This course probes the sustainability dilemmas of the global mining industry, including water risk and rights, energy use and climate change, human rights, financial instability due to commodity pricing cycles, and the sharing of economic benefits from the mining process. The focus of the class is on metal and minerals mining, with a strong emphasis on copper and gold. It will spotlight Latin America, where mining projects have generated both large revenue streams and intense conflicts between global mining companies and local communities, mostly around water use and pollution. This class is research and writing-intensive: the primary deliverable is a case study of the sustainability challenges of a mining project in Latin America.

This class is a pre-requisite for students interested in applying for the 2016 Complex Global Problems Research Fellowship.