Ulaanbaatar, March 26 and 27

UND Mongolia and the Government of Mongolia under the joint Swedish Environmental Protection Agency - UNDP Environmental Governance Programme (EGP) is organizing a workshop in Ulaanbaatar on participatory environmental monitoring in mining sector that advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The workshop on participatory environmental monitoring will bring together representatives from the governments, the UN, civil society, and the private sector from across Mongolia. Involving citizens in the environmental monitoring process is a powerful tool to reduce environmental risks and social conflicts. Participatory environmental monitoring gives citizens and communities voice and power to influence decisions that affect their lives and their future.

During this two-day workshop, stakeholders will explore how to bridge human rights, sustainable development and mining activities through integrated natural resource management solutions, using the extractives industry as an example. The workshop participants will also review the work done by the Environmental Governance Project in Mongolia during the implementation phase.

The economic demand to develop mining industry is inevitable for Mongolia. As extractive industries encroach into environmentally pristine areas, greater efforts are needed to protect human rights and the biodiversity and ecosystems on which local communities and society more broadly depend.

Expert speakers will highlight these challenges and the solutions that governments and partners are advancing to integrate human rights and the environment into the governance of the mining sector. Case studies will show how such approaches can ensure a better balance between social, environmental, and economic dimensions of sustainable development, reduce the drivers of social conflict, and help sustain peace.

The workshop will sensitize the participants on the benefits of participatory environmental monitoring and show the added value for all partners involved: the environmental authorities, civil society and the private sector.

You can download the manual on responsible mining at: https://bit.ly/2CBlbT8 .

Press release in Mongolian here