Social management capability, human migration and the global mining industry

Abstract

This article examines the social management capability (SMC) of the global mining industry to identify, understand and manage complex social and environmental issues, such as human migration. Our contribution is based on the analysis and interpretation of two sets of qualitative data: (i) existing literature on SMCs and its relevance to demographic pressures in mining, and (ii) a series of industry-commissioned “deep dives” exploring high profile legacy cases. These sources provide a coherent picture of how the mining industry has positioned itself in responding to contentious social and environmental challenges. Our findings suggest that, considering the dynamic nature of human migration issues like in-migration and resettlement, the industry does not have sufficiently robust SMCs. The absence of these SMCs has resulted in ad-hoc strategies for managing high risk, high cost issues. In concluding, we argue that a major step change is needed within the industry in terms of developing and then rapidly advancing its SMCs.