Partnerships

Rio Tinto recognises that building strong working relationships with those who are impacted by or have an interest in what we do is essential to our operations. Expectations of Rio Tinto continue to evolve, particularly around issues regarding environmental stewardship and sensitivity to the social needs in the areas where we operate. Many of these issues cannot be tackled by Rio Tinto alone.

By taking the approach of working in partnership, Rio Tinto can better identify and work to address issues of mutual interest and concern. Generally, Rio Tinto defines partnership as a relationship or alliance with one or more organisations that:

• achieves outcomes and benefits for all parties involved
• pools resources, skills and expertise to achieve outcomes that no one party could achieve on its own
• has some form of governance and measurement structure in place 

Rio Tinto engages through partnership on a global, national, regional and local level. Relationships and programmes are developed within the context of a site or business's broader community engagement and community investment strategies.

Partnerships help Rio Tinto to:

• communicate more directly with our communities and stakeholders
• better identify and address issues of mutual interest and concern
• access skills, knowledge, perspectives and expertise that we do not have
• demonstrate our commitment to sustainable development
• increase our profile and reputation
• engage our employees
   

Rio Tinto engages through partnership on a global, national, regional and local level.  Some of our global and national partnerships are outlined below.  See Trusts, funds and foundations for examples of partnerships and programmes occurring at a local or regional level.