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Community Consultation—Programs & Actions
Alcoa Community Framework
Introduced in 2001, the Alcoa Community Framework is a tool and process used to facilitate and measure ongoing relationship-building and communications between Alcoa and its community stakeholders.
The framework helps Alcoa locations build stronger relationships with employees, their families, community leaders, non-governmental organizations, and government officials. It provides information and guidance to undertake the kind of community events and structures that will foster greater understanding of our shared goals and needs.
The framework allows for great local flexibility and results in a variety of community engagement opportunities. These range from simple briefings, issue discussion forums, open houses, plant tours and tree plantings to active participation by community members on committees and advisory boards.
In 2006, we continued the rollout of the Alcoa Community Framework in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, and South America. About 85% of our worldwide operating locations had established community programs as of year end.
In the United States, 52% of our locations have a formal community advisory board to provide a forum for ongoing interaction between the plants and area residents. All of our Australian locations have established community consultative networks consisting of Alcoa and community representatives to work together on important issues, including sustainability, environmental effects, local employment, and Alcoa sponsorship and partnership programs.
Locations have also developed other programs for community engagement. For example, our Victorian operations in Australia established Alcoa in the Community committees made up of a diverse range of employees, from management to union delegates. The committees proactively pursue community partnerships, approve sponsorship requests, act as ambassadors for the company, and promote volunteering in the workforce.
Other recent examples of community engagement include the following:
Performance data
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North American Public Strategy Group
An eight-member team of internal public affairs experts, the North American Public Strategy Group helps Alcoa locations in the United States better implement the Alcoa Community Framework.
Team members are assigned a geographic territory and work with Alcoa locations in that area to conduct individual community assessments to better understand each location's role in the community and how best to work with stakeholders to address the mutual needs of both Alcoa and our neighbors. Once an assessment is completed, the location develops a roadmap on how it will deal with issues and stakeholders. Tactics include building relationships with local officials and media, leveraging employee engagement in the community, and contributing to the long-term economic sustainability of the facility.
Environmental Improvement Plans
Many of Alcoa's Australia operations work with the local communities to develop environmental improvement plans for each location.
An environmental improvement plan is a public commitment by an operation to continuously improve environmental performance, reduce environmental impacts, and develop more sustainable practices. The plan sets clear targets for improvement and details progress against those targets. The plan also outlines the methods, processes, and initiatives to achieve agreed upon targets, while providing an overview of operations and improvements accomplished in the past.
Our community members in Australia participate in developing the plan, sign off on the plan, monitor our progress in achieving targets, and annually review the plan.
Examples of these plans can be found on our Australian operations website.
Project Consultation
In-depth community consultation is an important component for any new project we undertake
anywhere in the world, as well as for expansions and upgrades at existing facilities.
Examples of this consultation include the following:
New Projects
Expansion/Upgrades
Project consultation requires open and transparent dialogue, often over extended periods of time. This is sometimes not easy, especially when there are strongly differing views within respective stakeholder groups.
Faced with this in Trinidad, we initiated six public meetings or open houses, hosted local community members—including representatives of print and electronic media—on a visit to the Alcoa smelter in São Luís, Brazil, and undertook numerous engagements with smaller groups and individuals in 2006. We remain committed to engaging all key stakeholders in a constructive manner as projects advance from site selection and permitting through construction and eventual start-up.
In January 2007, we hosted a three-day community exhibition in partnership with the local government in Juruti, Brazil, to provide updates on both our new mine construction project and the dozens of socio-environmental programs we are helping deploy in the region.
In Jamaica, some controversy arose in 2006 over the re-issuing of an exploration license by the government to our Jamalco operations for an area partially overlapping the region known as Cockpit Country. Jamalco supports the government's approach of suspending the license while it works with the stakeholders to gain agreement on the appropriate boundaries to the environmentally and socially significant Cockpit Country.
EHS Community Programs
The safety and health of the people in our plant communities as well as the protection of the environment beyond the walls of our facilities remain important to Alcoa. From sponsoring a collection of household hazard wastes to conducting free community health screenings, we reinforce our values and demonstrate our commitment to improving the quality of life for individuals and the community as a whole.
In addition, safe and healthy children and families is an area of excellence for Alcoa Foundation, which provides millions of dollars to health and safety programs worldwide each year.
Case Studies
Sustainability Advisory Committee Helps Alcoa Meet Expectations of Canadian Society
Employment Program Brings Security to Guinea Communities
Advisory Panel Builds Bridge with Community
A Stakeholder Perspective on Alcoa
Community Stakeholders Help Develop Environmental Improvement Plans
Project Opponents, Proponents Work Together to Ensure Safe Protesting
Alcoa Helps Deliver EHS Improvement in Romania
Bringing EHS, Sustainability Awareness to the Community
Bringing Sustainable Development to the Amazon
Community Partnerships for Sustainability
Engaging with the Community for the Long-Term
Engagement, Environmental Assessment Underscore Efficiency Upgrade Approval
Strengthening Long-Term Sustainability in an Australian Community
Promoting Aluminum Recycling through the Triple Bin Challenge
Coming to the Rescue of Australia's Rivers
Partnering for Stronger Communities in Australia
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