Distributional impacts of mining transitions: learning from the past

The paper analyses the socio-economic effects of mine closures on women and youth, highlighting how traditional gender roles and lack of skills create vulnerabilities. It argues that past policy responses, such as retraining and job placement, often failed to address these inequities, and recommends more inclusive, multi-stakeholder planning for future low-carbon transitions.

• Mine closures often lead to a 'double burden' for women, who may enter the workforce as breadwinners to replace unemployed male partners while remaining responsible for domestic and reproductive work.
• Women in post-mining communities frequently face workplace discrimination, often being relegated to low-wage, part-time positions with limited security and benefits.
• Masculine identities tied to mining can hinder men's ability to transition to new employment sectors or seek psychological and social support after mine closures.
• Youth in declining mining regions face significant employment scarcity, leading to high unemployment rates and 'brain drain' as educated young people migrate to find relevant work.
• Long-term socio-political effects on youth in post-mining areas include the development of anti-establishment and anti-authority attitudes.
• Standard economic interventions like job placement and retraining often fail to provide the long-term security of former mining jobs and may exclude temporary, outsourced, or informal workers.
• Economic diversification strategies focusing on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) may not benefit all workers, as these businesses typically require skilled labour and financial resources that marginalized groups lack.
• Effective mitigation of closure impacts requires inclusive planning that involves a broad variety of social groups, including youth and disadvantaged community members, rather than just powerful national actors and mining companies.

APA

Aung, M. T., & Strambo, C. (2020). Distributional impacts of mining transitions: learning from the past. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/distributional-impacts-of-mining-transitions-1.pdf

Chicago

Aung, May Thazin, and Claudia Strambo. Distributional impacts of mining transitions: learning from the past. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2020. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/distributional-impacts-of-mining-transitions-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Aung |first1=May Thazin |last2=Strambo |first2=Claudia |title=Distributional impacts of mining transitions: learning from the past |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=April 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/distributional-impacts-of-mining-transitions-1.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{aung2020distributional, author = {Aung, May Thazin and Strambo, Claudia}, title = {{Distributional impacts of mining transitions: learning from the past}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = apr, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/distributional-impacts-of-mining-transitions-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }