In this session, the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM), its partner Datastake, and Save the Children, repositioned communities and affected rightholders at the centre of mineral supply chain due diligence efforts, a pre-requisite towards a just energy transition. Through consolidation of findings from various contexts and approaches, the objective of this session is to showcase best-practice examples of why collaborating with civil society actors and community-centered organisations is necessary to achieve formalization of ASM & protection of human/ child rights.

To complement corporate efforts to manage risk in the mining and minerals trade sector, ARM and Datastake have deployed context-relevant digital tools promoting local digitisation and participation. By putting structured compilation and reporting systems in the hands of Artisanal and Small-Scale (ASM) miners and other local stakeholders, they ensure that local voices are accounted for towards risk management and impact measurement. Save the Children shared its experience in running a child rights risk analysis in the ASM cobalt sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) which, based on interaction with communities and in particular children, proves how formalisation processes meant to protect human rights can actually increase child protection risks as an unintended consequence.

The speakers made the argument that broader availability of, and reliance on, local perspectives can help global buyers continuously and reliably manage risk along the ASM value chain.