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Our Approach
Our strategic planning and organization reflect our efforts to turn sustainability challenges into transformational opportunities.
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Sustainable mining
Sustainable mining
We aim to operate responsibly and enhance positive impacts for people, communities, and the planet, generating social, environmental, and economic value beyond our activities.
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Nature
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Social
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Indigenous Peoples and Traditional Communities
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Reparation
Reparation
We have worked tirelessly to accomplish our mission of repairing and compensating the damage caused to the people and to the land affected.
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Social performance
We operate under a commitment to respecting the rights of our communities and the environment
We recognize that we are a part of, and can positively contribute to, the communities where we operate. With this in mind, we have defined our social ambition with an emphasis on our goal of supporting the development of autonomous communities, engaging around issues that are relevant to humanity, and advancing sustainable mining.
However, we are also aware that our activities can cause disturbances to our communities and the environment. That is why we actively work to prevent risks and mitigate impacts through processes and standards that guide our social initiatives and how we engage with people, communities, and society at large.
However, we are also aware that our activities can cause disturbances to our communities and the environment. That is why we actively work to prevent risks and mitigate impacts through processes and standards that guide our social initiatives and how we engage with people, communities, and society at large.
We recognize that we are a part of, and can positively contribute to, the communities where we operate. With this in mind, we have defined our social ambition with an emphasis on our goal of supporting the development of autonomous communities, engaging around issues that are relevant to humanity, and advancing sustainable mining.
However, we are also aware that our activities can cause disturbances to our communities and the environment. That is why we actively work to prevent risks and mitigate impacts through processes and standards that guide our social initiatives and how we engage with people, communities, and society at large.
However, we are also aware that our activities can cause disturbances to our communities and the environment. That is why we actively work to prevent risks and mitigate impacts through processes and standards that guide our social initiatives and how we engage with people, communities, and society at large.
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Principles guiding our relationships:
Transparency
Act with transparency and ethics, respecting the human rights of employees, third parties and communities while always upholding to Vale’s corporate values.
Active Listening
Provide listening channels and implement a process for interactions management, aligned with Vale’s Listening and Response Mechanism.
Social Participation
Strengthen and implement participatory processes, in which the company’s positive legacy for the territories involved is derived from previous agreements with stakeholders and duly appropriated by the communities.
Engagement
Promote engagement with stakeholders, sharing responsibilities among communities, public authorities, civil society organizations and private sector, reinforcing the role of each one based on the territory’s needs.
Improve Social Development
Support initiatives for economic diversification and the strengthening of institutions and communities, in a manner which contributes to their development and resilience processes.
Diversity and Inclusion
Properly engage vulnerable groups (taking adverse socioeconomic conditions, gender, ethnicity, age, physical disability and others) when identified as stakeholders, in initiatives/ projects developed by the company. Respect the social, economic, cultural, environmental, political, and organizational diversity of territories, valuing the knowledge and capabilities of local communities in building solutions jointly with the company.
Adherence to international best practices
Act with adherence to the ICMM’s Principles;
Act with adherence to the UN’s Guiding Principles for Businesses and Human Rights;
Act with adherence to the Sustainable Development Goals, their targets and indicators.
Act with adherence to the UN’s Guiding Principles for Businesses and Human Rights;
Act with adherence to the Sustainable Development Goals, their targets and indicators.
Operational Responsibility
Identify, recognize, and analyze, in a participatory manner, the risks involved and any impacts there may be on the communities, resulting from company’s activities, products or services, ensuring risks management and the elimination, mitigation, compensation and remedying of negative impacts.
Social performance framework
Our Social Performance Framework guides our community initiatives throughout the lifecycle of our projects, as follows:
Respect for Human Rights is at the core. It extends to all of our activities as a non-negotiable condition that requires every employee and contractor to be vigilant in order to prevent human rights violations.
Our relationships with communities and other stakeholders are the means by which we build respect and trust. It is through our engagement with individuals, groups, and institutions that we manage the potential positive and negative impacts of our operations, share our practices, and learn how to become a better company each day, making us a partner in the development of the territories where we operate.
We aim to go beyond bare minimum requirements and risk and impact management to enhance our contribution to territorial development.
Our social performance framework calls for company-wide engagement around reducing communities’ exposure to risks and mitigating the impacts of our activities.
We have dedicated Community Relations (CR) teams tasked with facilitating interaction with communities. Learn more in Local communities.
Respect for Human Rights is at the core. It extends to all of our activities as a non-negotiable condition that requires every employee and contractor to be vigilant in order to prevent human rights violations.
Our relationships with communities and other stakeholders are the means by which we build respect and trust. It is through our engagement with individuals, groups, and institutions that we manage the potential positive and negative impacts of our operations, share our practices, and learn how to become a better company each day, making us a partner in the development of the territories where we operate.
We aim to go beyond bare minimum requirements and risk and impact management to enhance our contribution to territorial development.
Our social performance framework calls for company-wide engagement around reducing communities’ exposure to risks and mitigating the impacts of our activities.
We have dedicated Community Relations (CR) teams tasked with facilitating interaction with communities. Learn more in Local communities.
Targets and commitments
Consistent with our objective to support the development of the communities and territories where we operate, we have established commitments for the upcoming years that include developing and implementing engagement plans for priority communities, as well as initiatives related to the rights of Indigenous Peoples residing near our operations. In addition, we have made a pledge to lift 500,000 individuals from extreme poverty by 2030 — an initiative that aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 1 – No Poverty. These efforts are primarily carried out through of the Vale Foundation and the Vale Fund. Ultimately, we anticipate that our community initiatives contribute to improve Vale’s performance in major external assessments.
Targets for the coming years:
By 2026, develop Engagement Plans for 100% of priority communities;
By 2030, lift 500,000 people out of extreme poverty (learn more here);
By 2030, all Indigenous Communities neighboring our operations to have plans in place to secure the rights outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
By 2030, improve our position for social performance in major external assessments.
Further information about the status of each of our commitments can be found here.
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Governance and risk management
Matters related to social impact, including human rights, are continuously monitored by the Board of Directors’ Sustainability Committee and addressed by our Executive Committees for Operational Risks and Compliance Risks, following the guidelines in Vale’s Risk Management Policy. These committees take a preventive approach and are responsible for assisting executive vice presidents in monitoring business risks and making related decisions.
All risks within Vale are assessed from the perspective of social and human rights. We adhere to methodologies, standards, and systems that are in line with Vale's risk management process and industry best practices.
All risks within Vale are assessed from the perspective of social and human rights. We adhere to methodologies, standards, and systems that are in line with Vale's risk management process and industry best practices.
Applying these tools aids in identifying, assessing, managing, and monitoring risks. The most common risks in our industry include those related to community safety, conflicts arising from involuntary resettlement and land use, disturbances to local communities (primarily related to noise, dust, and vibration), disputes over natural resources, and impacts to roads and highways. More information about Vale's risk management process can be found here.
Related policies
Fighting extreme poverty
As one of our strategic pillars, Vale has proposed a new social pact with society: we aspire for our positive impact on communities to extend beyond taxes, social programs, and reparations in Brumadinho; instead, we aim to become a catalyst of broader development in the areas where we operate, while promoting a safer and more sustainable mining industry.
As part of our social ambition and targets for 2030, we have included a goal to help lift 500,000 people from extreme poverty. This commitment aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a global call by the United Nations to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030, all people enjoy peace and prosperity.
SDG 1 calls for ending poverty in all its forms, “leaving no one behind.” It explicitly recognizes that economic development does not automatically translate into access to essential rights and services for all. We acknowledge that even within robust social programs aimed at universalizing essential rights, certain social groups — such as black individuals, women, indigenous communities, people with disabilities, LGBTQIA+ individuals, among others — face challenges in inclusion and accessing opportunities.
As part of our social ambition and targets for 2030, we have included a goal to help lift 500,000 people from extreme poverty. This commitment aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a global call by the United Nations to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030, all people enjoy peace and prosperity.
SDG 1 calls for ending poverty in all its forms, “leaving no one behind.” It explicitly recognizes that economic development does not automatically translate into access to essential rights and services for all. We acknowledge that even within robust social programs aimed at universalizing essential rights, certain social groups — such as black individuals, women, indigenous communities, people with disabilities, LGBTQIA+ individuals, among others — face challenges in inclusion and accessing opportunities.
Since announcing our commitment, we have launched a broad consultation and survey exercise involving various professionals and institutions. This has informed the development of a new methodology that we will continue to refine in the future in consultation with governments, civil society organizations, and other corporations.
Methodologically, we have adopted a concept of poverty as a multidimensional phenomenon and an approach based on Multidimensional Family Support (AFM) spanning five dimensions: education, income, health, nutrition, and infrastructure. The focus of our approach is on families. We provide support and referrals to existing public and corporate social programs in each locality based on the specific impacts on people’s everyday life and the different levels of deprivation in urban, rural, and forest settings.
We are currently piloting the new methodology in the states of Pará, Maranhão, Amazonas, and Rio de Janeiro. By the end of 2023, we anticipate that approximately 30,000 people will have been reached by our programs. These pilot tests are an essential step to deepen our strategic vision and further refine our methodology.
Methodologically, we have adopted a concept of poverty as a multidimensional phenomenon and an approach based on Multidimensional Family Support (AFM) spanning five dimensions: education, income, health, nutrition, and infrastructure. The focus of our approach is on families. We provide support and referrals to existing public and corporate social programs in each locality based on the specific impacts on people’s everyday life and the different levels of deprivation in urban, rural, and forest settings.
We are currently piloting the new methodology in the states of Pará, Maranhão, Amazonas, and Rio de Janeiro. By the end of 2023, we anticipate that approximately 30,000 people will have been reached by our programs. These pilot tests are an essential step to deepen our strategic vision and further refine our methodology.
Learn more about our Engagement with Communities
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