Delhi Sustainable Development Summit 2002
Ensuring sustainable livelihoods:
challenges for governments, corporates, and civil society at Rio+10
8 - 11 February 2002, New Delhi

Managing natural resources for society: welfare and health implications
David Runnals
President, International Institute for Sustainable Development, Canada

The Basis of participation

Those involved in an MMSD activity do so with the assurance that the Project is committed to providing the opportunity for participants to interact, with these expectations:

1. MMSD provides an opportunity for people both to inform each other within the context of a project which seeks to describe the global mineral cycle, and also to offer advice and guidance to the Project.
2. We hope to identify and understand the diversity of perspectives, values and interests that can help build the foundation for positive change. Views have to be freely expressed and the risks of such expression reduced. This is a forum in which individuals or groups can investigate ideas.
3. There is a need for a place where views can be exchanged frankly and openly. MMSD has no authority to impose solutions on anyone.
4. The Project should strive to identify where it can best help to guide the flow of discussion. The objective should be to help develop areas of common ground, understand where differences exist, and the underlying reasons for them.
5. Wherever possible, we should widen the networks of connections and identify ways of addressing challenges, within and beyond the life of the Project.
6. Participating in, or contributing to workshops or other events, commenting on documents produced, suggesting participants for meetings, and other interactions with the Project are not and will not be portrayed as an endorsement of MMSD. These basic understandings on the basis of participation will be included in any meeting reports prepared by MMSD. It is important that the basis for participation be widely understood.
7. Notes or minutes prepared by MMSD will report important comments and points of view but will not attribute them to specific participants unless this is requested by the person making the statement. Exchange of ideas is freer when unknown consequences can be minimised.
8. The notes from workshops should be reviewed by a representative group of attendees, agreed at the meeting, prior to finalisation. Notes will typically be of a summary nature and will include a list of participants. There should be an opportunity to discuss the contents of the notes and ensure that everyone is comfortable with them prior to their wider circulation.
9. There should be an opportunity to discuss this Basis for Participation at the outset of any activity to ensure that participants are comfortable with it and that it is appropriate for the purpose. It is in no way a constraint on the participants to develop further or additional understandings as are appropriate in the circumstances.

MMSD recognizes an affirmative responsibility to ensure that this Basis for Participation is as widely known as possible within and among the different communities with which the Project is involved.

MMSD is an independent two-year project of participatory analysis seeking to understand how the mining and minerals sector can contribute to the global transition to sustainable development. MMSD is a project of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) commissioned by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) on behalf of the Global Mining Initiative (GMI).

The Project is seeking the participation of groups and individuals involved in the minerals sector through workshops, interviews, surveys, information sessions and other outreach activities. These ‘actors’ include local communities, consumers, suppliers, governments, labour organisations, indigenous groups, NGOs, consultants, international organisations and financial institutions, amongst others.

The central product of MMSD will be the Project’s Final Report scheduled for May 2002. A draft report will be available in March 2002. At the base level, the Report will concern itself with the spectrum of issues which form the sustainable development agenda in this sector. These range from energy use to human rights to water quality to local economic problems. The current version of this list is the result of a continuous process of consultation, which started with the Project Scoping Report in mid-1999, and is still ongoing.

These issues have been clustered in a manageable number of groups so that they can be made the focus of individual research projects or consultations. These "issue clusters" have been grouped into eight focus areas or key ‘challenges’ and will be the building blocks of the study. The analysis of these questions – through research and participatory activities – are expected to provide a clearer idea of what sustainable development should mean in the context of the minerals sector, and what mechanisms could be implemented to ensure more sustainable outcomes for the sector.

MMSD is working through a network of MMSD Regional Partners currently developing activities in Australia, Latin America, North America and Southern Africa. The Regional Partners will also contribute substantively to the Project Report through Regional Reports and specific insights on how certain issues affect their particular regions. In addition, MMSD hopes that these regional activities may encourage the formation of regional networks capable of implementing the Report's findings in the future.

The Project’s structure was established as follows:

• The Work Group is responsible for executing MMSD at a global level and coordinating regional activities. It is headquartered at the International Institute for Environment and Development in London.

• The Assurance Group is an independent international panel of 25 individuals representing a wide range of expertise in the field of mining and minerals from key stakeholder groups. They offer advice and guidance to the Work Group by way of peer review.

• The Sponsor Group, convened by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), represents those organizations supporting and financing the Project. Its members represent 30 of the world’s largest mining companies as well as a variety of government and international institutions and foundations.

The Project Coordinator works on behalf of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and facilitates communication and coordination among these three groups.

Eight Challenges and Opportunities Facing the Mining and Minerals Sector in their Contribution to the Transition to Sustainable Development (Working Draft)

The following provides a brief outline of the eight challenges facing the mining and minerals sector on which the MMSD report will focus.

1. Can the Sector Move Towards a More Viable Structure That Will Contribute More Effectively to Sustainable Development?

This discussion will focus on the internal structure of the industry, the forces that shape it and whether it is capable – in its current form – of maximising the industry’s role in the transition to sustainable development. It will look at the principal external and internal forces expected to change the context in which the minerals industries operate over the next 25 years and the actions that could be taken in a transformed setting.

2. How Can the Minerals Sector Support the Development of National Economies, Especially in the Poorest Countries?

This topic will look at how mineral wealth can best be managed to strengthen developing countries’ national economies in the long-term. The tension between the desire to create "investor-friendly" conditions of investment, and the desire to ensure that the host country benefits from this investment will be the focus. Macro-economic issues, minerals price volatility and the capacity needed to ensure effective policy design and implementation will also be included in this analysis.

3. How Can the Sector Best Contribute to Sustained Improvements in Livelihoods and Well-being at the Community Level?

This section will aim to provide an overview of impacts – both positive and negative – of the mining life cycle at the community level, including their influence on livelihoods, social systems, cultures and health, and the boundaries of responsibility of industry, local and national governments. Artisanal and small-scale mining and company-community relations will be examined as well.

4. How Can the Minerals Industries Become Leaders in Environmental Management?

This topic will look at the way in which the industry conducts its operations from the perspective of environmental management and will concentrate on where progress can be achieved. Recommendations on the management of large volume waste, dealing with abandoned mines remediation and mine closure policy will be developed.

5. What are the Ground Rules for Land: its Management, Access, Control and Use?

As world population grows so does the demand for land. Some of its uses, including conservation of bio-diversity, recreation, farming and watershed, can be seen as contradictory to minerals development. This discussion will focus on the mechanisms for adopting the principle of subsidiarity in situations involving land and mining activities as well as best practice legal regimes, with the aim of establishing the basis of minimum useable criteria for land access. Case studies of land rights and tenure for industry, the state and individuals, and a review of compensation regimes will also be included.

6. How Can We Ensure that Future Markets and Consumption Patterns are Compatible with a Sustainable World?

This topic will deal with new models of how to produce, process, use, recycle and dispose of metals and minerals. It will look at current patterns of metals consumption through minerals life cycle analyses and case studies of base metals, gold and diamonds. Possible industry certification schemes responding to consumer concerns will be examined. Trade and market access issues will also be analysed in this context.

7. How Can We Ensure Meaningful Access To Information For All Stakeholders?

Building a shared understanding of the role of information in creating a solid basis for sustainable development is needed. This section will seek to shed light on how the generation of information and the process by which it is communicated play a role in building or undermining trust and the ability to negotiate effectively in the sector.

8. What Should Be the Administrative Relationships, Role, Responsibilities and Performance Standards of the Key Actors in a More Sustainable Future?

This section will examine the implementation mechanisms available, describe their purposes and look at the extent they are used and are appropriate at different levels in the sector. Implementation mechanisms are divided into three categories: norms and instruments, processes, and institutional responses. This categorisation can be used to examine each of these challenges integrating their potential for implementation throughout. 

HOW TO CONTACT MMSD

For more information about MMSD, visit www.iied.org/mmsd or write to mmsd@iied.org

MMSD Regional Partners Contacts:

In Southern Africa: Marie Hoadley, Hoadley@egoli.min.wits.ac.za

In Australia: Bren Sheehy, bren@ameef.org.au

In North America: Anthony Hodge, info@iisd.ca

In South America: Hernan Blanco, hblanco@cipma.cl, or Cristina Echavarría, cechavarria@idrc.org.uy 

For activities in other regions, contact mmsd@iied.org. 

MMSD Assurance Group Members

Jacqueline Aloisi de Lardarel
Director of the Division of Technology, Industry and Economics of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Aloisi de Lardarel has been particularly active in promoting environmental management tools and the ‘Cleaner Production’ concept to prevent pollution and minimise the use of natural resources.

Richard Baldes
Independent biological consultant working primarily on Tribal lands. Former Project Leader for the US Fish and Wildlife Service on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming.

Tricia Caswell
Executive Director, Global Sustainability at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

Anna Cederstav
Cederstav is staff scientist with the Inter-American Association for the Defence of the Environment (AIDA). AIDA, based in San Francisco, is a legal advocacy group working to promote the ability of citizens to protect their health and environment through development and enforcement of domestic and international environmental law.

Mick Dodson
Chair, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. Mick’s most direct contribution has been in the elaboration of International standards for Indigenous rights through crafting of the text, of the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Cholpon Dyikanova
Dyikhanova is currently the National Manager for the World Bank’s Community and Business Forum, whose mission is to develop effective cross-sectoral collaboration between business and communities and to further encourage sustainable social, economic and environmental benefits in Kyrgyzstan.

Colin Filer
Filer is Head of the Social and Environmental Studies Division of the Papua New Guinea National Research Institute since 1994, and part-time fellow in the Department of Anthropology and Resource Management’s Asia Pacific Project at the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies of the Australian National University.

Douglas Fraser
Formerly Vice President of Sustainable Development for Placer Dome Inc., Canada. Currently a private consultant providing guidance and advice in the strategic application of sustainable business practices. Fraser is former Chair of the Mining Association of British Columbia, Canada.

Reg Green
Head of health, safety and environmental affairs at the ICEM which represents over 20 million workers world-wide employed in the energy, mining, chemicals and bioscience, pulp and paper, rubber, glass, ceramics and cement sectors. Involved in direct discussions/negotiations with a number of multinational corporations and industry associations with a view to elaborating global standards and best practices in this field.

Gerard Holden
Holden is Managing Director and Global Head of Mining and Metals, Barclays Capital, London. Responsible for a US$7 billion portfolio, he heads a global team located in London, New York and Sydney.

Namakau Kaingu
Kaingu is chair of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Women in Mining Trust, a non-governmental organisation that facilitates networking and training among women involved in various aspects of mining. Kaingu has herself been involved in all stages of amethyst and aquamarine mining, production and marketing since 1992.

Antonio La Viña
Director of the Biological Resources Program of the World Resources Institute and originally Under-secretary for Legal and Legislative Affairs, department of environment and natural resources in the Philippines. La Viña is an Associate Professor on leave of the College of Law, University of The Philippines.

Daniel Meilan
Immediate past Secretary of Mining of Argentina. Independent consultant on geology, mining and public administration.

Glenn Miller
A widely published author, Miller is Director of the Graduate Program in Environmental Sciences and Health at the University of Nevada.

Duma Nkosi
(Chair)
Elected in 1997 to Chairperson of the South African Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Minerals and Energy. Nkosi is also on the board of the Minerals and Energy Policy Center (MEPC). Nkosi has held leadership positions in the trade union movement and the African National Congress (ANC).

Maria Ligia Noronha
A widely published economist, Noronha is a Fellow of the Policy Analysis Division of the Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI), Goa, India.

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal
Executive Director of the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law (SPDA) since 1994 specializing in environmental policy development, working often as a consultant for national and international organizations in Peru and throughout Latin America.

Leon Rajaobelina
Executive Director of Conservation International, Madagascar, and has held several public sector posts. Rajaobelina has majored in public finance, focusing on macro-economic policy and was formerly Director-general of Economy of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (1972-73). Rajaobelina has also been appointed to the International Monetary Fund and was Ambassador of Madagascar to the US.

Charles Secrett
Executive Director of Friends of the Earth (FOE), London, UK, since 1993. Secrett has also been a member of the UK Round Table on Sustainable Development since its inception in 1994.

John Stewart
John Stewart has been with the Chamber of Mines of South Africa since 1973. He is currently concerned with policy and advocacy work on behalf of Chamber members. Stewart has represented the South African mining industry in many national and international forums.

Osvaldo Sunkel
Professor of Economics and Director of the Centre for Public Policy Analysis, University of Chile. Sunkel has acted as a special advisor to the Executive Secretary of the UN Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, and President CINDE, a development and research corporation.

Kathryn McPhail
McPhail has spent 20 years as a program manager with The World Bank with involvement in some 30 countries. McPhail now resides in Washington, DC, and has developed various World Bank policies on sustainable development, including a Quality and Assurance Compliance Unit.

Helmut Weidner
Senior Researcher at the Social Science Research Center, Berlin, Germany, Weidner is the author of several publications on environmental policy and dispute resolution.

Douglas Yearley
Chairman Emeritus of Phelps Dodge Corporation, Yearley has a Bachelor Degree in metallurgical engineering and now serves on the board of several prestigious organizations.

Senzeni Zokwana
President of the National Union of Mines of South Africa.

MMSD’s Sponsor Group Members

MMSD Global Events

• Strategic Planning Workshop, London, May 2000
• Preparing for Implementation, Geneva, June 2000
• The Role of Financial Institutions in Sustainable Development: The Case of Mining, Washington DC, January 2001
• Small-Scale Mining, Santiago, January 2001
• Global Finance Dialogue, Washington DC, 9 April 2001
• Long-run Minerals Availability Experts’ Workshop, Washington DC, 22-23 April 2001
• Public Participation Conference, Woodstock, Vermont, 25-27 May 2001
• Biodiversity Informal Experts’ Workshop, London, 11-12 June 2001
• Large Volume Waste Workshop, Vancouver, 14-18 July 2001
• Voluntary Initiatives Workshop, Santa Fe, 18 July 2001
• Armed Conflict and the Minerals Sector Experts Meeting, London,
  11 July 2001
• Life Cycle Analysis Workshop, New York, 9-10 August 2001
• Managing Mineral Wealth Workshop, London, 15-17 August 2001
• Human Rights Experts’ Workshop, Berlin, 6 September 2001
• Corruption Experts’ Workshop, Berlin, 7 September 2001
• Health and Safety Informal Experts’ Meeting, London, 10 September 2001
• Preparatory Meeting with Indigenous People, Quito, 27-28 September 2001
• Corporate Citizenship Conference, London, 15-16 October 2001
• Biodiversity Workshop, London, 25-26 October 2001
• Small-Scale Mining Researchers’ Meeting, London, 19-20 November 2001
• Global Information Dialogue, Vancouver, 29-30 November 2001
• Global Finance Dialogue, Paris,14-15 January 2002
• Indigenous Peoples and the Mining Sector, Perth, 4-6 February 2002

MMSD Regional Partners have also been holding workshops at the regional level. For more information see www.iied.org/mmsd.