We seek to work collaboratively with Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples to preserve cultural heritage and advance opportunities for economic participation and social inclusion.
Building strong relationships
Seek to contribute to the cultural wellbeing of Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples and deliver long-term opportunities, through employment, procurement, social investment and training.
Preserving cultural heritage
We are committed to working with communities and stakeholders, including Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples, with the aim of achieving the best possible outcomes wherever our activities have the potential to impact cultural heritage.
Reconciliation in Australia
Our Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) reaffirms our commitment to reconciliation and support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
In FY26, we strengthened our approach through updates to our internal Social Performance Standard, improving alignment with the ICMM Indigenous Peoples and Mining Position Statement. Key enhancements included strengthened expectations for engagement with Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples on relevant matters, and guidance on culturally appropriate processes, including where agreement may not be reached.
You can learn more about our performance in our Annual Report and Sustainability Databook.
NAIDOC Week 2025 – Celebrating culture and connection
Across Australia, our teams came together to celebrate NAIDOC Week last week, re...
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Protecting and preserving cultural heritage at Cannington’s Cowie Station
Covering more than 94,000 hectares of land, Cowie Station has high cultural heri...
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Cerro Matoso helps to keep Afro-Colombian cultures thriving
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Our Approach documents related to Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples Engagement and Cultural Heritage outline our focus on building strong partnerships that support cultural wellbeing and create opportunities through employment, procurement, social investment and training.
We understand that cultural heritage is the legacy passed down from previous generations to the present. It can be tangible (such as artefacts, natural landscapes, buildings) and intangible (such as language, stories, connectedness, rituals, beliefs, cultural landscapes and customs, traditional knowledge), often continued in living cultures to be passed to future generations. Cultural heritage can be fundamental to collective and self-identity, and its safeguarding is founded in human rights.
We acknowledge and pay our respects to the Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples of the lands, waters and territories on which South32 is located and where we conduct our business around the world.
We respect and acknowledge the unique cultural and spiritual relationships that Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples have to the lands, waters and territories, and we respect their right to enjoy and maintain their traditional knowledge, distinctive spiritual practices and traditional ways of life.
We engage with Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples using culturally appropriate methods throughout the mining lifecycle to foster relationships based on transparency and trust.
We make available and regularly review our community complaints and other Speak Up Policy processes so they are readily available for use by Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples to provide feedback and register complaints or concerns.
We undertake social baseline studies, social and human rights impact and opportunity assessments, and stakeholder engagement to understand and act upon the impacts and opportunities for Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples where we operate.
We identify risks associated with cultural heritage management and develop controls to mitigate them.
We apply the principles and processes of free, prior and informed consent in seeking to obtain and maintain agreed outcomes with Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples where adverse impacts are likely to occur to cultural heritage.
We identify, document and manage cultural heritage and values, both tangible and intangible, in collaboration with impacted stakeholders.
We take an ‘avoidance first’ approach to impacting cultural heritage and demonstrate how consideration has been given to prevent, mitigate or minimise impacts.
In the spirit of respect and reconciliation, we support initiatives that strengthen culture and ways of life so that the legacies of Indigenous, Traditional and Tribal Peoples, and their rich contribution to society, continue and extend to future generations and to their broader regional identity.
In July 2024, we launched our second Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), reaffirming our commitment to reconciliation in Australia and support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart. Our updated RAP builds on previous progress through strengthened partnerships, targeted programs and support for Indigenous businesses and cultural heritage.
Through our RAP we are seeking to strengthen relationships, promote employment, elevate Indigenous voices, grow Indigenous procurement, build cultural competency and support community partnerships.
Learn more in our Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan.
As a significant employer and investor in Australia, we recognise the positive impact we can have on reconciliation.
