SERS researchers awarded prestigious Insight Development Grants

The goal of this research is to investigate the role of NGOs in mitigating the social impacts of mining critical minerals in Uganda. Uganda works as an ideal case for this study because critical minerals are attracting national and multi-national corporations and this is starting to generate significant activity especially in rural areas. Activities to explore and extract minerals are expected to have major impacts on local communities.

Felicitas Egunyu and her team will develop a typology of NGOs working with mining host communities in Uganda to mitigate mining impacts. The typology will provide context for data collection on the extent to which NGOs alleviate mining impacts in Uganda using surveys, and personal and group interviews.

This study will provide more information about NGO roles and as well as community participation in addressing the social impacts of mining while contributing scholarly findings (i.e., social impacts assessment, civil society, and environmental governance fields) practice guidance (i.e., strengthening the capacity of NGOs working in communities to alleviate mining impacts), and increasing understanding about ways in which mining could support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals in Uganda.

The grant supports Helena Shilomboleni's research to assess how advancements in rice breeding might help to address major stresses emanating from climate change as well as to improve food security and farm income for Kenyan farmers. She examines the collaborative efforts of key national and international partners working in this area, including the International Rice Research Institute as well as Kenya’s Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization.