LDI celebrates second anniversary and robust agenda
ANCOUVER, BC (Oct. 13, 2021) — Two years ago, the founders of the Landform Design Institute knew when they filed the paperwork to register the non-profit organization that assembling a community of professionals dedicated to transforming the mining industry would prove an ambitious undertaking. What they didn’t anticipate was the imminent arrival of a coronavirus that would disrupt even the best-laid plans.
And yet, as the LDI celebrated its second anniversary on Sept. 30, it was clear that industry practitioners were more than ready to embrace the mandate of making landform design routine in the mining industry worldwide by 2030. In its first two years, the Institute has delivered university lectures in Canada and abroad, held the first inaugural landform design course, published a gap analysis and revolutionary position paper, and staged a series of vibrant podcasts. Individual and student memberships are growing and several hundred people are following LDI activities on social media, while its core principles have been cited in multiple guidance documents and industry reviews.
Based in Canada, the LDI anniversary coincided with the country’s first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, which honours the lost children and survivors of Canada’s residential schools, their families, and the broader Indigenous communities. The LDI recognizes that Indigenous participation, in Canada and elsewhere, must be embedded in the day-to-day practice of mine reclamation and the restoration of mine lands.
Consequently, the Institute will be integrating Indigenous perspectives into the tools now being developed for use by industry practitioners. For example, the fall issue of the Landform Design Quarterly, due for release this week, features an exploration of the emerging practice of “co-reclamation,” which, in collaboration with Indigenous peoples in northern Alberta, is a participatory and inclusive approach to mine reclamation and closure.
The Institute is also boosting its members-only offerings. Today, the LDI is releasing the first of a series of short online lectures, or video vignettes, that are designed to describe the fundamentals of landform design. Hosted by LDI founder Gord McKenna, the vignettes are available exclusively for Institute members. A temporary sneak peak at the first vignette is available for all here. Also for members only is a forthcoming series of essays that delve more deeply into the challenges and opportunities presented by responsible mine reclamation, and a series of excerpts from the position paper and related commentary.
With several other informative and educational initiatives underway – such as an expanding reference library and additional guidance tools – the Institute is largely focused on a critical corporate membership drive that will complement the range of building blocks already in place. LDI individual and student membership continue to grow but are insufficient to ensure the Institute can implement its ambitious agenda, which includes the production of a landform design textbook, additional position papers, literature reviews, university-led grad-level courses, and a case history symposia and database.
As the COVID-19 pandemic recedes and in-person gatherings resume, the LDI will take advantage of the progress made over the last two years to accelerate the transformation of mine reclamation and landform design. If that sounds like something you’d like to be part of, please consider joining the team.