The Ethical Funds Company is convening a roundtable of thought-leaders from the mining industry and First Nations groups in Toronto tomorrow to discuss evolving standards on the issue of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC).

FPIC refers to the process of properly consulting indigenous peoples and local communities about exploration and mining operations before they occur in their area. The roundtable discussion will bring together representatives from the mining industry, First Nations, NGO groups, human rights organizations, and the socially responsible investment (SRI) industry.

“The breath and depth of experience held by the various roundtable participants is exceptional, and it needs to be for an issue of such great importance,” says Robert Walker, vp of sustainability for Ethical Funds. “A new approach is needed to ensure communities are informed and able to have a meaningful voice on projects that directly impact their way if life.”

FPIC is defined by Oxfam as:

  • Free refers to the general principle of law that consent is not valid if obtained through coercion or manipulation.
  • Prior refers to meaningful, informed consent sought sufficiently in advance of any activities by a company.
  • Informed means that the process must involve consultation and participation by indigenous peoples with full disclosures of a development activity in accessible and understandable forms to affected peoples and communities.

There has been an increasing level of debate on FPIC in the last few years and Ethical Funds believes the proceedings of tomorrow’s multi-stakeholder roundtable will encourage companies to improve their community engagement practices and assist the SRI industry in assessing extractive industry projects that appear to be facing community opposition.

“The enforcement of FPIC is vital to upholding human rights, which is one of the core principles by which The Ethical Funds Company conducts its business,” says Walker. “FPIC is also of great importance to us as we are committed to community well-being and helping to foster collaboration among industries and communities.

Ethical Funds currently has resolutions on the table with Nortel and Power Corp.

In 2005, the company issued a report that concluded that at least 20 Canadian energy and mining companies operating in international human rights hot zones faced vastly increased risks of financial liabilities because of the companies’ lack of effective human rights policies.