To promote education and engagement between the mining industry and Indigenous peoples, Newmont has launched a centre for indigenous community relations, which will serve as a resource for the company and industry.

Based in Vancouver, Canada, the centre will seek to establish a source of dialogue, collective knowledge and experiences to improve the company’s practices in advancing the industry’s approach towards engagement with Indigenous communities.

“Newmont recognises the special connection between Indigenous Peoples and the land, and that mining can affect this connection in some challenging ways,” said president and CEO Tom Palmer.

“The entire industry has a great opportunity to learn and improve our practices. Through the center, meaningful partnerships will be formed to create a space for dialogue and sharing with the aim of improving outcomes for Indigenous communities around our operations and act as a catalyst for improvement within the mining industry.”

Community relations are increasingly in the spotlight and mining companies are stepping up environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts amid heightened scrutiny by investors and the general public. Global major Rio Tinto last week reorganised its management structure to strengthen ESG credentials and rebuild trust after the company damaged two Aboriginal Australian sites.

Newmont said its centre would focus on three key areas: developing a partnership and learning network, fostering respect for customs and culture and providing opportunities for Indigenous people.

The centre would work collaboratively with the Advisory Council on Indigenous Community Relations, a group of external experts who advise the safety and sustainability committee of the board of directors.

An internal working group comprised of diverse representatives from within Newmont will also share experiences, best practices and identify ways to improve collaboration.

The centre would work across all Newmont’s jurisdictions around the world.

Newmont has been lauded for its ESG practices. According London-based Alva, which assigns scores based on publicly available content from social media to NGO research, Newmont continues to lead in the 20-company index.