Approaches and challenges: See the People First

No one said community engagement and international and community development were easy. They aren't and they are highly complex, yet in our experience we have found that when we are invited into a community we start very simply; we start by seeing the people in front of and around us. We start by simply listening without labelling or judging to understand the needs and beliefs of the people whose community and land we are visiting. Now many people will say they do the same and I simply ask the question, 'What brought you here?" In almost every instance the answer has something to do with a resource, something they or their company wants. They are not there to listen, to understand or to embrace a community; they are there to exploit a resource and negotiate the most profitable manner in which to do that. This is the reality. What if the approach was different? What if it was open, transparent and collaborative? What if there truly was collaboration to meet and deliver on the needs and priorities of all parties involved while respecting and ensuring human rights, indigenous people's rights? What if we saw people and their environment and circumstance first?

Time-lines: Depleting resource or community development and growth

A glaring void in community development as it relates to the extractive industry is the lack of ficus on the appropriate or 'correct' timeline. The timeline for most is based on a depleting resource rather than on the timeline of the community and how it will be directly impacted by the activities of the extractive entity in the present and in the future, long after that company has moved on to a new resource deposit. Continuity is not being addressed as part of negotiations and in agreements – if they are there they seem pretty ‘soft’ – the focus in all we have seen in our experience to date, is on the resource lifespan and not the community lifespan, yet the community will be what’s left once the resource is depleted. A focus on truly benefiting the communities whose lands are being mined is massive shift in thinking and mindset for the extractive sector as a whole and yet is one that can truly leverage development and equality for all people involved. What if benefit was the driver? What if profit wasn't the driver? Can we the consumers and shareholders make that shift to enable the extractive sector to act differently?

Back to the dialogue: Creating new and better experiences

As I sat and observed through the day it was evident the need to have more sessions like this one. While the design of this session was relatively loose with a number of pertinent topics being presented calling upon the audience to give comment and feedback, the mood in the room was a ‘little closed’. There was a sense of waiting for the other shoe to drop on both sides of the table. I say this as the audience was split into tables of industry participants on one side and consultants, academia and indigenous peoples on the other. This created an atmosphere of caution and we did not see the room settle somewhat and open up until pretty late into a long day when the representative from Rio Tinto took his place on one of the panels. His open and transparent approach in the discussion he presented in his Australian case study was refreshing and brought with it a realization that there are industry players who really do want to do the right thing, even if the circumstances from which they are starting to open and embrace a more listening dialogue with community is one that may not have been the best circumstance and experience in the past. The intent and action really are to create a new, better experience.  Rio Tinto is using a series of management agreements and programs to manage complex situations and it seems to be paying off. Their approach is different and is one that leaves room to create solutions that can address all party’s interests.

A practical example

In contrast to the rest of the room of somewhere close to 100 participants, was our little table at which Rio Tinto and a Hereditary Chief of Tl'azt'en Nation both sat. I won’t disclose details here but will say that the discussion was lively and at times a little fiery but one that was in fact very productive in a sense as the two exchanged ideas and commentary. When you consider that the Chief has led 2 Supreme Court of Canada challenges against Rio Tinto and is involved in a third, the conversation could have really gotten out of hand. It didn't and was pointed and respectful, although at times contentious. The representative from Rio Tinto's approach of questioning, listening and hearing the perspective of the First Nations was certainly refreshing and I think had the rest of the room been able to listen in and hear more of that exchange they would have perhaps achieved more during the days discussions because this was the type of exchange I think was actually needed to create the dialogue Dr. Anaya and his team where hoping for. A dialogue that opened doors, even if only a crack, to find a better way to address interests as compared to the current path of seeking answers through the court system.

More of the same?

So was the day a success? I’m not sure. It will be interesting to see what Dr, Anaya and his team takes from the day. Courageous, yes and the need to do more of these where the sessions are built around specific aspects of Indigenous Peoples rights is definitely needed. We would encourage a more integrated approach that talks to experiences and solutions that have been and are being developed. Integrated in the sense that there is a mix within each group of the interested parties rather than a separation by group.

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