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Community benefit agreements and natural resource development: Achieving better outcomes

Author

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  • Gunton, Thomas
  • Werker, Eric
  • Markey, Sean

Abstract

Community benefit agreements have emerged as a popular tool for mitigating conflicts over natural resource development and generating benefits for local communities. While CBAs hold considerable promise as a means of improving resource development, there remains a wide variation in CBA outcomes and considerable uncertainty over their effectiveness. This collection of research papers seeks to reduce this uncertainty by summarizing the current state of knowledge on CBAs and advancing our understanding of the role of CBAs. The findings suggest that while CBAs have potential for improving outcomes from resource development, many CBAs fall short of expectations and improvements are required. The findings identify reforms and best practices for improving CBAs to achieve more sustainable development and methodological guidance for future research on CBAs and resource-led development.

Suggested Citation

  • Gunton, Thomas & Werker, Eric & Markey, Sean, 2021. "Community benefit agreements and natural resource development: Achieving better outcomes," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:73:y:2021:i:c:s0301420721001690
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2021.102155
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Steinberg,Jessica, 2019. "Mines, Communities, and States," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781108476935, Enero-Abr.
    2. Cascadden, Maggie & Gunton, Thomas & Rutherford, Murray, 2021. "Best practices for Impact Benefit Agreements," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    3. Gunton, Cameron & Markey, Sean, 2021. "The role of community benefit agreements in natural resource governance and community development: Issues and prospects," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    4. Szoke-Burke, Sam & Werker, Eric, 2021. "Benefit sharing, power, and the performance of multi-stakeholder institutions at Ghana's Ahafo mine," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    5. Adebayo, Eric & Werker, Eric, 2021. "How much are benefit-sharing agreements worth to communities affected by mining?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    6. Söderholm, Patrik & Svahn, Nanna, 2015. "Mining, regional development and benefit-sharing in developed countries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 78-91.
    7. Gunton, Cameron & Gunton, Thomas & Batson, Joshua & Markey, Sean & Dale, Daniel, 2021. "Designing fiscal regimes for impact benefit agreements," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    8. Hira, Andy & Busumtwi-Sam, James, 2021. "Improving mining community benefits through better monitoring and evaluation," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    9. O'Faircheallaigh, Ciaran, 2021. "Explaining outcomes from negotiated agreements in Australia and Canada," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Cited by:

    1. Blesia, Jhon Urasti & Dixon, Keith & Lord, Beverley Rae, 2023. "Indigenous experiences and perspectives on a mining corporation's community relations and development activities," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    2. Kotilainen, Juha M. & Peltonen, Lasse & Reinikainen, Kalle, 2022. "Community Benefit Agreements in the Nordic mining context: Local opportunities for collaboration in Sodankylä, Finland," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    3. Shyu, Chian-Woei & Yang, Tzu-I, 2025. "Socio-technical tensions from community acceptance, energy transition, and energy justice: Lessons from solar photovoltaic projects in Taiwan," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 384(C).
    4. Mononen, Tuija & Sihvonen, Jukka & Sairinen, Rauno & Tiainen, Heidi, 2023. "Local governance of the mining industry—five Finnish examples," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).

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