Mining companies are faced with growing societal demands that a sufficient portion of the benefits from mining should flow to local communities to ensure they are adequately compensated for the negative social impacts they experience. This paper considers how a more equitable benefit distribution system can be achieved through voluntary initiatives, recognising companies as potential agents for social development through the provision of improved services and infrastructure, capacity-building, employment and local economic development initiatives. Social Development Needs Analysis is introduced as an enhancement to participatory Social Impact Assessment methods to give practical guidance to site managers in evaluating community investment alternatives. Social Development Needs Analysis aims to identify the priority social issues that need to be addressed in order for a company to contribute to a net positive impact in the community while building assets for the business. © 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Research Division:	Studies in Human Society
Research Group:	Sociology
Research Field:	Applied Sociology, Program Evaluation and Social Impact Assessment
Objective Division:	Law, Politics and Community Services
Objective Group:	Community Service (excl. Work)
Objective Field:	Community Service (excl. Work) not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Vanclay, FM (Professor Francis Vanclay)
ID Code:	52282
Year Published:	2009
Web of Science® Times Cited:	92
Deposited By:	Agricultural Science
Deposited On:	2008-06-15
Last Modified:	2012-03-05
Downloads:	0