The Effects of Sustainability Leadership and Innovation on Responsible Mining

Abstract

The global mining industry faces mounting pressure to become more responsible in achieving environmental goals while also meeting increasing global demands for materials. With a need for efficient and cost-effective production, firms can be tempted to deprioritize responsible mining practices that would meet environmental aims. Achieving responsible mining may depend on two factors: leadership orientation toward sustainability and the development of sustainability-related innovations. However, the role of these factors in driving responsible mining has yet to be fully examined. Using data from the Responsible Mining Index, an independent scoring of how 40 global mining firms address environmental aspects related to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), I analyzed the impact of sustainability orientation and sustainability-related innovations on these scores. Sustainability orientation was measured using text analysis of annual reports for sustainability keyword density and frame positivity, while a patent portfolio analytics tool was used to assess the proportion of SDG-related innovations. The analysis revealed that sustainability keyword density and a higher proportion of SDG-related patents were positively correlated with responsible mining, while frame positivity showed no significant correlation. This original analysis suggests that mining firms’ communication of sustainability efforts and focus on SDG-driven innovation are not merely “greenwashing” but instead can underpin responsible mining practices.