Chile’s Minera El Abra recently awarded 77 scholarships through its Indigenous Scholarship Program that funds university students and technical professionals from Indigenous communities in the Province of El Loa.
The program has provided scholarships for more than 600 students since its inception in 2003, providing tuition, books, and other required materials.
A new esplanade constructed with financial support from Minera El Abra will help provide economic opportunity in the El Loa Province in northern Chile.
Minera El Abra’s Heritage Fund supports a variety of initiatives that promote and preserve the culture and traditions of the Indigenous communities of Ollagüe, María Elena, Tocopilla and Alto El Loa surrounding El Abra’s operations.
In 2020, the Public Policy Center of Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and Minera El Abra launched a new online diploma course to train indigenous community members in the Antofagasta Region.
Called Sembrando Saberes, or Sowing Knowledge, the study program aims to help community leaders by sharing resources and building skills to mediate conflicts, protect the environment, enhance community influence, preserve local heritage and design projects to benefit their communities. The classes are offered online and internet is provided to students.
Since January 1 of this year, all of the energy used by Minera El Abra, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, is from clean and renewable sources.
This milestone is part of the energy transition being developed in Chile, marked by the transformation of the power matrix towards renewable sources, which is part of achieving the objectives signed by Chile in the Paris Agreement.
Minera El Abra remains committed to compliance with applicable environmental regulations, and to the continuous improvement of its performance in matters related to the environment.
Sustainability reporting is spreading in the region, according to new research
Press Release
February 2, 2021 /3BL Media/ - Research into corporate transparency practices in Hispanic American capital markets has set a benchmark for the prevalence of sustainability reporting in the region. The GRI study involved all 762 listed companies in five countries – Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru – and found that 37.5% produce a report.
El Abra obtained a government-issued Gender Certification known as Norm 3262 for gender equality and conciliation of work and family life, becoming the first private mining company in Chile to obtain such certification.
The School of Leaders: Empodérate El Loa Program, a partnership of Emprende Joven and the Minera El Abra School Fund, promotes social-emotional skills for students and provides teacher training in the Calama region of Chile.
Social-emotional skills include the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary for youth to recognize and control their emotions and behaviors. Social-emotional skills are what is used to establish and maintain positive relationships, make responsible decisions, solve challenging situations, and set and achieve positive goals.
Business in the Community, Gestión Social, and Maala join CECP’s Global Exchange
Press Release
NEW YORK, December 17, 2019 /3BL Media/ – Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose’s (CECP) Global Exchange continues to unite country-based, mission-driven corporate engagement organizations to advance business as a force for good around the world with the addition of three new nonprofits to the group, representing Chile, Israel, and the United Kingdom. At 17 organizations strong, the Global Exchange (GX) collectively represents over 50% of the world’s population and over 60% of the world’s GDP.
Freeport-McMoRan’s local stakeholder engagement and social investment objectives include formal interactions with indigenous peoples in traditional communities of Alto El Loa in Chile.
To complement the Indigenous Peoples Employment Program established in 2017, El Abra started a new apprenticeship program to provide work experience to students who have completed post-secondary education. Seven communities participate in the Indigenous People Employment Program and by the end of 2018, more than 50 members of neighboring communities were employed by El Abra.
