A patina of sustainability: Corporate social responsibility and large-scale copper mining in Solwezi, Zambia

The Kansanshi mine in Solwezi, Zambia is one of the largest copper-gold mines in Africa by output. Since 2005, the mine has been operated by First Quantum Minerals Ltd (FQM), establishing it as the largest Canadian-owned mining asset in Africa. The study aims to understand the influence of FQM's corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies on social and spatial relations within the local community, as well as the environmental and land use impacts of these policies.

By examining the decision-making processes behind the CSR interventions, the research sheds light on the extractivist nature of sustainability in large-scale mining operations. Drawing on the corporate imperialism theory, the research suggests that an appearance of stakeholder well-being becomes crucial for the corporate vision of sustainability, turning the pursuit of a social license to operate into a form of extraction itself.