Negotiating Indigenous Sustainability

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Negotiating Indigenous Sustainability
Meerim Kylychbekova Logan Hennessy

• Measures of protection in agreements with mining
  companies

UNPFII Salekhard, July 2007
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Labrador and Newfoundland Voiseys Bay
Snap Lake Ekati
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Voiseys Bay
Voiseys Bay Nickel Company (VBNC) AND the
Labrador Inuit Association AND the Innu
Nation AND the government of Newfoundland AND
the government of Canada
http//www.cypressdevelopmentcorp.com/images/maps/
voisbay.gif
2002
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Voiseys Bay
Five Years of Negotiations Leveraged Land
Claims Skills Development Center Business
Development Committee Hiring Priorities Womens
Education and Training Programs
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Voiseys Bay
Environmental Management Advisory Board 2 from
regional government 2 from federal government
2 from Labrador Inuit Assoc. 2 from Innu
Nation 1 independent chair
http//www.nr.gov.nl.ca/voiseys/mine_site.htm
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Voiseys Bay
Environmental Management Special Committee on
Caribou Continuous Electronic Monitoring of Water
and Air Alternative Nickel Processing Recycling
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Voiseys Bay
Shipping Agreement
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summer02gifs/p20p1-lg.gif http//www.dfdickins.com
/images/marine/marine-ArcticShip.jpg
Voiseys Bay Nickel Co.
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Preventive Measures

• Taku River Tlingit First Nation
• Mining Policy March 2007
• Our Land is Our Future

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Taku River Tlingit First Nation

• TRTFN government decision processes
• TRTFNs standards and expectations for
  mining-related activities
• Procedures for seeking the consent and support of
  TRTFN

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Taku River Tlingit First Nation

• Company must apply to the TRTFN
• TRTFN evaluates the proposal
• Requires environmental assessment
• Requires Impacts and Benefits Agreement
• Agreement with government

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Benefits for Government

• Stronger role of Involvement
• Clear guidelines for risk and responsibilities
• Subsidized community development
• Subsidized education and training
• Subsidized infrastructure improvements

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Benefits for Companies

• Long-term company strategy
• Minimizing costs
• Good Industry Practice

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New Directions for Agreements

• Comprehensive Baseline Studies
• Capacity Building
• Further Support for Traditional Ecological
  Knowledge (TEK)
• Financial Transparency
• Climate Change

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Role of the UNFPII?

• Standards for Indigenous Sustainability in
  Contracts
• Public Access to Information informed consent
• Need for future research

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Ongoing work with RAIPON

• Developing a guide to Good Neighbor Agreements
• Translation into Russian
• Distribution in Far East communities

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A Guide to Good Neighbor Agreements

• Preparing to Negotiate
• Top 10 Things to Avoid
• Benefit Sharing
• Environmental Monitoring
• Successful Good Neighbor Agreements
• Information Resources

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Thank You
Yana Dordina, Rodion Sulyandziga, Pavel
Sulyandziga, Misha Jones, David Gordon, Sibyl
Diver, Leah Zimmerman, Paul Robinson, Sarah
Moore, Doug Norlen, Payal Sampat, Cairan
OFaircheallaigh, Benjamin Bradshaw, David
Chambers, Jaime Kneen, Keith Slack, Lauren Baker,
Jerry Jack, Viviane Weitzner, David Szablowski,
Robert Shimek Special thanks to RAIPON and the
UNFPII for inviting us to attend