Ten solutions developed by small scale gold miners to address livelihood challenges in Antioquia, Colombia

In Colombia, an estimated 70 percent of gold production comes from artisanal and small scale miners (ASGM), and the department of Antioquia is the second-largest department in ASGM in Colombia, with over 1,300 small scale gold mines identified in 2012 (reference). Small scale and artisanal miners face significant challenges in their livelihoods, including serious health problems associated with mercury exposure, low market prices for their gold, and gender-based abuse.

MIT D-Lab Inclusive Regional Economies program works with informal workers, multinationals, governments, and communities to foster the development of inclusive market systems. Since 2019, the team has been working in Antioquia, Colombia in collaboration with groups of small scale and artisanal miners, and six collaborating organizations (Rising Tide Foundation, C-Innova, Mujeres de Oro, UNIMINUTO, the National University of Colombia, Colorado School of Mines, and Mineros S.A.) to promote the safer, healthier, and more equitable participation of ASGM miners in gold and other regional supply chains.

With the goal of creating innovative products, services and approaches that address the social, health, and environmental challenges associated with mining livelihoods, the Inclusive Regional Economies Program leverages five different, but complementary, program components: market-system co-design workshops, Creative Capacity Building (CCB) workshops, Creative Capacity Building for Business (CCB-B) workshops, innovation centers, and movement building initiatives.

This blog post depicts the 10 solutions developed by 54 small scale and artisanal miners from the Bajo Cauca and Andes regions as part of the program’s first two CCB workshops.