Critical Mineral Policy Papers
SDSG proposes to issue a series of short policy papers, each focused on a specific mineral, that will highlight current global policy issues related to potential mineral scarcity, critical and strategic minerals shortages, and the availability of sufficient mineral resources to support the transition to a less carbon intensive economy. Learn more about this research here.
renewable energy for local communities in the western United states
SDSG provided analysis and drove public engagement in the Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska (MEAN)’s 2022 Integrated Resource Planning (IRP) process. Learn more about this work here.
Guidance for Governments on Legal Frameworks for Environmental and Social Impact Assessment and Management for the Mining Sector
SDSG worked with the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF) Secretariat to conduct a two-year study of legal frameworks for environmental and social impact assessment and management covering over 55 jurisdictions, facilitate roundtables at the African Mining Indaba in 2019 (see report here); present and gather input from participants at the 2018 and 2019 IGF Annual General Meetings in Geneva; incorporate feedback from public consultations into a final guidance document (available here); and organize and present webinars on the topic (see webinar here).
Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development Mining Policy Framework Assessments
SDSG regularly works with the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining Minerals and Sustainable Development (IGF) Secretariat to provide support services to the IGF’s 79 Government Members, which may request to undergo assessments of their national law and policy frameworks against the IGF’s Mining Policy Framework (MPF) and participate in related capacity building programs. The MPF is a set of good practices covering legal and policy environment, financial benefit optimization, socio-economic benefit optimization, environmental management, post-mining transition, and artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). SDSG was a member of the team that completed the first IGF MPF Assessments and capacity building programs for Uganda and the Dominican Republic. We subsequently worked with the IGF Secretariat to complete assessment and capacity building programs for Mongolia, Ecuador, and Honduras. MPF Assessments include desk-based review of country reports, law and policy frameworks, and literature, as well as field visits to interview government, civil society, industry, and other stakeholders. Reports are available at www.IGFMining.org.
Community Development Agreements and Benefits Sharing
SDSG developed one of the first and most comprehensive libraries on the topic of Community Development Agreements in the world, available at www.sdsg.org/cda-library. The library includes a range of agreements (typically between mining companies and communities), and related guidance and policy documents. This May we collaborated with the International Institute for Environment and Development and Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) to launch the Community Development in Mining Collection, available at www.iied.org/mapping-community-development-requirements-mining-sector. The collection includes almost 300 pieces of legislation from 54 countries in an interactive map and searchable online database. The objectives of the online resource are to facilitate research, inform public debate about policy design, and improve local development outcomes.
Promoting Responsible Mineral Supply Chains
SDSG is collaborating with the Colorado School of Mines on a National Science Foundation-funded study that aims to better understand gold supply chains in Peru and propose avenues to disrupt illicit segments of these supply chains. This three-year study began in 2020 under the leadership of the Colorado School of Mines. We are working with an interdisciplinary team of engineers, social scientists, and attorneys to implement this research project. Our work is to collect and assess relevant laws, policies, and cases and report on our findings and recommendations. This study is important because illicit gold mining activity in Peru is linked to environmental damage through uncontrolled mercury use and deforestation; poor working conditions and violence, including child labor, human trafficking, and extortion; as well as illegal cross-border trade and criminal networks. Accordingly, this research has implications for human health and wellbeing, the environment, and national and international security.
Integrating the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Into Assessment Frameworks
SDSG has worked with the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF); the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA); and Bettercoal to identify alignment and gaps in respective assessment standards against the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets. We have also worked with national governments, including Uganda’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development in 2020, to incorporate the SDGs into national legislative frameworks.
International Bar Association (IBA) Model Mine Development Agreement
With support from the International Bar Association and the World Bank, SDSG collaborated with the IBA’s Mining Law Committee to research and develop a comprehensive framework for negotiation between mining companies and host governments. This work involved stakeholder consultations in Kazakhstan, the United States, China, Ethiopia, Canada, and more broadly through use of a consultation website and Toronto-based international stakeholder gatherings. SDSG played a central role in organizing these consultations, developing the consultation website and summarizing content, and analyzing over 80 mine development agreements to identify provisions that represent best practices. This work culminated in the MMDA, which is frequently utilized as an educational tool and reference for negotiating sustainable mine development agreements. SDSG continues to maintain the MMDA Project website, where the MMDA is available at no cost to the public in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and Chinese at www.MMDAProject.org.
Renewable Energy Research and Support for Community Transitions to the Green Economy
SDSG is leading a research effort that studies options for building renewable energy sources into local government energy contracts. See related reports at https://www.sdsg.org/mean-study. We also collaborate with government agencies, such as the United States National Renewable Energy Laboratory and natural resource developers to better understand options for integrating renewable energy sources into development projects. SDSG has also conducted extensive research on options for socio-economic transition for communities that have historically relied on coal mining and other mineral development projects as a primary source of revenue, aiding in just social and economic transitions to the green economy. See www.sdsg.org/sdsg-publications to access our Planning for the Economic Future of Colorado’s Coal Communities report.
Sustainable Living Research
SDSG leads research initiatives in collaboration with SDSG interns and law fellows, academic institutions, agencies, local governments, and community members to study topics such as sustainable biochar production, recycling, and repurposing shipping containers for affordable and sustainable living and workspace. SDSG also maintains a Sustainable Living Library for the Gunnison Basin in Colorado, with the objective of making natural resources and sustainability data freely accessible to researchers. See sustainablelibrary.org.
SDSG Professional Programs and Sustainable Development of Natural Resources Education
SDSG’s regularly hosts students and young professionals from law and other disciplines in our internship and fellowship programs, which offer supervised opportunities to contribute to ongoing SDSG research and projects. SDSG also regularly lectures and leads seminars in this field. We currently teach Seminars at the University of Dundee, University of Denver Sturm College of Law, University of Arizona, and Western Colorado University. The seminars focus on international standards and best practices relevant to sustainable development of natural resources.
