Extracting development: subjectivity, labour and informality in making the gold industry

The relation between mineral extraction and development is contested.

Some argue that mining is a motor of development, while others highlight land degradation and social marginalisation ensuing from mining.

This tension is particularly acute for the 40 millions people making a living through artisanal small-scale mining (ASM) in impoverished countries, which is the focus of this project.

The sabbatical grant will support the completion of a book that highlights the invibilised gendered and racialised ASM work that contributes to making gold a tradable commodity and developing its industry.

It draws on ethnographic and historical data I gathered in the last 15-years in two producing countries (Colombia and Burkina Faso), and at the heart of the world’s gold industry and trade (Switzerland).

Theoretically the project contributes to challenging narratives of ASM as a development failure due to its informality and highlights its contribution to the making of a mining industry.

Central to this project are research stays in Switzerland, Colombia and Burkina Faso that will enrich the books’ material and analysis.

These stays will also allow to institutionalise long-standing partnerships in development geography research and education around the topic, which is increasingly relevant in a context of accelerating mineral extraction for green transitions.