Blog
Deep dive on cooperative support – case studies from Inhambane, Tete and Zambezia in Mozambique
With an estimated 100,000 to 300,000 people working in it, the artisanal and small-scale mining (MAPE) sector in Mozambique is responsible for a significant portion of the country’s mining output, especially for minerals like gold. However, the miners who are the backbone of the MAPE sector have been struggling to make the most out of the minerals and metals they extract.
Small-Scale Copper Mining in Peru: What Do We Know About It?
By: Victor Hugo Pachas, Andean Region Manager (Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador) Little is known about the dynamics of small-scale copper mining in Peru. State agencies fail to pay due attention to this activity as artisanal production of this mineral remains unrecorded,...
Structural challenges and contribution from ARM to the resilience of women miners in Burkina Faso
Since the pandemic of Covid-19, the economic resilience of mining communities in Burkina Faso has been strengthened with the implementation of several activities by the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM), with particular attention to women in their communities, and the inequality and violence vectors that affect them.
Challenges of the new MINEM ASM policy in Peru
The National Multisectoral Policy for Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) in Peru, which is valid until 2030, includes the contributions, expectations, and demands of the population who is dedicated to ASM activity in the country.
Due diligence risk management needs through CRAFT and Fairmined
The best way for mining companies that want to make a difference by giving a seal of responsible conduct and social purpose is to buy minerals from artisanal and small-scale mining
An overview of the Covid-19 pandemic effects on artisanal and small-scale mining sector
By: David Guzmán, Mercury and Processing Specialist at ARM March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization acknowledged SARS-CoV-2 (more commonly known as Covid-19) virus transmission as a pandemic. At that time, cases and casualties associated with the disease were...
PREPARING TO SUPPORT A JOURNEY TOWARDS EMPOWERMENT: Movement Building with Women Miners in Antioquia, Colombia
Since June 2020, the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) and MIT D-Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have been working to develop the project “RISE: Resilient, Inclusive & Sustainable Environments – A challenge to address gender-based violence in the small-scale mining sector”
Economic reactivation in the context of Covid 19, sustainable development, and artisanal and small scale mining
The current situation around the world with Covid 19 has made us look into our own abilities to find alternatives as individuals, State institutions, companies, and organized civil society in order to get out of the crisis and turn unfavorable phenomena on economy, sustainable development, and social dynamics as a whole into opportunities. Such is the case of artisanal and small scale mining.
5 tips to improve reforestation and revegetation processes efficiency to face climate change
Within the potential of ASMs to make a contribution in the global climatic agenda, reforestation processes are of the utmost importance.
Small mining in Boyacá also reforests
A group of men and women miners in Paipa reforest an area of approximately 2500 square meters, with the company of Alliance for Responsible Mining and Gensa, participating in the project “Somos Tesoro” (We are a Treasure).
Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining: Addressing Challenges in Global Supply Chains
The paper sheds light on the often inhumane working conditions within the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM)sector, outlines the human rights related risks and therewith involved responsibilities of businesses, and addresses the challenges for companies resulting from ASM.
Mining by profession, criminal by social prejudice
Saving is our vehicle for investment. We can call it our financial instrument for purchasing equipment and machinery. It is the only financial instrument we have access to since in practice, it has been impossible to obtain credit from financial entities. It would be important to obtain it because we could leverage our growth and it would become a way to optimize our cash flow, but under the current conditions of stigmatization of mining and, more specifically, small-scale gold, it is impossible to obtain it.
Is recycled gold an ethical choice?
For more than a decade the jewellery industry has been promoting the use of recycled gold when referencing a responsible chains of custody (CoC) and a statement of provenance or traceability. So is this the best practice? If I use exclusively recycled gold for my jewels, am I responsible ? Let’s try to answer these questions.
A world without financial services (2)
The most common reasons that banks deny services to the gold mining sector, are related to the difficulty of carrying out due diligence processes that allow them to perform an accurate risk assessment. Are these reasons really objective when the inability to do proper risk management by the compliance area rests with the evaluated actor?
A world without financial services (1)
The artisanal and small-scale mining sector seems invisible to the financial inclusion policies implemented in Colombia. Due to this, miners face many difficulties trying to connect with formal markets and are left without the financial services needed to channel the earnings.
Jewelry workshops for female gold panner
Our country is rich in minerals and has a great goldsmith tradition, which comes from beginnings of ancient Peru. It was precisely the pre-Inca cultures that defined Peru as one of the five metallurgical cradles of the world.
Gold fever in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique
With the promotion of this alternative method and the discontinuation of mercury, in addition to the environmental and health advantages for the population, other illegal practices, as well as the presence of mercury black market traders, are minimized.
Third Jewelry Industry Summit in Tucson, AZ
As a not for profit, charitable organization The Jewelry Industry Summit strives to bring the jewelry industry together to encourage and facilitate meaningful, solution-driven activities that continue to advance sustainability and responsible sourcing. The summits hosted by our organization are interactive opportunities to come together to develop strategies for more responsible jewelry sourcing.
Gold panning in Colombia, an uncomfortable cultural heritage
In June 2012 an application was filed to the Colombian Ministry of Culture for the traditional barequeo , a panning technique used to obtain gold with manual tools on the riverbed and shores of the Cauca river and its tributaries, to be included in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the nation (ICH).
Water management in artisanal and small scale placer mining
Water is the most vital resource for life. Which is why it is important to understand the impact of artisanal and small-scale placer mining (ASM) on water bodies and watercourses and implement the correct water use and management practices.