Woman in QMM community selecting raffia to make handicraft products

Community Agreements

We are proud to be the first mining company in Australia to embrace native title to land and to form agreements with Traditional Owners. Today, agreements are central to the way we work and an important way communities drive their own development.

Updating agreements

Following the tragic destruction of the rock shelters at Juukan Gorge, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia in May 2020, we have changed the way we engage with Indigenous communities.

We are progressively working more closely in partnership with Indigenous peoples across our operations to preserve and protect cultural heritage. We are moving to a model of co-management to ensure Indigenous voices are heard as part of our decision making.

Remedy agreement with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura Aboriginal Corporation

In November 2022, we agreed with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura Aboriginal Corporation to create the Juukan Gorge Legacy Foundation as part of a remedy agreement relating to the destruction of the rock shelters at Juukan Gorge. Financial support will be provided to the Traditional Owner-led foundation to progress major cultural and social projects, including a new keeping place for storing important cultural materials. The agreement forms part of our commitment to remedy and rebuild the relationship with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people.

Updated agreement with the Yindjibarndi people

As part of our commitment to modernise our relationships with Traditional Owners, in November 2022, we signed an updated agreement with Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation. The agreement aims to provide better social and economic outcomes for future generations and reflects our commitment to create opportunities for Yindjibarndi people to participate in our operations. The agreement also includes support for Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation to develop community, commercial and cultural projects and programmes to fulfil its aspirations of self-determination.

Working with Indigenous communities in Canada

We continue to collaborate with Indigenous groups in Canada to implement agreements.

We have 11 active long-term impact benefits/ participation agreements, and three potential agreements are in discussion. Our agreements include areas such as training and employment procurement, land and water management, joint environmental monitoring and community investment. We are also working in partnership with Indigenous communities to look at how we protect and preserve cultural heritage.

At our Diavik Diamond Mine in the Northwest Territories, we are working with Indigenous partners to develop criteria for water quality to ensure that water is healthy and safe from a western science perspective and from a traditional cultural use perspective. This initiative values both western science and traditional knowledge and it will be evaluated equally by the Wek’èezh.i Land and Water Board and the regulator. It is part of a co-management regulatory regime to ensure future traditional use of the local land and water. In the northern part of British Columbia, we have announced a significant archaeological research project together with the Cheslatta Carrier Nation. The project will excavate sites of remarkable cultural and historical significance that could date back more than 10,000 years.

In the Saguenay–Lac-St-Jean region of Quebec, we announced the signing of an agreement with Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation in December 2022. This agreement – named Kuessilueu, which means “the wind is turning” in Nelueun – is the start of a collaborative process that will bring Pekuakamiulnuatsh and Rio Tinto representatives together in a co-designed approach to identify priorities and recommendations on governance, jobs and training, business opportunities, cultural heritage, environment, partnerships, and energy transition. The agreement will involve a large group of people and aims to create a movement, with each participant becoming an agent of change in their respective area. As part of this agreement, an Indigenous awareness programme will be launched for our employees in the region.

We have many agreements with groups around the world. These community agreements are long-term, often with horizons beyond 50 years, and they help us establish relationships and run our business in a way that delivers mutual value.

Our agreements set the framework for how we engage with communities and Indigenous peoples, often going beyond legal requirements and forming part of a long-term relationship that often spans decades. This framework also sets the value-sharing model for the financial and non-financial benefits communities receive for access to land, as well as the agreements for cultural heritage management and a range of other important actions.

What are community agreements?

Our community agreements are negotiated agreements with Indigenous peoples, local communities and others. Not every mining or extractives company forms agreements, but we feel they are important in part because they demonstrate respect and commitment to inclusive engagement with communities and land-connected peoples.

These agreements, often the result of many years of engagement, document not only mutual obligations that are both enforceable and auditable, but also codify ‘the how’ – the behaviours expected from our employees and contractors. They help reduce potential effects of a project on communities and their environment. And they help make sure benefits are shared directly with those affected, and empower communities to make decisions about how those benefits are used.

Ultimately, agreements are a mechanism for accountability and provide companies and communities with mutual performance indicators that cover all stages; from exploration through to project planning and operations, including after closure.

Our agreements also provide beneficiary payments, deliver social and economic outcomes and engage with Indigenous groups in cultural heritage, employment, business development, and training and education activities. In Australia, for example, our land access agreements allow us to compensate, via trust funds and other mechanisms, Traditional Owners for the operations and presence we have on their land.

We also have robust management systems for monitoring compliance, and to track and review implementation outcomes. Often, monitoring is done with or by our communities – for example, at our Diavik operations, in Canada, a panel of scientists and local Indigenous people gather every three years to assess our environmental impact and ensure we continue to deliver on our agreement.

Leading agreement making in the mining industry

Our approach to engagement with Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders was fundamentally reshaped by key legal events in Australia with the High Court’s Mabo decision in 1992, and the introduction of native title legislation, which recognised native title to land in 1993. Under this law, the ‘right to negotiate’ provision facilitated a culture of agreement making in Australia.

We were proud to be the first mining company in Australia to embrace native title to land and to form agreements with Traditional Owners. Today, we have many such agreements globally.

In Canada, our first agreement was at the Diavik Diamond Mine, where, in 1999, we signed a Socio Economic Monitoring Agreement (SEMA) with the Northwest Territories government and five impacted Metis, First Nations and Inuit organisations. This was followed by the signing of individual Participation Agreements with each of the communities in 2000 and 2001.

The development of new assets, such as Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia, has also allowed us to explore agreement processes in a context that went beyond Indigenous groups to land-connected peoples more broadly.

What our agreements cover

Land access provisions and consent to certain activities
Financial benefits
Local employment and training opportunities
Economic development and business opportunities
Social, cultural and community support
Environmental co-management
Cultural heritage management, protection and protocols
Governance and procedural arrangements, including implementation provisions

Making agreements

All actions related to an agreement and its implementation are termed ‘agreement processes’. This includes consultation, negotiation, ratification, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and review.

Because our agreements can cover such different aspects of our operations, be developed at different stages of the mining life cycle and are subject to different local and national laws, we do not follow a single agreement-making process. However, we do adhere to common principles and commitments:

Engaging in an inclusive way

The agreements include provisions that stipulate which community members should be involved in the agreement-making process and consulted on impacts and opportunities. We know that mining can be complex, and so we aim to explain our business and processes in ways that are accessible to a broad set of stakeholders. We take care to engage in ways that are culturally appropriate, and that we communicate clearly and openly.
Building a strong understanding of the community

We conduct detailed assessments – involving both government and community groups – to identify the local social, economic, heritage and legal context of each community. This includes assessing possible impacts of our operations on local people – and what opportunities we can bring too. We also build an understanding of relevant community groups, including their goals and expectations, governance structures and decision-making process.
Planning and implementing for mutual benefit

Once we have built a strong understanding of the local context, possible impacts and opportunities, we develop agreements that align our vision and goals with those of the local community. We communicate regularly with our communities, and implement our commitments in ways that contribute to their socioeconomic development.
Monitoring, evaluating, reviewing and improving

We set targets and indicators to monitor progress and performance against our agreements. Both our employees and representatives of the community are involved in monitoring and evaluation activities, and we use a variety of tools such as social risk assessments, communities review and complaints processes, as well as independent review mechanisms to agree and implement improvements to existing agreements and their outcomes.
Reporting and communicating

Our agreements touch all areas of our operations – from managing environmental impacts to procurement. We clearly communicate our agreement obligations through. We report on our performance internally and externally, in culturally appropriate and accessible ways.

Learn more about how and why we make agreements >

Agreement types

The form of agreement we reach depends on the needs and circumstances of the operation and local communities – including their socio-economic priorities – as well as the national and local legal context.

The most common agreements we form are:

Cultural heritage agreements
Agreements between us and land-connected peoples explaining what steps will be taken to manage cultural heritage.

Land access (for exploration) agreements
Agreements between us and a private landholder outlining each party’s land access rights and responsibilities.

Impact Benefit Agreements (IBAs) in Canada (also known as Participation Agreements)
Agreements negotiated in the context of resource development that establish how affected Indigenous people will benefit from project development – including training and employment benefits, business opportunities, environmental monitoring, cultural heritage, among other things.

Indigenous partnership agreements
Agreements made with Indigenous groups that cover broader socio-economic and social issues, and included opportunities for contracting, employment, training, business development, environmental protection and other items.

Minerals development agreements
Agreements between us and governments detailing everyone’s roles and responsibilities in relation to minerals development projects – including the payment of royalties and taxes, and other obligations.

Some types of agreements are specific to particular jurisdictions. For details of various types of agreements and treaties in different jurisdictions – Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa – visit the Agreements, Treaties and Negotiated Settlements website, a University of Melbourne initiative supported by the Australian Research Council and Rio Tinto.

How we approach negotiations

We conduct community agreements in good faith, and approach agreement negotiations based on the International Finance Corporation’s principles. These include:

Involvement of legitimate representatives
Willing engagement free from coercion or intimidation
Joint exploration of key issues of importance
Use of participatory approaches
Accessibility in terms of timing and location
Provision of sufficient time for decision-making
Mutual respect and sensitivity to cultural and other differences
Flexibility, consideration of multiple options, and willingness to compromise
Documented outcomes
Equal access to the best available information

Roles and responsibilities of key parties in agreements

Developer
Community
Government

Provide resources
Participate in good faith
Deliver on commitments and use agreed processes
Align programmes

Participate in good faith
Honour commitments and agreed processes
Actively participate in governance
Participate in programme delivery

National/sub-national

Create an enabling framework
Deliver on commitments
Coordinate government programme delivery

Regional/local

Provide representation
Participate in governance
Participate and partner in programme delivery

What a successful agreement looks like

A successful agreement:

Is perceived by all parties as voluntary and not imposed on the parties
Involves all of the people who can demonstrate themselves to be the land-connected peoples
Has been negotiated by legitimate representatives
Sustains implementation and performance over time, even when there are changes in company personnel and leadership
Acknowledges potential price fluctuations of commodities over the life of the agreement
Stands the test of time and is reviewed and amended as necessary, with the full support of all parties
Is able to be changed and improved (if all parties agree) when things are not working and supports joint adaptation and problem-solving when challenges arise
Has clear commitments and benefits for both parties with a focus on long-term goals rather than short-term gains
Delivers on agreed commitments and builds in incentives for all parties to ensure that agreement commitments are upheld
Involves agreement-making processes, content and implementation approaches that are consistent with human rights principles
Proactively considers future generations
Is based on a genuine relationship and mutual trust between parties so that the agreement implementation is driven by its spirit and intent, not legal references
Provides flexible frameworks for working together rather than rigid formulas for individual action
Acknowledges the importance of cultural heritage and an understanding of legacy and historical issues and their effect on religious responsibilities, spirituality and culture
Benefits the community as a whole rather than particular individuals

A key aspect of successful agreement-making also involves understanding community views on the effectiveness of agreements and seeking their input into how we can improve them. Since the tragic events of Juukan Gorge in May 2020, our Iron Ore business has been undertaking a process of review that marks an important step in rebuilding relationships with many host communities and Traditional Owners across the Pilbara.

Laws that guide agreement-making

Australia
Canada
Mongolia

What is Native Title?

Native Title is the communal, group or individual rights and interests of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islander people in relation to land and waters, possessed under traditional law and custom, by which those people have a connection with an area which is recognised under Australian law.

The recognition of Native Title led to the establishment of the Native Title Act in 1994. This provides the legal framework for the recognition of rights and interests of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders such as new applications for native title – including applications for compensation, and the negotiation of Indigenous land use agreements, past and future.

Sources: National Native Title Tribunal, Australian Government Federal Register of Legislation

Why Native Title matters to us and our communities

We take cultural heritage and partnerships with Traditional Owner groups very seriously.

We were the first mining company in Australia to embrace Traditional Owners’ native title rights and interests, and we have a long history of recognising and working to safeguard areas of cultural significance.

In 2019 we endorsed the Uluru Statement from the Heart – declaring our support for enshrining a First Nations Voice in the Australian constitution and establishing a Makarrata Commission.

What is Section 18 of the Western Australian Aboriginal Heritage Act?

The Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 protects all Aboriginal heritage sites in Western Australia.

Under Section 18 of the Act, when impact to a site is unavoidable, companies like ours must seek the consent of the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. This involves providing information to the Aboriginal Cultural Material Committee as to the intended use of the land and sites on the land.

However, before seeking exemption under Section 18, we first look for ways to avoid disturbing cultural heritage sites. This can include redesigning mining projects to avoid a significant site or taking steps to preserve the site in place so it can coexist alongside our activities. But sometimes this is not possible.

Before applying for an exemption under Section 18, we consult with Traditional Owners and seek their consent.

Following Juukan Gorge, we recognise that a review is needed in relation to the management of heritage in Western Australia more broadly, and we will work with Traditional Owners to advocate where relevant for legislative reform.

Indigenous rights and treaties

Indigenous rights are collective rights of distinctive Indigenous societies, recognised and affirmed by Section 35 of the Constitution Act 1982, flowing from their status as the original peoples of Canada. While the Constitution does not define Indigenous rights under Section 35, they can include ownership rights to land, rights to occupy and use lands and resources, self-government rights, and cultural and social rights.

Treaties are agreements made between the Government of Canada, Indigenous groups, provinces and territories, and resource companies that define ongoing rights and obligations of all parties, on areas like include consultation and participation requirements, participation in land use and management, and resource revenue sharing.

Source: Government of Canada website, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada

The Minerals Law of Mongolia (Article 42.1) requires minerals exploration and mining license holders to “work in cooperation with the local administrative bodies and establish agreements on issues of environmental protection, mine exploitation and infrastructure development in relation to mine development and job creation.”

In compliance both with national legal requirement and Rio Tinto standards, after years of rigorous consultation with the local stakeholders, in 2015 Oyu Tolgoi signed off the Cooperation Agreement with the local government representatives on how the parties will work together towards the local sustainable development. The Agreement covers the thematic areas such as environment, water and pasture management, social infrastructure, local economic development, education, health and cultural heritage management.

View details of the agreement >

Under the agreement, Oyu Tolgoi will make an annual financial contribution to the Gobi Oyu Development Support Fund (DSF) – jointly established by Oyu Tolgoi and the community in September 2015 and independently managed to support community programmes and projects in the Umnugovi aimag.

Compensation and benefits

Mining projects and operations change the life, livelihoods and landscapes of people connected to the land involved. Through our agreements, we work closely with host communities to ensure they receive a fair share of benefits. A good benefit process accurately determines the rightful recipients and then provides benefits fairly, following terms the recipients themselves help develop.

And by providing benefits, like employment, training, and supporting regional economic development, we can providing lasting value and positive outcomes to the communities where we work. Another way we secure long-term benefits for communities is by creating future income streams, such as endowment funds, foundations and trusts. These are built to suit the specific needs of the local community, and can sometimes align with local and regional development plans too.

Financial payments – for the purposes of compensation, benefits or both – can take many forms. For example, payments may be made based on operational outcomes, such as a percentage of profit, or royalties linked to production.

For example, at our Weipa operations, in Queensland, Australia, we established the Western Cape Communities Coexistence Agreement Charitable Trust, with the majority of annual funding placed in long-term secure investments. And at our Kitimat aluminium smelter in British Columbia, Canada, we partnered with the Haisla Nation to buy and operate the Kitamaat Valley Education Society, which serves other local employers and helps build skills within the local community.

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