This paper demonstrates the potential of the mining industry to contribute to social development (community building, resilience and wellbeing) and to economic transitioning post-mining. A number of factors may facilitate the realisation of this potential, in particular community engagement activities that build community resilience and capacity to adapt to changing environments. This paper reviews a community foresight initiative, named Clermont Preferred Future (CPF), which is associated with a coal mine development in the town of Clermont in Queensland, Australia. The purpose of CPF, which was adopted in 2008 and is intended to continue to 2020, is to facilitate a transition to a prosperous and sustainable future by leveraging opportunities from coal mining while reducing dependence on the industry. CPF has been cited as a successful model of engagement and community development, and was highly commended in the Community Economic Development category at the 2011 Australian National Awards for Economic Development Excellence. This review draws on the experiences of stakeholders involved in CPF, and on foresight, community engagement, and community development literature. It identifies what has worked well, what has fallen short of the project’s rhetorical aspirations, and how processes and outcomes might be improved. It also trials artwork as an engagement tool. The findings are valuable for Clermont specifically, but also for the mining industry and mining communities more broadly, as well as for other industries in the context of community engagement and strategic planning.
References
[1]
Miles, B.; Reark, J.; Kinnear, S.; Howkins, T.; Springer, T. Responding to the challenges of regional development: Clermont’s Preferred Future and community development strategy. In Proceedings of the 12th SEGRA (Sustainable Economic Growth for Regional Australia) Conference, Albury, Australia, 18–20 August 2008.
[2]
Faint, S.; Hamblin, N. The future is rosy, but it hasn’t always been this way. Clermont’s Preferred Future: A model of engagement and community development. In Proceedings of the Social Licence & Stakeholder Engagement Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 6–8 August 2012.
[3]
Isaac Regional Council. FIFO/DIDO Enquiry: Isaac Regional Council submission. 2011. Available online: http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House_of_Representatives_Committees?url=/ra/fifodido/subs.htm (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[4]
Isaac Regional Council. Your free town to town guide to travelling the Isaac Region: A short drive from Mackay and Rockhampton n.d. Available online: http://www.isaac.qld.gov.au/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=c0549ef3-f492-4b05-8645-f9d375be8ea6&groupId=12238 (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[5]
Rio Tinto. Blair Athol media release. 2013. Available online: http://www.riotinto.com/media/5157_22272.asp (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[6]
Rio Tinto Coal Australia. Clermont mine. 2012. Available online: http://www.riotintocoalaustralia.com.au/321_clermont_mine_project.asp (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[7]
Stanley, D. Rio Tinto to sell Clermont and Blair Athol coal mines. CQ News, 5 April 2013. Available online: http://www.cqnews.com.au/news/rio-tinto-to-ditch-two-mines-in-attempt-to-save-it/1817962/ (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[8]
Clermont Community and Business Group. Available online: http://www.ourclermont.com.au (accessed on 15 October 2013).
[9]
Isaac Regional Council. Isaac Region 2020 Vision Community Plan. 2009. Available online: http://www.isaac.qld.gov.au/community-plan (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[10]
Slaughter, R. The state of play in the futures field: A metascanning overview. Foresight 2009, 11, 6–20, doi:10.1108/14636680910994932.
[11]
Voros, J. A primer on futures studies, foresight and the use of scenarios. Prospect, 2001, 6. Available online: http://thinkingfutures.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/A_Primer_on_Futures_Studies.pdf (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[12]
Gidley, J.M. Futures/foresight in education at primary and secondary levels: A literature review and research task analysis. In Futures in Education: Principles, practice and potential; Australian Foresight Institute Monograph Series; Australian Foresight Institute: Hawthorn, Australia, 2004; pp. 5–72.
[13]
Voros, J. Macro-prospection: Thinking about the future using macro- and Big History. In Proceedings of Global Future 2045 International Congress; Moscow, Russia: 17–20 February 2012.
[14]
Ehrenreich, B. Smile or Die: How Positive Thinking Fooled America and the World; Granta: London, UK, 2009.
[15]
Slaughter, R. Futures for the Third Millennium: Enabling the Forward View; Prospect: St Leonards, Australia, 1999.
[16]
Cavaye, J. Understanding community development. Available online: http://www.communitydevelopment.com.au/Documents/Understanding%20Community%20Development.pdf (accessed on 26 September 2013).
[17]
Sarkissian, W.; Hofer, N.; Shore, Y.; Vajda, S.; Wilkinson, C. Kitchen Table Sustainability: Practical recipes for Community Engagement with Sustainability; Earthscan: London, UK, 2009.
[18]
Australian Government Department of Industry Tourism and Resources (DITR). Community Engagement and Development; Commonwealth of Australia: Canberra, Australia, 2006.
[19]
Minerals Council of Australia (MCA). Enduring Value: The Australian Minerals Industry Framework for Sustainable Development. Guidance for Implementation. Available online: http://www.minerals.org.au/focus/sustainable_development/enduring_value (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[20]
Ministerial Council on Mineral and Petroleum Resources (MCMPR). Principles for Engagement with Communities and Stakeholders; MCMPR: Canberra, Australia, 2005.
[21]
AccountAbility AA1000 stakeholder engagement standard 2011. Available online: http://www.accountability.org/images/content/5/4/542/AA1000SES%202010%20PRINT.pdf (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[22]
International Association for Public Participation (IAP2). IAP2 core Values of Public Participation. Available online: http://iap2.affiniscape.com/associations/4748/files/CoreValues.pdf (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[23]
Victoria State Government Department of Environment and Primary Resources. Effective Engagement. Available online: http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/effective-engagement (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[24]
Gardner, J.; Dowd, A.-M.; Mason, C.; Ashworth, P. A Framework for Stakeholder Engagement on Climate Adaptation; Climate Adaptation National Research Flagship Working Paper Number 3; CSIRO: Brisbane, Australia, 2009.
[25]
Arnstein, S.R. A ladder of citizen participation. J. Am. Inst. Plann. 1969, 35, 216–224, doi:10.1080/01944366908977225.
[26]
Wilcox, D. The Guide to Effective Participation; Partnership: Brighton, UK, 1994.
[27]
Carter, A.S. Mining Companies as Agents of Development? Corporate Social Responsibility, Participation and Local Community at Mining Projects. Master’s Thesis, University of Bath, Bath, UK, 1999.
[28]
Roberts, R. Public involvement: From consultation to participation. In Environmental and Social Impact Assessment; Vanclay, F., Bronstein, D., Eds.; Wiley: Chichester, UK, 1995; pp. 221–246.
[29]
Crawley, A.; Sinclair, A. Indigenous human resource practices in Australian mining companies: Towards an ethical model. J. Bus. Ethics 2003, 45, 361–373, doi:10.1023/A:1024123721202.
[30]
Green, A.O.; Hunton‐Clarke, L. A typology of stakeholder participation for company environmental decision-making. Bus. Strat. Environ. 2003, 12, 292–299.
[31]
Aslin, H.J.; Brown, V.A. Towards Whole of Community Engagement: A Practical Toolkit; Murray-Darling Basin Commission: Canberra, Australia, 2004.
[32]
International Association for Public Participation (IAP2). IAP2 Spectrum of Public Participation. Available online: http://www.iap2.org/associations/4748/files/IAP2%20Spectrum_vertical.pdf (accessed on 10 October 2013).
[33]
Ross, H.; Buchy, M.; Proctor, W. Laying down the ladder: A typology of public participation in Australian natural resource management. Aust. J. Environ. Manag. 2002, 9, 205–217, doi:10.1080/14486563.2002.10648561.
[34]
Institute for Sustainable Regional Development. Clermont Preferred Future: Clermont community Development Strategy; Central Queensland University: Bruce Hwy, Australia, 2008.
[35]
Forum for the Future. The five capitals model. Available online: http://www.forumforthefuture.org/sites/default/files/project/downloads/five-capitals-model.pdf. (accessed on 26 September 2013).
[36]
Raeburn, J.; Akerman, M.; Chuengsatiansup, K.; Mejia, F.; Oladepo, O. Community capacity building and health promotion in a globalized world. Heal. Promot. Int. 2006, 21, 84–90, doi:10.1093/heapro/dal055.
[37]
Smith, N.; Littlejohns, L.B.; Thompson, D. Shaking out the cobwebs: Insights into community capacity and its relation to health outcomes. Community Dev. J. 2001, 36, 30–41, doi:10.1093/cdj/36.1.30.
[38]
Labonte, R.; Laverack, G. Capacity building in health promotion, Part 1: For whom? And for what purpose? Crit. Public Heal. 2001, 11, 111–127, doi:10.1080/09581590110039838.
[39]
Verity, F. Community capacity building—A review of the literature. Report for the Department of Health, Health Promotion Branch, Government of South Australia; School of Social Administration and Social Work, Flinders University: Adelaide, Australia, 2007.
[40]
Makuwira, J. Community organizing. In Encyclopedia of Activism and Social Justice; Anderson, G., Herr, K., Eds.; Sage: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA, 2007; Volumes 1, 2 & 3, pp. 383–385.
[41]
Smyth, J. Critically engaged community capacity building and the “community organizing” approach in disadvantaged contexts. Crit. Stud. Educ. 2009, 50, 9–22, doi:10.1080/17508480802526629.
[42]
Putnam, L.L.; Phillips, N.; Chapman, P. Metaphors of communication and organization. In Handbook of Organization Studies; Clegg, S., Hardy, C., Nord, W.R., Eds.; Sage: London, UK, 1996; pp. 375–408.
[43]
Parsons, R. Constructions of Community Engagement: A Critical Study; Lambert: Saarbrücken, Germany, 2010.
[44]
Susskind, L.; Elliott, M. Paternalism, Conflict, and Coproduction: Learning from Citizen Action and Citizen Participation in Western Europe; Plenum Press: New York, NY, USA, 1983.
[45]
Wikstr？m, B.M. Visual art dialogues with elderly persons: Effects on perceived life situation. J. Nurs. Manag. 2000, 8, 31–7, doi:10.1046/j.1365-2834.2000.00154.x.
[46]
Smith, L.T. Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples; Zed Books: London, UK, 1999.
