Americas

The Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) is an office of the Government of Canada. Its mandate is to uphold standards of human rights in business practices for Canadian companies in international operating theatres. During the month of June, the ERGP provided two courses to CORE staff: Mining 101 and Oil and Gas 101 explored fundamental concepts in resource development, and examined corresponding environmental and human rights impacts.

In support of Manitoba Natural Resources and Northern Development, the ERGP conducted a series of jurisdictional scans centering on regulation and characteristics of mineral exploration. Looking at priority areas in mineral development, this analysis compares regulatory, tenure, royalty, taxation, and bulk sampling systems in Canada and the USA.

Since December 2022, the ERGP has been engaged in the formation of a five-university, two-company research consortium for the Government of Colombia’s Resolution 40066: Mitigation of Methane Gas in the O&G Industry. Resolution 40066 establishes technical requirements for detection and management of methane gas in local oil and gas projects. The ERGP is part of a team developing a comprehensive project proposal to be executed through resources of the petroleum royalties system. Products of this initiative would be strategically positioned to support the Colombian government in its implementation of the initiative.

Environmental, social, and governance criteria reflect the standards companies and organizations operate by.  These metrics of social responsibility have become increasingly important to investors, consumers, and all manner of dynamics along value chains.

Industries are recognizing that their performance in ESG is crucial for success, and that their teams need to be trained in its implementation.

The ERGP, at Canada’s #1 policy school, offers a highly interactive Executive Certificate in ESG.  Learn more at Training and Education.

In a two-day intensive workshop, ERGP worked with scholars and industry experts to examine how states develop social bargains around the development and expansion of the extractive sector.  Colleagues from Canada and around the world participated by presenting articles and discussing comparative cases.  The ERGP was asked to present as part of the conference's expert roundtable and will go on to contribute to a forthcoming book on Extractive Bargains.

The ERGP provided the Government of the Northwest Territories with a Geothermal Jurisdictional Review toward its energy resource development, environment, and legislative frameworks.  As the Territories develop geothermal resources, a jurisdictional review supports policy development by looking at how other Canadian and international jurisdictions have engaged in the same exercise.  We undertook policy research, comparative and institutional analyses, and provided policy recommendations.

The ERGP attended Calgary's Global Energy Show and received delegations from Alinea International, Argentina, Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda.  Our team also had numerous meetings with colleagues from Canada's Trade Commissioner Service, and attended focused technical and strategic panels throughout the week.

Canada's Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) mining conference is one of the most important events on the annual ERGP calendar. Through conferences and exhibitions, our team liaised with mining industry partners from all over the world.  Special highlights from this event included the Africa Canada Chamber of Commerce breakfast, with delegations from all over the continent, and key meetings with government leaders from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Kenya.

This year, the Government of the Northwest Territories reached a landmark stage in the development and implementation of regulations corresponding with the Mineral Resource Act. As it navigates important dynamics and strives to make the Resource Act a regulatory success, ERGP has been chosen to provide strategic advising in the process. 

We're supporting the influence of Indigenous Governments; building cohesion between existing regulations and new policy; balancing industry needs with the evolving landscape of best practices; and helping ensure that goals are met with a compelling balance of sensitivity and pragmatism.

At this event, ERGP will be sharing ideas for important research and training projects associated with implementation of the new Colombian regulations for methane management, in association with local partners.

This case study shows that with adequate planning, rehabilitated limestone quarries can provide biodiversity conservation, sustainable land use activities, and sustainable cultural ecosystem services following mine closure.  

In this piece of research, we examine the interaction between national energy and conservation policy in Ecuador. Using the case of the Waorani territory in the Amazon, the team evaluates the efficacy of sustainability and conservation initiatives under conditions of oil and gas extraction.

This study contributes to resource politics and policy research by shedding light on an overlooked sector, artisanal and small-scale mining, and articulates the debate around its regulation in South America. 

In partnership with Alinea International and Global Affairs Canada, ERGP is supporting Panama's Inclusive, Responsible, and Sustainable Mining initiative.  This project, funded by the Government of Canada through the TAP-EDM initiative, has ERGP providing Panamanian officials with comprehensive training in mine closure audit, gender based analysis, and a customized mine study tour to British Columbia.

SPP Executive Fellow and ERGP Technical Expert, Deborah Archibald, participates as a speaker at the International Forum of PERUMIN, 2022.  The event, organized by the Peruvian Institute of Mining Engineers, will be held in Arequipa.  Our participation is facilitated by the Canadian Embassy in Lima.

Danielle Smith. Alberta’s key Challenges and Opportunities. 

Leonardo Beltrán-Rodríguez and Juan Roberto Lozano-Maya. The key role of No-Carbon Oil Companies in Global Climate Action: Leveraging the G20 forum to accelerate the energy transition.

Dan McFayden and George Eynon. Risks of Failure in Regulatory Governance.

Amir Hallak, Adam Jensen, Gilbert Lybert and Lucija Muehlenbachs. The Oil Production Response to Alberta’s Government-Mandated Quota.

Phillip Cross. Alberta’s Future: The role of Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Goodday, Victoria and Braeden Larsen. The Surface Owner’s Burden: Landowner Rights and Alberta’s Oil and Gas Well Liabilities.

Government of Nunavut | 3-Day Workshop

• The ERGP team offered technical advice on the administration of oil and gas resources.
• Writing and revising the cooperation and coordination agreement on straddling resources.
• Providing advice on the probability of successful negotiation strategies.

Pacific Alliance Governments | 3-part Module Workshops Over 32 Days

• Delivered three executive certificates in extractive resource governance:
• Fiscal management.
• Regulatory Best Practices.
• Public Engagement and Community Consultation.

Alinea International, Government Ministers | 2-Part Workshop Over 10 Days

• Best practices in policy development in different regulatory regimes for petroleum and mining activities.
• Engaging local communities, which underlined the importance of including indigenous knowledge in extractive resource projects.
• Environmental stewardship.
• ERGP technical experts shared Canadian best practices of responsible resource development.
  Guest speakers from Canadian provincial and federal agencies.

Ministry of Energy and Mining | 1-Day Workshop | Virtual Delivery

• Local community participation in mining projects
• Training and tools offered as mechanisms for successful engagement with communities strongly opposed to mining.
• Workshop was aimed at local community leaders to show some of the benefits of resource development and the importance of environmental impact assessment to that process.

The ERGP traveled to the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Convention with the purpose of meeting with key stakeholders in the mining industry.

The team explored opportunities in new mining markets (Brazil, Chile, Uzbekistan, Mexico), and scheduled collaboration meetings with existing partners (Kenya, Senegal, Panama).

Victoria Goodday and Braeden Larsen. Energy and Environmental Policy Trends: Owed Landowners: The Status of Orphan Well Rental Recovery in Alberta.

Government of the Northwest Territories | 4-Day Training Course

• Provide policy training for public service.
• Workshop for GNWT Department of Lands employees.
• Covered a wide range of topics tailored to the NWT context.
• Policy development, policy instruments, policy application and implementation.

30-member delegation consisting of senators, ministers, general directors of various mining agencies and departments; ESG Consultants. | 3-Day Workshop

• Presentation on excellence in mining governance.
• Targeted focus on mine closure and remediation.
• Applications of Canadian Best practices abroad.

50-member Delegation, various government agency and ministry leaders | 1-Day Workshop

• Presentation on excellence in mining governance.
• Targeted focus on mine closure and remediation.

A 2-day boot camp on how to do business with International Financial Institutions (IFIs). The event included presentations by the World Bank, African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank, as well as lessons learned by industry stakeholders on how to write winning proposals for IFI funded projects. 

At the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Convention, the ERGP gave a presentation to over 60 trade commissioners from Global Affairs Canada’s (GAC’s) Trade Commissioner Service.

Bev Dahlby and Braeden Larsen. Should Alberta Adopt a Land Transfer Tax?

Darryl Egbert and Brian Livingston. The Various Structures for Granting Petroleum Licenses around the World.

Agriteam Consulting Ltd., Senior Officials from Government of Colombia | 3-Day Intensive Workshop

• Overview of Canadian best practices and principles on unconventional resource development.
• Major areas of development of unconventional resources in Canada.
• Comparison of Canada and Colombia’s geology, technologies used to develop unconventional share resources (special focus on hydraulic fracturing).
• Common myths related to development of unconventional resources (water issues, induced seismicity).
  Public engagement strategies for consultation with impacted communities.

Attended a National Forum on Unconventional Resource Developments organized by Acipet (Colombian Association of Petroleum Engineers). Brad delivered a presentation on Canadian best practices as it relates to hydraulic fracturing. After the Forum, conducted meetings with government agencies and educational institutions.

Industry Stakeholders, PEMEX, Regulators | Various Workshops (May-June) and Executive Certificate Training

• Modules on Regulatory Governance and Public Engagement & Community Consultation.
• Best practices of transparent and efficient regulation of the oil and gas sector. Teaching on regulatory governance, based on Canadian and Albertan experience.
• Engaging with directly-impacted communities.

Department of Commerce and Industry | 2-Day Workshop

• Essentials of mineral exploration, overview of extractive resource governance policy frameworks, introduction to public engagement and community consultation processes, etc.
• After, a short online session was delivered where the participants learned about fiscal governance of mining operations, and principles of fiscal management.

US Department of State | 3-Day Workshop

• Public participation in mining projects
• Environmental and social impacts of uranium development.
• Environmental impact assessment for mines in Canada with case studies;
• Canadian best practices for public engagement and community

In 2019, in Washington D.C., we focused on climate-smart energy solutions in emphasizing the energy sector’s new investment priorities. The conference also offered some valuable advice to all the participants on how to successfully navigate the procurement process for IFIs. Attending the conference made the ERGP aware of the future priority changes, and business opportunities available to our program.

The School of Public Policy sponsored the Brazil’s New Wealth of Opportunities Conference, held by the Canadian Global Exploration Forum and EventWorx. The conference presented an opportunity to meet with a high-ranking delegation from Brazil, featuring an overview of oil and gas opportunities in Brazil as well as the legal framework and overall business practices.

Delegation from Brazil’s National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels.

• The meeting took place after the Canadian Global Exploration Forum conference on oil and gas opportunities in Brazil, which The School of Public Policy sponsored.
• Challenges and issues facing Brazil in its extractive sector.
• Regulatory governance and capacity building.
• ERGP gave an overview of the program and its services.

The ERGP and Energy and Environmental Policy area held a workshop for Canadian and international participants during the 2018 Global Petroleum Show (GPS). The event included a presentation of the Northern Corridors Concept, an overview of the ERGP program, and a presentation on the Where in the World Project 2015 data results

Livingston, Brian. The Alberta Electrical Grid: What to expect in the next few Years.

The ERGP held an event to launch the “Where in the World” research project during the 2017 Global Petroleum Show (GPS). The presentation included the methodology of the project, data results from 2011-13, as well as an interactive working demo of the “Where in the World” Map, which houses the project data.

Minister and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs from the Plurinational State of Bolivia in partnership with the University of Calgary’s International office

• An overview of ERGP services.

Daria Crisan. A Fiscal Framework for Offshore Oil and Gas Activities in Romania.

The ERGP held a roundtable discussion for Canadian and international participants during the 2016 Global Petroleum Show (GPS). The discussion included topics such as “Markets and Social Acceptability,” and “Civil Society and Technology.”

the ERGP held a panel presentation during the 2016 Global Petroleum Show (GPS). The panel featured two senior representatives from Mexico’s Secretaría de Energía (Ministry of Energy) and Comisión Reguladora de Energía (Energy Regulatory Commission) with discussion on

As part of the Calgary Global Exploration Forum (CGEF) Annual Conference, the ERGP presented its “Where in the World” project, which tracks where publicly traded Canadian oil and gas companies undertake oil and gas activities internationally.

ERGP held a 2- day roundtable for international regulators during the 2015 Global Petroleum Show (GPS). The program was titled “International Regulatory Roundtable for Extractive Resources”

Duanjie Chen and Guillermo Perry. Mining Taxation in Colombia.

Following the release in Bogota of the Chen/Perry research paper on “Mining Taxation in Colombia” the ERGP hosted a secondary event for the Calgary business and academic community at the Palliser Hotel. The event featured a roundtable discussion with the participation of high- level Colombian policymakers including the Minister of Energy, Minister of Finance, and the President of Colombia’s Largest Mining Association.

Ministry of Governance, Natural Resources, and the Environment | 2-Day Workshop

• Key elements in developing a natural resource development framework.
• Best principles and practices in implementing Sovereign Wealth Funds.
• Meetings were held with key government and academic stakeholders to better understand the unique governance challenges and opportunities faced by decision makers in Guyana.

Ministry of Energy | 7-Day Consultation and Workshop

• Foundations for Best Practices in Extractive Resource Governance
• Lessons Learned on the Importance of Transparency and Stakeholder Engagement
• Energy Security and Energy Market Regulation
• Surveillance and Enforcement
• 1.5-day inter-agency workshop on regulatory principles and best practices

Two Concept Notes signed between the University of Calgary, Mexico Ministry of Energy (SENER) and the Mexican Academy of Engineering (MAE) respectively.

• The Zero Incident Pipelines Knowledge Network
• The Talent Observatory and Value Chain Knowledge Network

Ton Van den Bremer and Rick van der Ploeg. Digging Deep for the Heritage Fund: why the right fund for Alberta Pays Dividends Long After Oil is Gone.

ERGP held a full-day, invitation-only conference for international government and regulatory officials during the 2014 Global Petroleum Show (GPS) titled, “Emerging Issues in Extractive Resource Governance.”

Included approximately 75 delegates and representatives from industry, university, government and non-government organizations from over nine countries

Ministry of Energy and Mines, Ministers, and Staff | 7-Day Consultation

• General session on best resource governance practices with Ministry staff as well as targeted sessions on specific governance issues with several departments
• Letter of Intent for long-term cooperation and collaboration.

Minister of Energy and Mines, Deputy Minister of Hydrocarbons, Director of Cooperation and International Relations

• Presentations on “Transparency Initiative for Extractive Industries,” “Design and Launch of a New Mining Policy,” “Update of Legal Frameworks for Mining,” “Strengthening of Technical Capacity in the Area of Energy and Mines,” and “Evaluating the Performance and Behavior of Future Markets.

Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Chairman of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, and Technical Officer of the Ministry of Finance. With support from the Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana-Suriname.

Introduction of the School of Public Policy, the ERGP, and a discussion about current challenges and opportunities related to governance of Guyana’s oil and gas sector.

Consulate of Mexico in Calgary, Mexican Ambassador and Ministry of Energy Staff | 1-Day Workshop

• The workshop focused on best practices in oil and gas governance with an emphasis on shale gas and related cross- jurisdictional issues in energy infrastructure planning and regulation.

The ERGP provided closing keynote remarks at the Alternatives Verdes Forum. While this forum focused primarily on renewable and alternative energy resource development, it was an honor to be invited by SENER to give the closing keynote address.

The ERGP was invited to offer a panel presentation on regulation of environmental impacts of energy development at the “U.S.-Mexico Cross Border Energy Forum”

The ERGP participated in the Brookings Institute/World Bank Shale Gas in Latin America Forum by presenting on the topic of energy regulation in Canada.

The forum was attended by numerous Latin American states with current or planned shale gas development.