CSR counsellor met with anger, allegations Connections to Munk Centre, mining industry prompt concern. By Lee Berthiaume Published October 14, 2009

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The appointment of the government's first-ever corporate social responsibility counsellor has been met with anger and allegations mining companies have usurped efforts to hold the industry to account when operating in developing countries.

Others, however, say the decision to appoint Marketa Evans the government's point-person on helping Canadian mining and energy companies improve their social and environmental standards is inspired given her experience in the field.

Even before Ms. Evans's appointment, opposition to the CSR counsellor position has been fervent among NGOs. Prompted by numerous reports of Canadian mining companies acting irresponsibly in developing countries, a series of national roundtables was held across the country in 2006. Out of that grew a number of recommendations to government on ways to improve social responsibility standards for Canadian extractive companies operating in developing countries. They were agreed upon by both NGOs and industry representatives, and included the creation of an independent CSR ombudsman who would be able to investigate complaints and mediate disputes.

Two years later, the government responded with its own plans, which included the creation of the CSR counsellor. Much to the chagrin of NGOs, the counsellor cannot investigate cases without agreement from all parties, will not mediate disputes and reports to the trade minister.

Ms. Evans's appointment on Oct. 2, however, has prompted fresh anger. In particular, opposition has centred around her role as founding director of the University of Toronto's Munk Centre on International Studies and as founder of the Devonshire Initiative.

The Munk Centre is named after Peter Munk, chairman and founder of the world's largest gold-mining company Barrick Gold, who contributed $6.4 million to its construction.

The Devonshire Initiative, meanwhile, was established in March 2007 as a forum to bring mining companies and NGOs—most of whom weren't part of the roundtable process—together to discuss development issues and social responsibility. Roundtable participants have seen it as an attempt to undermine the recommendations that came out of the roundtables.

Catherine Coumans, research co-ordinator at MiningWatch Canada, said some of the Devonshire Initiative's industry members "have been quite frank in their condemnation of the roundtables and have actually been quite insulting in mentioning the NGOs that were involved in the roundtables."

In addition, she relayed the story of a post-doctoral fellow who was stopped from organizing a panel on mining issues at the Munk Centre that would include discussions of Barrick Gold's operations.

"The optics are bad, but they're not just sort of bad in a trivial way," Ms. Coumans said of the appointment.

DFAIT officials said Ms. Evans was unavailable for an interview until after she takes up her new position on Oct. 19.

Ms. Coumans noted that the original advertisement for the position, published in the Canada Gazette, required extensive knowledge of the Canadian extractive industry, but knowledge of development issues were not required, only an asset. Ms. Evans is most recently a director at the child-focused NGO Plan International.

"If this had been more of a consultative process," she said, "and some of the organizations that have been incredibly involved in all of this right back to the 2005 parliamentary report, I doubt this would have been the appointment."

One person the government did ask for his opinion was Craig Ford, vice-president of people and environment for mining company Inmet. Mr. Ford says he was one of Ms. Evans's references, and he couldn't think of someone better suited for the job.

"She brings a lot of vision, she brings a heck of a lot of leadership, she's well-connected, she's got a great deal of experience and knowledge about corporate social responsibility," he said. "She's familiar with the industry as well as with the development agenda."

Inmet is a participant of the Devonshire Initiative, but its website speaks harshly of the roundtable process, describing it as having highlighted "the polarized and unproductive nature of the relationship between the extractive sector and a small segment of [NGOs]."

Mr. Ford described the Devonshire Initiative as "a very honest effort" by mining companies to work with development NGOs. To that end, he said Ms. Evans is a real broker who can bring the two sides together.

Development expert Ian Smillie, who attended several Devonshire meetings with Partnership Africa Canada, also spoke highly of Ms. Evans.

"Unless Marketa works for the CIA, I think it's nonsense to say this is another plot," he said. "She understands the range—and there is a range—of corporate opinion on these issues, and she understands the range of NGO opinion on these issues."

PAC was eventually forced to pull out of the Devonshire Initiative because the cost of sending representatives to Toronto became prohibitive. However, he said the initiative was useful.

"I was very frustrated with the criticism of the Devonshire Initiative from some quarters," he said. "I mean, no matter what we said, there were some people who just refused to believe that it wasn't some thing that Barrick Gold cooked up. It wasn't."

Still, Mr. Smillie can understand the frustration of NGOs that participated in the roundtable process, only to see the government ignore the recommendations agreed upon by civil society and industry.

Liberal MP John McKay, who has tabled a private member's bill that seeks to legislate the roundtable recommendations, doesn't know Ms. Evans personally. However, he said the counsellor position has already driven a wedge between the mining industry and NGOs, and her appointment could worsen things.

"She comes with a history," he said. "It in effect potentially entrenches the difficulties rather than alleviates the difficulties."

lee@embassymag.ca