The following report provides information about current actions, stakeholder opinions and emerging trends related to the recommendations of the National Roundtables on Corporate Social Responsibility (“CSR”) and the Canadian Extractive Industry in Developing Countries (“the Roundtables”). The Roundtables were a process of multistakeholder policy dialogue that brought together representatives of the extractive industry, the investment community, civil society, academia and government. The Advisory Group that oversaw the Roundtables process issued a report in March 2007 containing 27 recommendations related to different aspects of CSR. This report and its recommendations remain an important reference for on-going discussions about CSR and the extractive industry in Canada.
The Mining Association of Canada (“MAC”)’s International Social Responsibility Committee has commissioned this research project in order to understand the actions taken by the government and other actors to implement the Roundtables’ recommendations, as well as the current gaps in implementation of the recommendations. The feedback solicited from stakeholders, as well as the analysis of emerging trends related to CSR and the extractive industry, is meant to help understand the continuing value of the Roundtables’ recommendations in guiding the future work of the committee.