2023-10-06 14:19:27
Latin American society stopped seeing mining as synonymous with prosperity and began to question the environmental impacts of the sector’s activities. 50% of mentions on social media associate the sector with illegality. This is the main conclusion of the report “A second chance for mining in Latin America: elements to reclaim its history” prepared by LLYC’s Deep Learning team, which analyzed more than 1.4 million messages in the digital sphere in ten countries in the region to understand the perception about the sector. To achieve this, Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques were used. Changing the narrative, humanizing the discourse and moving away from the cliché of sustainability are some of the key elements for the Latin American extractive sector to be able to communicate its value.
The research carried out by LLYC reaches the following conclusions:
Illegal mining leads the conversation: 50% of mentions of the sector refer to illegal mining, which demonstrates that illegal activities are strongly present in the public consciousness and are associated with the sector as a whole.
There are two protagonists that contribute to a negative view: governments and the mining sector itself deepen imaginaries that do not contribute to a correct position on the sector.
The environmental agenda as a political banner: the impact of mining is an electoral argument and a crusade in the management of local and national governments.
The sector communicates in closed circles: The sector faces the challenge of ceasing to communicate only within its own sphere, which currently has generated a minimal and predominantly negative impact on the public conversation.
Specific circumstances in Latin America that deepen stigmas: corruption, violence and drug trafficking, among other problems specific to the region, are associated with the mining sector due to the illegality of some activities.
Sustainable mining, an insufficient antidote: Despite its importance, sustainable mining represents only 2% of mentions in the conversation and the positive messages it brings are largely limited within its own circle of influence.
For Darío Álvarez, CEO of LLYC USA, these findings show the complexity of the challenges facing mining in Latin America in terms of public perception. According to him, “it is clear that the sector needs a strategic approach to deal with these issues and be able to effectively communicate its contribution to sustainable and responsible development in the region, and this can be done through a series of elements that we have raised in this study”.
LLYC offers some recommendations to help refocus the story of this sector. The secret is to abandon a passive tendency in communication and focus on proactivity. It is also essential to change the narrative, move away from the cliché of sustainability, humanize the discourse, put it into action through other channels and address all audiences, including detractors.
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