What is the current status of human rights in the mining sector? Ten years after the adoption of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), data from the RMI Report 2020 shows that the large mining companies assessed score on average a low 19% on human rights-related issues.
At the second anniversary of the tailings dam burst in Brumadinho, Brazil that killed at least 270 people and destroyed the livelihoods and environments for many others, the mining industry seems more willing than ever to take the issue of tailings risks seriously.
This Research Insight dives into the results found for three topics that have been on the list of “material” issues of most mining companies, shareholders, investors and lenders for years: Communities, Water and Gender. They all show a significant gap between what is being addressed by mining companies and what society expects, as framed in the SDGs.
