Mining for consent: An examination of Canada's Critical Minerals Strategy and consultation guidelines

In 2022, Canada announced its first Critical Minerals Strategy to extract minerals needed to meet Canada's net-zero emissions goal by 2050. Since announcing this strategy, Canada and the province of Ontario have faced criticism from Indigenous Nations and communities regarding the environmental consultation process for resource extraction projects on Indigenous peoples' lands. Many of the mines are located in remote areas, mainly impacting Indigenous peoples, who will disproportionately bear any environmental and social disruption. This study includes a literature review, a jurisdictional scan, and a multi-criteria analysis to determine how the consultation process can be amended. Three policy options are then proposed and analyzed, followed by the recommendation of a policy bundle: creating a social consultation process and modifying the current Impact Assessment Act.