Conceptualizing mining impacts, livelihoods and corporate community development in Melanesia

Banks, Glenn; Kuir-Ayius, Dora; Kombako, David; Sagir, Bill F.

doi:10.1093/cdj/bst025

Cited by 80 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…The Pacific sub-region of Melanesia (see Figure 2-1) has featured extensively in international debates about the contribution of its mining industry to the social, environmental and economic sustainability of the region, and with a specific focus on project-affected communities (key scholars include Emberson-Bain, 1994;Regan, 1998;Filer, 1999;Ballard and Banks, 2003;Horowitz, 2004;Filer and Macintyre, 2006;Bainton, 2010;Banks, 2013;Gilberthorpe, 2013;Kirsch, 2014). While these works focus on extractivism across Melanesia, there is limited scholarly output from a sociological lens (an exception is McKenna, who predominantly focuses on corporate social responsibility, peace building and business practice in Papua New Guinea's mining sector from a sociological perspective).…”

Section: A Spotlight On Melanesia's Mining Industrymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In many parts of the Global South, large-scale mines act as magnets for economic opportunities, as people seek employment with the mine or to establish businesses to support the operations of the mine (Banks et al, 2013). Jorgensen (1997) is one of the first scholars to analyse the impact of in-migration into areas around mining operations in Papua New Guinea.…”

Section: Population Changementioning

confidence: 99%

“…As mining activity continues to gain momentum across Melanesia, many new people migrate to mine sites in anticipation of accessing the real and perceived opportunities associated with the project. Rapid population growth in communities surrounding large-scale mining activity can catalyse a range of social issues, including placing pressure on already limited infrastructure and resources (Connell, 2011), introducing or exacerbating social pathologies such as prostitution, alcoholism and petty crime (Lagisa and Scheyvens, 1999;Banks, 2013), fuelling the development and expansion of informal settlements (Jones, 2012), disrupting the social balance in the community (Esteves, 2008) and instigating conflict between existing residents and in-migrants (Koczberski and Curry, 2004;Evans, 2010;Allen, 2012). The presence of in-migrants can also threaten local cultures and lifestyles, such as subsistence agriculture (Lagisa and Scheyvens, 1999).…”

Section: Population Changementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Fiji and Papua New Guinea, scholars identify that new political processes, including women's exclusion from employment in the sector, results in the marginalisation of women and undermining of their rights and status (Emberson-Bain, 1994;Jorgensen, 2006;Macintyre, 2007;Banks, 2013). While women are often excluded from formal employment in the sector, women are expected to maintain subsistence production, contributing to unpaid social and reproductive labour in the households of mining settlements, with Fijian scholar Emberson-Bain (1994) stating that "every mine site is dependent on and subsidised by women's labour" (p. 15).…”

Section: Gendered Impacts and The Introduction Of Social Pathologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As predominantly men in the community have access to greater amounts of cash through working for mining companies, as well as in relation to compensation for temporary loss of land, it has been reported that this can translate into higher levels of alcohol consumption and subsequently higher levels of domestic violence (Scheyvens and Lagisa, 1998;Macintyre, 2006;Banks et al, 2013). Macintyre (2006) emphasises men's excessive alcohol consumption and associated problems of violence in communities surrounding mining projects in Papua New Guinea, "although most men…”

Section: Gendered Impacts and The Introduction Of Social Pathologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Social impact assessment, social justice and scales of knowledge: exploring the emerging mining industry in Solomon Islands

Ash¹

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This thesis examines power relations in the context of social impact assessment (SIA) as it is applied in the emerging mining industry in Solomon Islands. While the social impacts of large-scale mining in the Global South are well documented, little is known about how and why adverse social impacts continue to occur in the presence of numerous 'best practice' policy and planning tools, including SIA. This raises questions on the efficacy of SIA in identifying, contextualising and mitigating potential social impacts on communities affected by mining activity, particularly on traditional lands inhabited by indigenous peoples.This thesis presents a critical analysis of SIA to provide insight on this disparity in policy and practice, and to enhance sociological understanding on the interplay of globally-driven mining projects, the identification of social impacts, and the role of policy and institutions in cross-cultural contexts. The proposed extraction of nickel in Isabel Province, Solomon Islands, serves as the case study for this analysis. Employing the conceptual frameworks of social justice and political ecology, and drawing on six months' fieldwork in Solomon Islands, qualitative data from individual and group interviews (n=33) and document analysis (n=11) was collected across geopolitical scales -international, national, provincial and local -to compare and analyse perspectives of documents, institutions and people towards SIA and socially just development in the context of potential mining activity. Analysis of these perspectives exposed the extent to which SIA produces, reinforces and/or exacerbates, social injustices.Research findings identified the limits of SIA in: 1) recognising and accounting for indigenous identities and gender roles; 2) the unequal distribution of economic and other resources associated with the development of mining, including the privatisation of land and employment; and 3) representation of project-affected communities through consultation activities associated with SIA, including Free, Prior and Informed Consent. With political ecology as the foundation of this thesis, this thesis argues that these social injustices materialise as a result of a disparity, or mismatch, between knowledge frames across scales.While SIA is bounded to the rhetoric of social justice, consent and participation, this thesis demonstrates that Western expert knowledge and norms are interwoven into the SIA regime, rendering local experiential knowledge marginal. Reflecting this, a multiscale SIA approach is proposed to include consideration of different scales of knowledge systems, iii with outcomes that might assist to mitigate social injustices, such as those identified in this

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Section: A Spotlight On Melanesia's Mining Industrymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Population Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Population Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Gendered Impacts and The Introduction Of Social Pathologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Gendered Impacts and The Introduction Of Social Pathologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Social impact assessment, social justice and scales of knowledge: exploring the emerging mining industry in Solomon Islands

Ash¹

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Soccer fields? What for? Effectiveness of corporate social responsibility initiatives in the mining industry

Devenin

Bianchi

2018

Corp Soc Responsibility Env

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While there is significant research regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices in the mining industry, there is a lack of understanding in terms of the actual effectiveness of CSR initiatives disclosed by these companies. This paper aims to examine the perceptions of stakeholders in the mining industry regarding the intended results of CSR initiatives. Results show three ineffective situations that emerged from empirical contrasts of CSR initiatives declared by mining companies in sustainability reports and the actual impact on beneficiaries in communities: (1) failure of the CSR initiatives to contribute to real community beneficiary needs; (2) failure of the CSR initiatives to adjust to the socio-cultural characteristics of the beneficiary group; and (3) failure of the CSR initiatives to ensure sustainability in the long run.This study contributes to the literature on CSR initiative effectiveness and provides suggestions for mining managers, government, and policymakers.

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Reversing the lens: Why corporate social responsibility is not community development

McLennan

Banks

2018

Corp Soc Responsibility Env

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Corporate activities have impacts on different groups across societies, and businesses therefore have different sets of responsibilities to these groups. These are increasingly being addressed through corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate community development (CCD) initiatives, and there is now a wide body of literature that highlights the value of CSR for business. However, less attention has been paid to understanding the impacts of these activities from the perspective of communities.This paper "reverses the lens" to explore these community perspectives. We argue that communities see and evaluate CSR/CCD in terms of the broader immanent effects of the corporate presence rather than simply the intentional CSR programs and prioritize relationships over material outcomes. We outline an agenda for corporations that begins with the realization that core business practices can impact profoundly on long-term community development and that effective contributions require corporations to "embrace chaos" and to develop the types of relationships that foreground community goals and priorities.

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Conceptualizing mining impacts, livelihoods and corporate community development in Melanesia

Cited by 80 publications

References 17 publications

Social impact assessment, social justice and scales of knowledge: exploring the emerging mining industry in Solomon Islands

Social impact assessment, social justice and scales of knowledge: exploring the emerging mining industry in Solomon Islands

Soccer fields? What for? Effectiveness of corporate social responsibility initiatives in the mining industry

Reversing the lens: Why corporate social responsibility is not community development

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