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Webinar Series: Governance of Extractive Industries

This learning series comprised 7 webinars covering key issues for the environmental governance of the mining sector

By Environmental Governance Programme (EGP)

goxi learning series

This initiative was a partnership between the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, UNDP, the NBSAP Forum and the Governance for Extractive Industries (GOXI) platform. The 7-month learning series covered environmental governance as well as social and environmental conflict topics, linked to mining, oil and gas. Each month of the learning series was dedicated to a theme, featuring news, a blog, tweets, and webinars highlighting cases and subject matter experts.

Mainstreaming Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services and Human Rights into the Mining Sector

The first webinar on Environmental Governance of the Mining Sector was held in English and Spanish, bringing together 269 participants from across the world. The webinar explored strategies to mitigate negative effects of mining on human rights, introducing the ecosystem services framework. The webinar focused also on the environmental licensing functions and tasks of government institutions at the national and regional level. Using Colombia as a case study, the role of government agencies in promoting good governance and preventing environmental harm in the mining sector was analyzed.

Participants raised thought-provoking questions about environmental impact assessments, balancing economic development with environmental impacts, as well as the ecosystems and well-being framework. For example, one participant asked, “does the economic benefit of mining justify the environmental damage?” The dangers facing human rights defenders in the extractive sector were also raised by participants.

Watch the video recording of the webinar in English & Spanish

Webinar Series: Governance of Extractive Industries

Management of Mining Waste and Design for Closure

The second webinar provided an overview of mining waste management, with a special focus on the need to ensure safe and orderly closure once mining has ceased. The webinars were held in English, Spanish and Portuguese and brought together almost 100 participants. They touched upon human rights issues related to mining waste management and mine closure and how harm and conflict can be prevented, and what that implies in terms of governance.

Case studies from Mozambique and Brazil were used as a starting point to share experiences. An important case study presented in the webinar was the Mariana dam break, Brazil’s worst environmental disaster, and how Brazil responded.

Recording of the webinar available below:

Environmental Monitoring Part 1: The fundamentals and access to information

The third webinar was held in English and Spanish provided a broad overview of environmental monitoring in mining. 60 people gathered virtually to discuss relevant human rights principles, and the need for environmental monitoring during each stage of a mining project, from planning to post-closure. A case study from Mongolia was highlighted; the discussion that followed explored community-based monitoring and the role community monitoring can play in conflict reduction and mitigation.

Recording of the webinar available below:

Meaningful Stakeholder Involvement in Decision-making Processes

The fourth webinar provided a broad overview of meaningful stakeholder engagement and why it matters. This webinar was held in English and brought together over 60 participants. We explored tools that can be use to develop effective strategies to integrate stakeholder engagement into the environmental management of mining. A case study from Kenya was used to start discussions.

A key issue identified was free, prior and informed consent, a concept about bottom up participation and consultation of an indigenous population prior to development of a project.

Recording of the webinar available below:

English

Can participatory environmental monitoring committees empower citizens to shape decision-making?

The fifth webinar was a sequel to “Environmental Monitoring Part I - The fundamentals and access to information.” This webinar was held in English and Spanish and brought together 103 participants from 37 countries. The webinars explored the work of community-based environmental monitoring committees, looking at the role of committees, their strengths and the challenges they face.

We addressed the question of whether the committees can empower citizens to shape decision-making on mining in their areas and be a tool to prevent conflict from escalating. Cases from Peru and Mongolia were shared and discussed.

Recording of the webinar is available:

The Role of Government in Preventing or Enabling Conflict in the Extractive Sector

The sixth webinar held in English and Spanish explored the role and responsibility of governments in mitigating, preventing and transforming conflict associated with mining, oil and gas, bringing together 110 people from 23 countries.

The webinar focused on how governments can help prevent the escalation of conflict related to mining, oil and gas. Findings from a new study on this topic were shared, and two cases in Peru and Colombia were examined where governments developed stronger institutional capacity to prevent conflict and address systemic causes. A key take away of the webinar was that conflict does not always have negative outcomes, it can be transformed into opportunities for sustainable development, if managed constructively.

Recording of the webinar is available:

Using Social and Environmental Safeguards and Grievance Mechanisms as Tools to Prevent Harm in the Extractive Sector

The Learning Series concluded with our April webinar on Environmental Safeguards and Grievance Mechanisms. This webinar, held in English and Spanish, involved 100 participants from 30 countries.

This webinar focused on the global landscape of social and environmental standards, and the grievance mechanisms that underlie them as well as the role of these standards and mechanisms in preventing and addressing conflict in the mining, oil and gas sectors. The English webinar discussed the Oyu Tolgoi case, where herders reached a historic agreement with one of the world’s largest copper mines. Read more about this interesting case here. The Spanish webinar explored the Yanacoacha case from Peru.

Recording of the webinar is available:

Webinar Series: Governance of Extractive Industries

This learning series comprised 7 webinars covering key issues for the environmental governance of the mining sector

A newsletter about responsible mining from the Environmental Governance Programme (EGP)

February 11^th, 2026

February 10^th, 2026

A newsletter about responsible mining from the Environmental Governance Programme (EGP)

October 27^th, 2025

Learn about all countries that have been a part of EGP

A newsletter about responsible mining from the Environmental Governance Programme (EGP)

February 11th, 2026

February 10th, 2026

A newsletter about responsible mining from the Environmental Governance Programme (EGP)

October 27th, 2025

Learn about all countries that have been a part of EGP

February 11^th, 2026

February 10^th, 2026

October 27^th, 2025