Indigenous Peoples

Sandfire respects and acknowledges the rights and interests of Indigenous Peoples in line with the International Labor Organisation Convention 169 and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Sandfire recognises the importance of processes to ensure meaningful participation in decisions affecting Indigenous Peoples with respect to cultural characteristics and governance structures.

Our approach is governed by our Human Rights Policy which demonstrates our commitment to participating in meaningful engagement, respecting cultural heritage and local customs, and valuing diversity of backgrounds and cultures.

Each of Sandfire’s assets comply with the local laws and regulations. Where laws and regulations addressing the protection of cultural heritage and engagement with Indigenous Peoples are limited, we apply Sandfire’s policies and standards and consult relevant externally recognised standards.

We engage minority groups who may be affected by our activities, which includes any people who identify as Indigenous. We undertake extensive engagement to identify and recognise Indigenous Peoples within the areas where Sandfire operates which to date includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples within Australia, the Basarwa people in Botswana and Indigenous American tribal groups in the United States.

We seek out these groups during our engagements as they are often disproportionately represented in community meetings and governance bodies and may have barriers to participation in traditional methods of engagement. We utilise a suite of engagement mediums (both written and graphic), translators and trusted community representative bodies to support our engagement approaches.