Course

Level: Introductory

Facilitators: Elizabeth Freele & Rachel Dekker, Sympact Advisory Inc.

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) has gained impressive prominence in recent years - as rankings and ratings agencies, proxy firms, and securities regulators increasingly influence your investors, host governments, communities and talent pools, there is little doubt that this acronym has gone from fringe to centre-stage across the mining industry. Annual industry studies now consistently rank ESG as both a top priority and a top risk – with many highlighting how poorly we are still performing, despite proof that companies that use systematic ESG frameworks instead of ad-hoc approaches enjoy an average increase in market value of 60%!

Meanwhile, the SEC, CSA and European Commission have all either already developed or are expected to issue new mandatory disclosures, from climate change to diversity and inclusion to human rights due diligence and more. 93% of the world’s 250 largest companies by revenue, and 75% of the world’s largest 100 companies across 49 countries, all already disclose information on their environmental and social performance. The disclosure trend shows no signs of slowing down.

Navigating this rapidly evolving ESG landscape can be overwhelming – but it doesn’t have to be! Join us for a crash course at CIM. Although there's more and more ESG courses out there now, few instructors understand YOUR reality in the mining industry.  But we do. Recently named a Top 25 ESG Champion by the Natural Resources Forum, at Sympact, we're practitioners first. Let us help you grow your ESG knowledge base and tool kit, so you know where to focus and can better support your company’s success.

Sympact is a women-owned award-winning mining sustainability think tank & hands-on ESG consultancy. As practitioners first, from the field to the boardroom, we specialize in the design, implementation and evaluation of practical solutions and actionable strategies for ESG risk mitigation to help your company meet rapidly evolving societal and investor expectations.

Short Course Objectives:

Get an industry-specific crash course on ESG with Sympact, recently named a Top 25 ESG Champion by the Natural Resources Forum. Participants will grow their ESG knowledge base and toolkit, learn about emerging and evolving trends, and leave equipped with the understanding required to know where to focus their company's strategy and resources to navigate the rapidly changing landscape of ESG and maximize your company’s success.

Target Audience:

Senior managers and anyone with responsibility (direct or indirect) for ESG in a mining company, including e.g. corporate disclosure, sustainability, social performance and risk.

About the instructors:

Elizabeth Freele, MBA - Managing Partner, Sympact Elizabeth is a passionate sustainability strategist whose 15+ year track record has supported junior explorers to mature mid-tier producers, from the field to the boardroom globally, in developing future-fit corporate responsibility, sustainability and risk management approaches. Elizabeth holds an MBA from IE Business School, a Certificate in Sustainable Business Strategy from Harvard Business School. She is GRI certified and is a MAC TSM Verification Service Provider. She is also the host of industry podcast Prospecting Purpose.

Rachel Dekker, MPhil - Managing Partner, Sympact Rachel is a corporate social impact strategist with 15+ years’ international work experience in natural resource, agriculture, circular economy, and cleantech industries, and has worked across the minelife. Rachel has an MPhil in International Development from the University of Oxford and has completed certificate programs in Social Innovation, Public Relations and Public Participation (IAP2). Rachel was a sessional lecturer at the University of Victoria, has published several corporate guides and is a regular facilitator.