Narratives of sustainable work in mining-affected communities: Gleaning a decolonial concept

Abstract

Conceptions of sustainable work advanced by United Nations bodies, including the ILO, promote the pursuit of green and inclusive economies. Through a decolonial-inspired narrative analysis of textual and audiovisual sources relating to mining-affected communities in Brazil and Canada, we examine how these mainstream conceptions are taken up and challenged on the ground. We analyse these narratives against several features that a decolonial conception of sustainable work might contain. While decolonial conceptions centre on care for people and the land, ecological dependence, reverence for life and reproductive work, mainstream notions of sustainable work are often instrumentalized to legitimize practices that are irreconcilable with decolonial visions.