Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice: Towards the Integration of Conflict Assessment and Prevention in Extractive Industry Practice

The paper critiques existing Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), Social Impact Assessments (SIA), and political risk analyses for their failure to systematically address violent conflict. It proposes a Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice (CSBP) toolbox that integrates conflict analysis tools—such as conflict mapping and stakeholder analysis—across the entire project lifecycle. The authors emphasize that extractive projects are increasingly located in 'frontier areas' where mismanagement of community relations or environmental resources can trigger violence. The proposed CSBP approach advocates for participatory consultation, the establishment of 'no go' thresholds for conflict, and the identification of peacebuilding opportunities through shared environmental concerns.

• While Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) are widely used and often mandated by law or finance, they frequently suffer from pro-project bias, lack of independent review, and a failure to consider cumulative or indirect effects on communities outside the immediate project area.
• Social Impact Assessments (SIA) often rely on 'technocratic' expert-driven approaches that exclude community values and can be viewed by indigenous populations as structural impediments to their participation in planning.
• Political risk analysis is typically a confidential internal tool focused on macro-level political environments, often leaving a gap in the analysis of project-generated conflict at the local level.
• The document identifies specific 'flashpoint' situations in the extractive project cycle—including construction, resettlement, compensation, and closure—where rapid changes in financial flows and staffing can spark violence.
• Conflict-Sensitive Approaches (CSAs) from the development and humanitarian sectors, such as 'Do No Harm' and 'Peace and Conflict Impact Assessments', provide a foundation for private sector tools to avoid 'dividers' and build 'connectors' within communities.
• The proposed Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice (CSBP) toolbox aims to integrate diagnostic techniques—including conflict mapping, armed group analysis, and the ABC Triangle—into existing ESIA and political risk frameworks.
• Environmental impacts can be direct sources of conflict, particularly when they threaten livelihoods or involve contested governance over the sharing of benefits from resource exploitation.
• The authors argue for the establishment of objective 'no go' thresholds or 'showstoppers' that would justify halting a project when a company cannot make a positive contribution to the conflict scenario.

APA

Goldwyn, R., & Switzer, J. (2004). Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice: Towards the Integration of Conflict Assessment and Prevention in Extractive Industry Practice. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/security_ogel_2004.pdf

Chicago

Goldwyn, R., and J. Switzer. Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice: Towards the Integration of Conflict Assessment and Prevention in Extractive Industry Practice. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2004. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/security_ogel_2004.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Goldwyn |first1=R. |last2=Switzer |first2=J. |title=Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice: Towards the Integration of Conflict Assessment and Prevention in Extractive Industry Practice |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=October 2004 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/security_ogel_2004.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{goldwyn2004conflictsensitive, author = {Goldwyn, R. and Switzer, J.}, title = {{Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice: Towards the Integration of Conflict Assessment and Prevention in Extractive Industry Practice}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2004}, month = oct, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/security_ogel_2004.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }