Who we are
Communities
Wherever we operate we seek to understand the social, environmental and economic implications of our activities, both for the local community and for the overall economy. We work closely with local representatives to inform ourselves of community concerns and priorities, and our programmes are the result of extensive consultation and research. Mutual benefits and obligations are discussed with local governments and community representatives. Objectives are agreed to secure long term results.
In Australia, Rio Tinto establishes agreements with Aboriginal traditional owners and groups affected by its activities to gain access for exploration (land access agreements) and to develop mining operations (regional development agreements). Our policy of increasing opportunities for indigenous Australians is reflected in those agreements.
During 2007, we increased Australian indigenous employment by 367 people to 1,212 or eight per cent of Rio Tinto's Australian workforce. The biggest increase was seen at Rio Tinto Iron Ore, which now employs 518 indigenous people (11 per cent of the workforce) compared to 274 in 2006.
Similar values are applied by Alcan. In 2007 the company published its new Aboriginal policy formalising ongoing activities and partnerships with native people around the world.
To enable us to target the delivery of socio-economic programmes reflecting the priorities of local communities, 2007 saw an increased use of community baseline assessments, including identification of potential positive and negative impacts of our presence. We use this information along with two way community and local stakeholder consultation to develop our multi year communities plans, which include measures of success that are internally and externally monitored.
To contribute to sustainable livelihoods after mine closure, each Rio Tinto business now has an annually updated closure plan. The plans apply throughout the lifecycle of the Group's activities, from exploration to mine closure and beyond. All these plans are developed with community input, particularly regarding post mining land use.
Our work in 2007 included:
- updating our Communities Standards and guidance notes including a new standard for Cultural Heritage Management for Australian Businesses;
- providing financial and technical support to community HIV programmes in Madagascar with public and NGO partners and establishing a business advisory centre to promote local entrepreneurs and decentralise our supply chain;
- undertaking a new social and environmental impact assessment for the expansion project at Rössing Uranium, Namibia, after 30 years of operations;
- renewing our commitment to an enhanced community assistance programme at Murowa diamonds, Zimbabwe, to include school construction and rehabilitation, electrification, small irrigation projects, and food security programmes;
- progressing 23 Guinean staff from entry level positions to positions of higher responsibility at the Simandou project and donating 130 computers collected from various Rio Tinto operations to local civil society organisations;
- sponsoring nine Mongolian students to study in Mongolia and other parts of the world in mining related fields including: finance, law, geology and accounting;
- relocating scarred trees of cultural significance to a suitable site in consultation with traditional land owners as a result of heritage surveys of land designated for mining at the Weipa bauxite mine in Australia; and
- introducing a community relations diagnostic tool for operations to more rigorously assess their performance against Rio Tinto standards.
