Finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs
Our business
We operate in 35 countries where our 57,000 employees are working to find better ways to provide the materials the world needs
Our purpose in action
Continuous improvement and innovation are part of our DNA
Innovation
The need for innovation is greater than ever
We supply the metals and minerals used to help the world grow and decarbonise
Iron Ore
The primary raw material used to make steel, which is strong, long-lasting and cost-efficient
Lithium
The lightest of all metals, it is a key element needed for low-carbon technologies
Copper
Tough but malleable, corrosion-resistant and recyclable, and an excellent conductor of heat and transmitter of electricity
Bringing to market materials critical to urbanisation and the transition to a low-carbon economy
Oyu Tolgoi
One of the most modern, safe and sustainable operations in the world
Rincon Project
A long-life, low-cost and low-carbon lithium source
Simandou Project
The world鈥檚 largest untapped high-grade iron ore deposit
Providing materials the world needs in a responsible way
Climate Change
We鈥檙e targeting net zero emissions by 2050
Nature solutions
Our nature-based solutions projects complement the work we're doing to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 emissions
Decarbonisation progress update
We have a clear plan on decarbonisation - find out more about our progress in 2024
We aim to deliver superior returns to our shareholders while safeguarding the environment and meeting our obligations to wider society
Investor seminars
Our Investor seminar will be held in London on 4 December, and our Decarbonisation update on 5 December
Get the latest news, stories and updates
Things you can't live without
Our podcast discussing what needs to happen to create a sustainable future for the everyday items we have come to rely on
The 'f' word of innovation
How unlocking innovation requires a change of mindset
Reducing titanium oxide's carbon footprint
Our BlueSmelting technology could drastically reduce carbon emissions during ore processing
Discover more about life at Rio Tinto
Graduates and students
If you want to drive real change, we have just the place to do it
Empowering families with flexibility
Supporting new parents of any gender with equal access to parental leave
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We are proud to be the first mining company in Australia to embrace Native Title to land and to form agreements with Traditional Owners. Today, agreements are central to the way we work and an important way communities drive their own development.
Following the tragic destruction of the rock shelters at Juukan Gorge, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia in May 2020, we are finding better ways™ to work with communities and Indigenous Peoples, particularly in how we protect heritage. We are moving to a model of co-management, working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples across our operations. Our approach aims to enhance our understanding and appreciation of Indigenous cultural heritage and ensure that Indigenous voices inform our planning and decision making.
In 2023, our Iron Ore business advanced 5 Social, Cultural, and Heritage Management Plans for proposed developments, with positive feedback by Traditional Owners. It is based on building understanding, co-designing, partnering, and transparently sharing information.
In November 2022, we agreed with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura Aboriginal Corporation to create the Juukan Gorge Legacy Foundation as part of a remedy agreement relating to the destruction of the rock shelters at Juukan Gorge. Financial support will be provided to the Traditional Owner-led foundation to progress major cultural and social projects, including a new keeping place for storing important cultural materials. The agreement forms part of our commitment to remedy and rebuild the relationship with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people.
In November 2022, we signed an updated agreement with Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation. The agreement aims to provide better social and economic outcomes for future generations and reflects our commitment to create opportunities for Yindjibarndi people to participate in our operations. The agreement also includes support for Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation to develop community, commercial and cultural projects and programs to fulfil its aspirations of self-determination.
In October 2023, we announced a memorandum of understanding with the Yindjibarndi Energy Corporation to explore opportunities to collaborate on renewable energy projects on Yindjibarndi Country in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Together, we will consider a range of opportunities, including wind and solar power and battery energy storage systems.
We continue to work together with Indigenous groups in Canada to implement agreements.
We have 12 active long-term impact benefits/participation agreements. Our agreements include areas such as training and employment procurement, land and water management, joint environmental monitoring and community investment. We are also working in partnership with Indigenous communities to look at how we protect and preserve cultural heritage.
In February 2023, the Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach and Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) signed an agreement to establish a mutually beneficial relationship based on dialogue, collaboration and trust. This socio-economic agreement aims to create opportunities for greater participation by Naskapi People in IOC鈥檚 activities through training and development, employment, collaboration on environmental projects, and procurement. It will also protect and encourage the practice of traditional activities and provide long-term financial benefits to the Naskapi Nation.
At our Diavik Diamond Mine in the Northwest Territories, we are working with Indigenous partners to develop criteria for water quality to ensure that water is healthy and safe from a western science perspective and from a traditional cultural use perspective. This initiative values both western science and traditional knowledge and it will be evaluated equally by the Wek鈥櫭╡zh.i Land and Water Board and the regulator. It is part of a co-management regulatory regime to ensure future traditional use of the local land and water. In the northern part of British Columbia, we have announced a significant archaeological research project together with the Cheslatta Carrier Nation. The project will excavate sites of remarkable cultural and historical significance that could date back more than 10,000 years.
In the Saguenay鈥揕ac-St-Jean region of Quebec, we announced the signing of an agreement with Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation in December 2022. This agreement 鈥 named Kuessilueu, which means 鈥渢he wind is turning鈥 in Nelueun 鈥 is the start of a collaborative process that will bring Pekuakamiulnuatsh and 糖心vlog入口representatives together in a co-designed approach to identify priorities and recommendations on governance, jobs and training, business opportunities, cultural heritage, environment, partnerships, and energy transition. The agreement will involve a large group of people and aims to create a movement, with each participant becoming an agent of change in their respective area. As part of this agreement, an Indigenous awareness program will be launched for our employees in the region.
We have many agreements with groups around the world. These community agreements are long-term, often with horizons beyond 50 years, and they help us establish relationships and run our business in a way that delivers mutual value.
Our agreements set the framework for how we engage with communities and Indigenous Peoples, often going beyond legal requirements and forming part of a long-term relationship that often spans decades. This framework also sets the value-sharing model for the financial and non-financial benefits communities receive for access to land, as well as the agreements for cultural heritage management and a range of other important actions.
Our community agreements are negotiated agreements with Indigenous Peoples, local communities and others. Not every mining or extractives company forms agreements, but we feel they are important in part because they demonstrate respect and commitment to inclusive engagement with communities and land-connected peoples.
These agreements, often the result of many years of engagement, document not only mutual obligations that are both enforceable and auditable, but also codify 鈥榯he how鈥 鈥 the behaviours expected from our employees and contractors. They help reduce potential effects of a project on communities and their environment. And they help make sure benefits are shared directly with those affected, and empower communities to make decisions about how those benefits are used.
Ultimately, agreements are a mechanism for accountability and provide companies and communities with mutual performance indicators that cover all stages; from exploration through to project planning and operations, including after closure.
Our agreements also provide beneficiary payments, deliver social and economic outcomes and engage with Indigenous groups in cultural heritage, employment, business development, and training and education activities. In Australia, for example, our land access agreements allow us to compensate, via trust funds and other mechanisms, Traditional Owners for the operations and presence we have on their land.
Our approach to engagement with Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders was fundamentally reshaped by key legal events in Australia with the High Court鈥檚 Mabo decision in 1992, and the introduction of Native Title legislation, which recognised Native Title to land in 1993. Under this law, the 鈥榬ight to negotiate鈥 provision facilitated a culture of agreement making in Australia.
We were proud to be the first mining company in Australia to embrace Native Title to land and to form agreements with Traditional Owners. Today, we have many such agreements globally.
In Canada, our first agreement was at the Diavik Diamond Mine, where, in 1999, we signed a Socio Economic Monitoring Agreement (SEMA) with the Northwest Territories government and 5 impacted Metis, First Nations and Inuit organisations. This was followed by the signing of individual Participation Agreements with each of the communities in 2000 and 2001.
The development of new assets, such as Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia, has also allowed us to in a context that went beyond Indigenous groups to land-connected peoples more broadly.
Learn more about how and why we make agreements
Our agreements can cover different aspects of our operations, be developed at different stages of the mining life cycle and are subject to different local and national laws.
The form of agreement we reach depends on the needs and circumstances of the operation and local communities – including their socio-economic priorities – as well as the national and local legal context.
The most common agreements we form are:
Some types of agreements are specific to particular jurisdictions. For details of various types of agreements and treaties in different jurisdictions – Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa – visit the website, a initiative supported by the and Rio Tinto.
Mining projects and operations change the life, livelihoods and landscapes of people connected to the land involved. Through our agreements, we work closely with host communities to ensure they receive a fair share of benefits. A good benefit process accurately determines the rightful recipients and then provides benefits fairly, following terms the recipients themselves help develop.
And by providing benefits, like employment, training, and supporting regional economic development, we can provide lasting value and positive outcomes to the communities where we work. Another way we secure long-term benefits for communities is by creating future income streams, such as endowment funds, foundations and trusts. These are built to suit the specific needs of the local community, and can sometimes align with local and regional development plans too.
Financial payments 鈥 for the purposes of compensation, benefits or both 鈥 can take many forms. For example, payments may be made based on operational outcomes, such as a percentage of profit, or royalties linked to production.
For example, at our Weipa operations, in Queensland, Australia, we established the , with the majority of annual funding placed in long-term secure investments. And at our Kitimat aluminium smelter in British Columbia, Canada, we partnered with the to buy and operate the , which serves other local employers and helps build skills within the local community.
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With the exception of the use of cookies, 糖心vlog入口generally does not seek to collect personal data through this website. However if you choose to provide personal data to 糖心vlog入口through this website (for example, by sending us an email), we will process that personal data to answer your query and if relevant, to manage our business relationship with you or your company. We won't process that personal data for other purposes except where required to meet our legal obligations or otherwise as authorised by law and notified to you.
If you choose to subscribe to our media releases or other communications, you can unsubscribe at any time (by following the instructions in the email or by contacting us).
With your consent, our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site. A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer's hard drive.
As some data privacy laws regulate IP addresses and other information collected through the use of cookies as personal data, Rio Tinto’s processing of such personal data needs to comply with its Data Privacy Standard (see Part 1 of our Privacy Policy), and also applicable data privacy laws.
With the exception of the use of cookies (explained below), 糖心vlog入口generally does not seek to collect personal data through this website. However if you choose to provide personal data to 糖心vlog入口through this website (for example, by sending us an email), we will process that personal data to answer your query and if relevant, to manage our business relationship with you or your company. We won't process that personal data for other purposes except where required to meet our legal obligations or otherwise as authorised by law and notified to you.
Part 1 of this Privacy Policy contains the 糖心vlog入口Data Privacy Standard, which provides an overview of Rio Tinto’s approach to personal data processing. There is additional information in the appendices to the Data Privacy Standard, including information about disclosures, trans-border data transfers, the exercise of data subject rights and how to make complaints or obtain further information relating to Rio Tinto’s processing of your personal data.
If you choose to subscribe to our media releases or other communications, you can unsubscribe at any time (by following the instructions in the email or by contacting us at digital.comms@riotinto.com).
With your consent, our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site.
A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer's hard drive.
As some data privacy laws regulate IP addresses and other information collected through the use of cookies as personal data, Rio Tinto’s processing of such personal data needs to comply with its Data Privacy Standard (see Part 1 of this Privacy Policy), and also applicable data privacy laws.
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