Mining Activities, Health and Well-Being in Indigenous Communities

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In addition to direct effects, mining activities have the potential to indirectly influence the health and well-being of Indigenous communities by modifying the social-ecological determinants of health, i.e., the conditions in which people live. The goal of this project is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the direct and indirect impacts of mining activities on Indigenous Peoples and communities’ health and well-being, their cumulative impacts over time, and their integration in Impacts Assessments. This project specifically focusses on Health Impact Assessment (HIA), which pays attention to health and to changes in the social-ecological determinants of health. HIA therefore offers a broader framework than Environmental Impacts Assessment (EIA) and Social Impacts Assessment (SIA) with which to assess the potential or actual impacts of mining activities on health and well-being. We will conduct a scoping review of the scientific literature on Indigenous conceptualizations of health and well-being and associated social-ecological determinants to develop a conceptual framework of the direct and indirect influence of mining activities. This framework will guide a critical discourse analysis of the representations and considerations of Indigenous Peoples’ and communities’ health and well-being meanings, experiences, and priorities in EIA, SIA, and HIA of mining projects. A case study analysis of the process of HIA in, or by, Indigenous communities will guide the realization of HIA in collaboration with community members and stakeholders in two to three Indigenous communities in northern Canada, Australia, and Sweden. The main deliverable of this project will be a guide to assist Indigenous communities and organizations in conducting HIA.

2019 to 2022
Researchers: 
Country: 
Canada
Australia
Nordic countries