By now, environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting is not only optional, it’s a required practice. However, navigating which ESG reports a company needs complete is a process that has been notoriously convoluted. That’s why the Copper Mark, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC), ICMM, and the World Gold Council are working towards consolidating their individual voluntary responsible mining and metals standards into a single global responsible mining standard, and multi-stakeholder oversight system.

This collaboration is a result of feedback from a diverse group of voices within the mining industry that confirmed the appetite for less crowded and complex standards within a landscape that is more transparent, robust, and encourages wider industry participation. 

The process will take the best attributes of each organisation’s standard as the foundation for developing a single, global standard that would be practical and implementable by any mine operator regardless of commodity, geography, or size. The implementation would be overseen by an independent, multi-stakeholder governance body and a credible assurance process, both of which are still being defined. 

The proposed standard could have the widest coverage of any voluntary responsible mining standard to date, with initial implementation by more than 80 mining companies with around 700 operations in almost 60 countries worldwide. Broader participation by companies beyond the four organisations will help support the industry to further raise the bar on ESG performance. Learn more at www.icmm.com/en-gb/news/2023/convergence.