Denver Gold Group – ESG Needs Assessment

Carbon Goals Put Events Under Pressure

Denver Gold Group (DGG) historically had a relatively small environmental footprint (i.e., low carbon emissions). However, the organization faced a growing risk to its signature Forum events due to the extensive international travel required of participants. Feedback from some members indicated they were striving to reduce air travel with its associated carbon emissions, and therefore remain within their corporate “carbon budgets” to align with their companies’ net-zero goals.

At the same time, public and political scrutiny of the mining sector was intensifying, particularly in Europe. Switzerland – where DGG hosts the Gold Forum Europe – had committed to cutting emissions 50% by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050. Activists were also increasingly vocal, raising the risk of visible protests at future Forums.

DGG considered several options such as purchasing carbon offsets for participant travel or even acquiring land for reforestation projects that could generate carbon offsets.

“Denver Gold Group had a couple of interesting interactions with members and investors around ESG,” says Tim Wood, Executive Director of Denver Gold Group. “We weren’t able to give fulsome answers to their questions. So the Board directed me to engage with a consultancy to do a survey with both members and investors to try and discover a little more. That’s when we engaged SOOP Strategies to undertake an ESG Needs Assessment.”

A Strategic ESG Needs Assessment

SOOP designed an ESG Needs Assessment to clarify stakeholder expectations and identify priority sustainability issues. The assessment aimed to:

1. Identify sustainability-related concerns and expectations top of mind for stakeholders
2. Prioritize ESG issues DGG should focus on to safeguard its Forums and deliver value
3. Evaluate whether DGG should offer ESG-related support to members and, if so, what kind

A Three-Step Process

SOOP recommended the following process to assess DGG’s sustainability needs:

1. Establish a Baseline
   • Conduct a desktop review of DGG’s internal policies, planning processes, and events to examine ESG considerations already in place, or those that may be needed
   • Analyze external ESG pressures affecting DGG as well as their readiness to respond
   • Interview a broad, diverse group of members and investors from a diverse range of company size and locations
2. Identify Sustainability Gaps and Needs
   • Analyze findings to reveal both risks and opportunities
   • Prioritize ESG issues most relevant to DGG
3. Recommend Next Steps
   • Deliver actionable recommendations in a final report
   • Ensure stakeholders could see ESG being approached seriously rather than as tokenism or “greenwashing”

Tim Wood noted of the assessment, “We had great representation across the board from membership and investors, hence the quality of the report. We got real results we could sink our teeth into to make a decision.”

• Denver Gold Group commissions ESG Needs Assessment to address sustainability needs of its members
• The goal: to clarify stakeholder expectations and identify priority sustainability issues

Five ESG Priorities

SOOP’s assessment revealed five issues consistently top of mind for members and investors:

1. ESG Disclosure and Sustainability Reporting
2. Climate Change (GHG emissions, energy use)
3. Community Relations (Social Licence to Operate)
4. Stakeholder Engagement and Communications
5. Governance Structure and Corporate Governance

A recurring theme woven through these five issues was the lack of clear, consistent ESG communication between mining companies and investors. Members were expressing frustration with conflicting standards whilst investors were skeptical of reports that lacked substance.

An Opportunity: DGG as ESG Facilitator

While stakeholders did not expect DGG to manage sustainability on their behalf, they saw it as uniquely positioned to:

• Facilitate dialogue and learning at its Forums
• Improve communication between member companies and investors
• Support standardization of ESG reporting practices

Actionable Recommendations

SOOP’s final report delivered clear next steps:

• Elevate ESG at the Gold Forums: Add ESG-focused panels, sessions for sustainability professionals, and opportunities for investors and issuers to align on disclosure needs.
• Support Communication and Transparency: Provide curated ESG content, case studies, and explore developing an ESG data platform.
• Strengthen Industry Reputation: Offer targeted education and awareness efforts to counter anti-mining narratives and demonstrate proactive ESG leadership.

“It really has been an interesting exercise with a very detailed report still to digest. Once the Board has had a chance to discuss the recommendations and look at potential strategies for what we can do to support our members better, we intend to release the full detailed report to the whole membership and industry at large.” – Tim Wood

By taking these steps, DGG will position itself as a facilitator of ESG dialogue and strengthen its appeal to investment firms prioritizing non-financial risk management. SOOP’s final report equipped the Denver Gold Forum with the insights and tools needed to make strategic decisions about integrating ESG into its future activities and programming, without straying from its core mandate.