Dr Alberto Vesperoni, from the Department of Political Economy at King’s, spoke about his research with experts from across the globe at a workshop organised by the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals, and Sustainable Development.

The workshop took place on 6 November in Geneva, Switzerland, and was hosted by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

Dr Vesperoni co-authored the research paper, Mining for Peace, with Roland Hodler and Paul Schaudt (University of St Gallen). In it, the academics propose a framework to assess the impact of new mining sites on the frequency and location of inter-ethnic conflict.

The academics believe the research has the potential to improve the issuing and pricing of the licences to operate mining sites in a way that takes into account the consequence for peace and security locally, ultimately helping to reduce the likelihood of civil conflict in the areas around new mines.

The research uses Sierra Leone as a case study by the academics believe the framework would apply more generally to resource-rich and ethnically-diverse nations across the global south, particularly as the demand for minerals and natural resources is increased by the transition to green energy sources and technology.