Disruption and Institutional Development: Corporate Standards and Practices on Responsible Mining

Abstract

This chapter accounts for the special context of mining and discusses what “respecting” human rights means in the mining industry. The aim of the chapter is to clarify the relationship between social investments and respect for human rights in a context characterised by the disruption mining operations cause and weaker local capacities to cope with mining. Three questions are raised herein: Are social contributions part of the corporate responsibility to respect human rights under the UNGPs, and thus imperative, or are they optional, desirable, rather irrelevant or even problematic from a human rights perspective? Do industry strategies recognise institutional development as part of their social responsibility? Are there operational arrangements substantiating a shift in CSR strategy or does the shift remain largely confined to rhetoric and aspirations?