Frequently Asked Questions
about the MMSD Project

What has MMSD tried to do?

The Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development (MMSD) Project was an independent two-year process of consultation and research whose objective was understanding how to maximise the contribution of the mining and minerals sector to sustainable development at the global, national, regional and local levels. Through this process, MMSD put forth a clear agenda for global change in the minerals sector that is based on careful analysis, that is understood and supported by many key stakeholders, and that identifies mechanisms for moving forward.

Whose idea was it to create MMSD?

The Global Mining Initiative (GMI) – made up of ten major mining companies – was a 2-year industry programme aiming to ensure that the mining industry is conducted in a way that contributes towards sustainable development. As part of this programme, the GMI approached the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, who contracted the London-based International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) to manage the Project.

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What is the International Institute for Environment and Development?

Founded in 1971 by the sustainable development pioneer Barbara Ward, the IIED is an independent non-profit organisation promoting sustainable patterns of world development through collaborative research, policy studies, networking and knowledge dissemination. IIED aims to provide expertise and leadership in researching and achieving sustainable development at local, national, regional and global levels. For more on IIED, click here.

So, was MMSD an industry initiative?

No. It received a good proportion of its funding from the World Business Council, and it is certainly about the minerals industry. But MMSD has also been about the needs and priorities of the many other groups affected by the industry: mineworkers, developing country governments, local communities, consumers of mineral products, indigenous peoples' organisations, small-scale and artisanal miners, investors in the minerals industries, environmental organisations and many others. MMSD was managed by an independent NGO, and carried out its activities under the supervision of a balanced and independent Assurance Group. Industry participated on the same basis as any other stakeholder group. Further, the Project was sponsored by a variety of labour, environmental, government and international organisations and universities as well as the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Click here for a full list of MMSD sponsors.

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What ensured MMSD's independence and responsiveness to all groups?

The MMSD Project established a clear governance structure early in its life. All its arrangements were public and charters governed the activities of three groups: the Sponsors Group, the Assurance Group and the Work Group. The Project's work was overseen by the Assurance Group, which comprised 25 knowledgeable individuals with a wide variety of backgrounds, experience and expertise. The Assurance Group was charged with ensuring the integrity, balance and quality of the Project and its outputs. A list of these members can be found here.

How do I know this?

MMSD set a high standard for openness in the way it operates. Virtually everything about the project has been publicly available, with minor exceptions such as personnel files or preliminary drafts of work in progress. The test: if you want to know anything about who we are and what we are doing, it is probably on our website. If it isn't, ask at any time. Our policy has been to give quick and full responses to any request for information. Write to mmsd@iied.org, or call us at (44-20) 7269-1630.

How was MMSD a project of 'consultation and research'?

MMSD's process of consultation and research involved three phases: first, consultation to define the issues; second, research on these issues; and third, consultation on the results and definition of further issues. Accordingly, an initial survey of 123 stakeholders and experts shaped a preliminary scoping study in 1999. The Project's central office in London then designed 23 global workshops on a variety of issues ranging from human rights and corruption, to managing mineral wealth, to finance for mining, to biodiversity, to artisanal and small-scale mining. These were attended by over 750 participants. MMSD's research programme was based on extensive consultation achieved through these workshops, meetings, interviews and surveys. After identifying the major themes of research, MMSD began collaborative work with key experts and institutions already working in these areas throughout the world. There was in fact an enormous volume of comment to and about the project. MMSD received thousands of messages, ideas, compliments and criticisms. These came from every direction and from all over the world.

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What is MMSD's balance sheet of successes to date?

The record to date is in some respects very encouraging and in others there is still much left to achieve. A very substantial engagement was achieved with the problems and principal actors in some parts of the sector, such as artisanal miners, developing country governments, mine labour, large mining companies, international organisations, and the financial community. MMSD was able to include these perspectives in its work. In some other parts of the sector however we do not think progress was satisfactory. These include medium and small mining and exploration companies, campaigning environmental NGOs and many global indigenous organisations. This does not mean that there has been no response from these interest groups. It does mean that there was a long way to go to ensure their comfort with the process.

How has MMSD put together a global agenda if it was based
in London?

MMSD initiated parallel research and engagement activities with a series of Regional Partners. Regional centres were established in Australia, North America, South America and Southern Africa, and these partnerships increased the ability of MMSD to address regional issues and to include regional stakeholder perspectives. It is hoped that these centres will continue to provide a basis for ongoing dialogue after the conclusion of the MMSD Project. In addition, the Project has engaged in substantial research activities in other countries where mining and minerals is a key sector.

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What has come out of MMSD?

MMSD was not established to solve, or even to address, all of the issues that confront the mining and minerals sector. It aimed to provide a point of departure for identifying different concerns and launching processes, which in the long-run will hopefully move us closer to finding responsible solutions to very difficult problems. MMSD has nonetheless generated considerable momentum and a vast amount of information and research, and has become the largest such process in any global industrial sector.

MMSD has made available a Final Project Report presenting the principal conclusions of its process, describing the minerals sector and its relationship with concepts of sustainable development, and an Agenda for Change for immediate and future actions. It focuses on practical concrete steps which can be taken to improve the performance of this sector and its contribution to sustainable development. In addition, a series of MMSD Working Papers provide more in-depth treatment of key issues in the sector.

 

What's next for MMSD?

The principal conclusions of MMSD's process of consultation and research are presented in the Project Report, Breaking New Ground. The Report describes the minerals sector and its relationship with concepts of sustainable development, and an Agenda for Change for immediate and future actions.

A Comment Draft of this report was available for public review from 4 March until 17 April 2002. A number of activities were planned to facilitate stakeholder access and input to this draft, including four regional events organised in conjunction with the Project's regional partners. An elaborate process for review of public comments and criticisms was put in place to ensure that all comments received were given proper consideration. Click here for the Final Report.

Breaking New Ground was an important item of discussion at the GMI conference scheduled in Toronto on 12-15 May 2002. It is also hoped that this report — and other outputs of the MMSD process — will provide a subject of debate at the Johannesburg Rio +10 World Summit on Sustainable Development in August and September 2002.