Hands up if you own gold jewellery. Hands up again if you know if the gold was mined responsibly. Recently looking to repurpose my old gold jewellery into a wedding band, I found there can be big quality trade-offs going this route. As consumers we are beholden to the mining sector, and the governments that regulate them, to ensure mining practices are sustainable. So when I find a job posting for a VP Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for Vancouver-based gold mining company Goldcorp, I can’t help but think that’s a good thing.
This is a new position for Goldcorp, which, by the way, has produced a sustainability report following the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines and is one of Ethical Funds’ top 10 Balanced Fund holdings as of last June.
According to the posting, Goldcorp is looking for a global thinker with cultural sensitivity who can work in a field characterized by acute uncertainty. They want a values-driven champion who walks the talk and can position the company as an industry CSR leader.
Searching the fairjewelry.org site for references to Goldcorp, I came upon a July 2008 press release issued by a group of shareholder engagement specialists lauding Goldcorp for their agreement to conduct an independent human rights impact assessment at their Guatemalan operations, a move the shareholders hope will become a mining sector benchmark. This kind of leadership can’t happen any time too soon. If you know someone who wants to jump into the fray, application and details are at corostrandberg.com.
Coro Strandberg is a sustainability specialist. She provides advisory, research, and facilitation services to organizations on integrating sustainability into business strategy and operations. corostrandberg.com
