicated work of our employees, whose commitment to responsible resource development has made Teck a global leader in sustainability,” said Don Lindsay, President and CEO. “At Teck, we are focused on ensuring people around the world can enjoy a better quality of life because of mining and the products it helps create. We remain committed to continually improving our sustainability performance and this recognition confirms we are moving in the right direction.”

Launched in 2005, the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations has been recognized as the world’s most credible corporate sustainability ranking in a GlobeScan/SustainAbility survey. The top 100 companies are selected from all publicly traded companies with a market capitalization over USD$2 billion. Companies were evaluated based on a range of sector-specific sustainability metrics, such as water, energy and carbon productivity, and safety performance. For more information about the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations and the full rankings, visit: www.global100.org .

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NEWS RELEASE: VALE AND THE UNITED STEELWORKERS RAISE $750,000 FOR THE UNITED WAY


Kelly Strong, Vice-President, Canada & UK Operations, Vale, gets his head shaved by Patricia Mills, United Way Campaign Co-Chair, as campaign leaders look on.
(L to R) Renée Deroy-Bradley, hair stylist; Michael Cullen, Executive Director, United Way Centraide and/et Nipissing Districts; Rick Bertrand, President, United Steelworkers, Local 6500; Dan Kay, Vale employee representing Coleman Mine – Vale’s highest fundraising plant/department; Tina Vincent and Ashley Thibault, Vale-USW Campaign Co-Chairs.

SUDBURY, January 7, 2014 – Vale and The United Steelworkers (USW) announced today that they have reached their goal to collect $750,000 in a joint fundraising campaign for the United Way Centraide Sudbury and/et Nipissing Districts.

“Achieving this fundraising goal speaks to the incredible generosity of our employees and their ongoing commitment to our community,” said Kelly Strong, Vice-President, Canada and U.K. Operations, Vale. “It’s an accomplishment we can all be very proud of.”

Strong promised Vale’s Sudbury employees that he would shave his head if they reached their fundraising goal. Patricia Mills, Community Campaign Chair, United Way Centraide and/et Nipissing Districts, shaved Strong’s head at an event in Copper Cliff today as Vale employees, and campaign leaders looked on.

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A CSR Curse in Transylvania – by By Joseph Kirschke (Engineering and Mining Journal – December 9, 2013)

http://www.e-mj.com/

Joseph Kirschke is the News Editor-Mining.

In May of this year, a handful of anti-mining activists descended on the annual shareholders’ meeting of Allianz in Munich, Germany. Their mission: to convince one of the world’s top accident insurers to reconsider its relationship with Gabriel Resources Ltd., a Canadian miner, which, since 1999, has spent $550 million developing one of Europe’s biggest gold deposits in Romania’s storied Carpathian Mountains.

Risk assessment procedures had begun two months earlier, but the protestors prevailed. “After what I learned today,” said CEO Michael Diekmann, “Allianz will do no business with Gabriel Resources and will not insure the proposed project.”

The mobilization was one of many accentuating the Toronto-listed junior’s latest defeat after Bucharest parliamentarians rejected a draft bill for its open-cast, $7.5 billion Rosia Montana project on November 11. Despite years of opposition across the country and around the world, however, Gabriel and its CEO Jonathan Henry remain undeterred. “Our goal remains to bring the project through to reality that will significantly benefit the people of Romania,” he said.

In a fast-changing world of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Gabriel’s plans for an estimated 314 tons of gold and 1,500 tons of silver in Transylvania have foundered distinctively.

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Lakehead mining institute opens dialogue on sustainable development – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – November 26, 2013)

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North. Ian Ross is the editor of Northern Ontario Business ianross@nob.on.ca.

Lakehead University’s fledgling mining research institute wants to take a pragmatic, solutions-based, approach to advancing exploration in Northern Ontario starting with an inaugural conference.

The newly minted Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Mining and Exploration is hosting an event aimed at examining past, current and future public policy and how it promotes sustainable mining development.

“The Role of Government Policy in Sustainable Mining Development” is set for December 5-6 at the Thunder Bay campus. “It’s our first major event to advance our goals as a centre,” said institute director Peter Hollings.

The conference will bring together Canadian and world leaders in mining policy and mineral development with speakers and representatives from First Nations, Metis, local communities, government and industry attending.

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Mining association urges replacement for counsellor – by Elizabeth Payne (Ottawa Citizen – October 25, 2013)

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/index.html

Corporate social responsibility office “legitimate and important,” organization says

OTTAWA — The association that represents Canada’s largest mining companies is urging the Conservative government to quickly replace the corporate social responsibility counsellor who resigned last week after four years on the job.

“The function her office provides is a legitimate and an important one,” said Pierre Gratton, president and CEO of the Mining Association of Canada. “She made some important contributions and the work has only begun.”

Marketa Evans — whose job it was to mediate disputes involving Canadian mining and extractive companies operating overseas — was appointed as part of the highly touted federal corporate social responsibility strategy, which has been in the spotlight along with the government’s increasing emphasis on private sector involvement in international development.

The federal government said it will continue to support the office “during this transition period” but it is not clear whether Evans will be replaced.

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Foreign Affairs/CIDA restructuring panel includes CEO of Rio Tinto Alcan – by Elizabeth Payn (Ottawa Citizen – October 21, 2013)

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/index.html

The chief executive officer of one of the world’s largest mining conglomerates is among those who have been brought in to help advise the new Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development on restructuring.

The move is raising eyebrows among those who say Canada’s development policy is too closely tied to Canada’s business interests overseas. The Canadian International Development Agency was folded into the federal Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in last May’s budget, creating a new super-department.

The federal government said the move would create more policy coherence and effectiveness, but some critics feared it would undermine foreign aid and further tie development dollars to Canadian business interests overseas. Canada already has several international development partnerships with mining companies — including Rio Tinto Alcan, which co-finances one in Ghana — and promises to “deepen and broaden” its engagement with the private sector “in order to achieve sustainable economic development and reduce poverty in developing countries.”

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Vedanta Resources, CSR and the Struggle for India’s Soul – by Joseph Kirschke (Engineering and Mining Journal – October 9, 2013)

http://www.e-mj.com/

By any measure, 2013 has been a dismal year for Vedanta Resources plc, the $11.4-billion U.K.-based mining, oil and gas conglomerate with two-thirds of its operations in India.

On August 13, its woes culminated in a referendum by Dongria Kondh tribal villagers blocking efforts to extract bauxite from their sacred Niyamgiri hills, which stretch 92 miles through eastern Orissa.

After a decade of protests and worldwide condemnation, the verdict in the court of public opinion was swift. “Two days before India celebrated its 67th Independence Day, a tiny village deep inside the forests of Orissa tasted the fruits of freedom,” trumpeted Mumbai’s Business Today echoing the media, populist, nongovernmental organization (NGO) and international activist voices dogging the proposed refinery by the company’s subsidiary, Vedanta Aluminum Ltd.

But Vedanta Resources, 65% owned by Indian business mogul and onetime scrap metal dealer Anil Agarwal, is no stranger to controversy: industrial accidents, environmental mishaps and human rights abuses have stained its reputation across the subcontinent—and the world beyond.

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Gold has potential to transform countries, communities – PwC – by Martin Creamer (MiningWeekly.com – October 8, 2013)

http://www.miningweekly.com/page/americas-home

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Gold has the potential to transform countries and to boost communities, World Gold Council (WGC) director of gold for development Terry Heymann said on Tuesday.

Heymann, who was speaking to Mining Weekly Online from London, was commenting on a 50-page study just released, which shows the colossal potential of gold to boost the macroeconomics of countries as well as play a major role in the development of communities.

Produced by PwC, the WGC-commissioned study, calculated that gold had directly contributed more than $210-billion to the world’s economy in 2012, roughly equivalent to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Republic of Ireland, Czech Republic or Beijing.

“The size of the figures are very significant and you think of that being equivalent to a city the size of Beijing and the tens of millions of people living in it,” Heymann said.

However, the $210-billion figure was in actual fact a highly conservative number in that it dealt solely with gold’s direct contribution, without taking into account the significant multiplier effect of its many economic linkages.

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NEWS RELEASE: Noront Resources Workshops help students gear up for the SYTYKM high school video competition

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

Ontario Mining Association member Noront Resources has taken another step to expand the geographic scope and awareness of the high school video competition So You Think You Know Mining. Noront, DAREarts, Engage Learn and the OMA partnered forces to stage three Mining Movie Making Youth Camps (MMMYC) this year.

The camps, which combine geology and mining with visual arts and film making were held in Webequie, Marten Falls and Long Lake #58 First Nation. The teaching team included a mining and geology teacher from Noront, an art teacher from DAREarts and two film and photography teachers from Engage Learn.

The MMMYCs are hands-on, three-day community based programs, which invite and encourage Aboriginal youth to share their stories and viewpoints on mining, the environment and traditional territories in Ontario. Students in Webequie, Marten Falls and Long Lake #58 First Nation worked with the MMMYC teaching team to produce a video from each community, which will be submitted to the OMA’s So You Think Know Mining video competition.

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The Dragons Enter: Chinese Mining Companies Shake the World of Sustainability – by Joseph Kirschke (Engineering and Mining Journal – September 16, 2013)

http://www.e-mj.com/

Six years ago, an advance team preparing for then-Chinese President Hu Jintao’s state visit to Zambia, Africa’s leading copper producer, made an unpleasant discovery: Mass protests awaited his groundbreaking event at the Cambeshi copper mine where Hu would announce the commissioning of a $200-million smelter.

Despite China Non-Ferrous Metals Corp.’s (CNMC) $130 million contribution to its rehabilitation, one of Zambia’s largest mines was also among its most controversial: Six workers, officials learned, were gunned down by Chinese managers there the year before and 50 workers died in a plant explosion in 2005; it had since ballooned into a nationwide political scandal. Pledges of $800 million in new investment aside, the damage was done: Hu’s movements were restricted to the capital, Lusaka.

When it comes to Chinese outward mining investment, such scenarios are emblematic of a worldwide trend. Chinese miners have been scouring the planet for decades. But with ramped-up industrialization beginning in 2000, unbridled access to state capital, few shareholder pressures and little CSR to speak of, moreover, they often leave many more responsible, transparent Western companies behind in the global commodities race.

Chinese miners do have their work cut out for them: with 10 cities with populations topping 10 million, the Chinese mainland is facing shortfalls in nearly all essential mineral commodities needed to fuel its spastic economic growth rate—especially copper, iron ore, bauxite, aluminum, uranium and magnesium.

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Industry’s reckoning: Why are world’s top miners at the Vatican? – by Eric Reguly (Globe and Mail – September 10, 2013)

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

To bastardize a famous quotation from the bible, it may be easier for a camel
to pass through the eye of a needle than a mining boss to enter the kingdom of
god. With a little more good behaviour from the mining companies, that may
change. (Eric Reguly – Globe and Mail – September 10, 2013)

The CEOs of some of the world’s top mining companies did not come to the Vatican to pray, see Pope Francis or traipse through the sweltering halls of the Vatican Museums. They came to discuss ways to make their industry a bit less devilish and you have to give the Vatican credit for all-star drawing power. Any mining conference would have been envious of the guest list.

Saturday’s “day of reflection with the mining industry,” which was organized by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, the Vatican department that deals with earthly matters such as promoting humans rights, included the CEOs of Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Newmont Mining. Those three men alone represented companies with well more than $100-billion (U.S.) in market value. The chairmen, presidents or senior executives of dozens of other companies, ranging from AngloGold Ashanti to African Rainbow Minerals, made the pilgrimage too.

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Mining companies can be forces for good – by Craig and Marc Kielburger (Ottawa Citizen – August 11, 2013)

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/index.html

The sparkling rock on your finger — there’s a good chance it came from a mine in Botswana, which supplies 22 per cent of the world’s diamonds. Kgosi Kegapetswe is the chief of Letlhakane, a village in north-central Botswana that borders a huge mine that since 1969 was owned by an international diamond company.

For years, he felt like a stranger on his own land. Access to the land was restricted, according to the chief, who told us that when he visited the off-limits property to discuss an issue like grazing rights for his community’s livestock, he waited like a supplicant at the property line. When armed guards admitted him, he was marched to the meeting place and then marched back off again. He said there wasn’t enough consultation with his community. He didn’t even know the company sold the property in 2009 until the new owners showed up.

But when Canadian mining company Lucara Diamond took possession, everything changed. We have read literally hundreds of news stories about global mining operations abusing the environment and human rights. Canada is home to an estimated 75 per cent of the world’s international mining companies, and every time these companies trample rights or the environment, respect for our country takes another hit.

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Cosying up with mining industry – by Catherine Solyom (Montreal Gazette – August 10, 2013)

http://www.montrealgazette.com/index.html

Matchmaking session gives miners, NGOs chance to team up for projects, but not everyone is happy about the process

MONTREAL – Somewhere inside the vast Palais des Congrès, a strange sort of “speed dating” session will be held this weekend to match some unlikely bedfellows.

These are not lonely hearts looking for love, however, but mining companies hoping to hook up with bleeding hearts — the social and environmental groups working to improve living conditions near Canadian mines abroad.

Held on the margin of the World Mining Congress, which will see some 1,500 delegates gathered to discuss everything from rock mechanics to mine closings, the controversial matchmaking session has attracted a lot of interest from both companies and non-governmental organizations hoping to “connect and build relationships,” said Jean Vavrek, the executive director of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum, which is sponsoring the event.

The idea, said Vavrek, is to bring these two solitudes together to increase the positive impact of a given mining project, whether in Latin America or West Africa.

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