120 LOCALIZING THE SDGS FOR MINING PROJECT EVALUATION: EVIDENCE, GAPS, AND OPPORTUNITIES M. Abbasi1, *P. Zangeneh1, S. Heshami1, D. Hiam-Galvez2 1Department of Civil Engineering, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada (*Presenting author: pouya.zangeneh@ucalgary.ca) 2Resolve, Vancouver, BC, Canada ABSTRACT The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adopted by all United Nations member states in 2015, provide a comprehensive framework for addressing social, economic, and environmental challenges. The mining sector plays a complex role within this framework. While the sector contributes to economic growth, employment, and infrastructure development, it is also linked to significant environmental degradation, social disruption, and governance challenges. As countries and companies increasingly localize the SDGs by adapting global and national objectives to regional and sector-specific contexts, the mining industry faces unique challenges stemming from its extractive nature, regulatory variability, and frequent operations in ecologically and socially sensitive areas. This paper systematically reviews the current application of the SDGs across the project lifecycle in mining projects, synthesizes the practical benefits and reported outcomes of SDG localization, and identifies which SDGs are most frequently prioritized or under-integrated, as well as the factors contributing to these disparities. The paper proposes a decision-making pathway to integrate SDG localization into mining project assessment, risk management, monitoring, and closure, thereby boosting site-level credibility. It suggests future research directions, including developing project-level SDG appraisal frameworks, improving site data and indicators with spatial and remote methods, validating across governance contexts, and involving local stakeholders in indicator design to align global SDGs with local priorities. KEYWORDS SDGs; localization; mining sector; sustainable development; project appraisal
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