Social Capital: A Proposal for Community Mining Ventures

Abstract

Written by two professors from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and researchers with the GEMMA group, this article presents a critical diagnosis of the Colombian mining model, characterized by foreign capital and technology and a high concentration of royalties in a few departments. The authors develop the concept of social capital drawing on the theories of Bourdieu, Coleman, and Putnam, and propose a methodology for building this kind of capital in mining communities through social organizations, networks, and associativity. The text presents a proposal to create a 100-million-dollar Mining Revolving Fund, financed by mining companies and state royalties, aimed at providing venture capital and preferential credit for community mining ventures, concluding that the combination of social and financial capital is a necessary condition for the sustainable development of community mining.