The essential role of Indigenous collaboration in mining Submitted by the Mining Association of Canada
Agnico Eagle Mines – Meliadine mine by Mathieu Depuis.
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ore than any other sector, the mining industry has prioritized building and maintaining respectful, strong, trusting partnerships with Indigenous communities – First Nation, Inuit and Métis – impacted by, or with an interest in, mineral exploration and mining activities. From exploration to mine closure, the mining sector engages with communities impacted by their projects in order to share information, collaborate on issues related to environmental effects, monitoring, and cultural protection. The industry also focuses on developing mutually beneficial partnerships and initiatives that generate economic opportunities and wealth for surrounding communities. The sector further supports Indigenous participation through training, business development, employment, social investments, and procurement. For example, in 2019 Suncor spent $836 million with Indigenous businesses and suppliers and Teck Resources’ operations spent approximately $225 million with suppliers who self-identified as Indigenous. As a result of its efforts, the mining industry has become the largest private-sector industrial employer, on a proportional basis, of Indigenous peoples in Canada and a trusted partner of Indigenous businesses. Since 2000, over 490 agreements
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have been signed between mining and exploration companies and Indigenous communities or governments and our industry is a leader in advancing economic reconciliation.
Towards sustainable mining Mining Association of Canada (MAC) member commitments to ongoing engagement and respectful relationships with Indigenous peoples are further demonstrated through participation in Towards Sustainable Mining® (TSM). TSM is a globally recognized program that supports mining companies in managing key environmental and social risks and was the first mining sustainability standard in the world to require site-level assessments. TSM is mandatory for all MAC members’ Canadian operations and includes facilitylevel performance in the area of Indigenous and community relationships. Transparency is essential to the credibility of the TSM program, and to that end the initiative is overseen by a Community of Interest advisory panel, which consists of individuals from Indigenous organizations and governments, environmental organizations, labour representatives,
