MINING INNOVATION AND RESEARCH BATTLEFIELD – Development Partner Institute

FINDING NEW LEADERS | WITH FRESH IDEAS | FOR REAL IMPACT

BE SEEN | BE HEARD

We invite innovative, forward thinkers from across the sector, including mining industry professionals, academics, NGOs, and young leaders, to present solutions to our annual Innovation and Research Battlefield challenge.

The Mining Innovation and Research Battlefield is a competitive event convened by the Development Partner Institute (DPI) and hosted at Mining Indaba.

It’s a lively global platform that seeks to bridge the gap between research, academia and the mining industry.

Piloting research innovation at speed, the Battlefield brings to life new and workable solutions to some of the industry’s toughest sustainable development challenges. With significant activity to date, this platform is already unlocking valuable sustainability advances.

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Our 2025 challenge

This year, competitors will be responding to the challenge:

What are the innovative and sustainable solutions for revolutionizing tailings management, and how can these be applied to achieve zero harm while supporting a more responsible and circular mining economy?

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WHY AN INNOVATION & RESEARCH BATTLEFIELD?

Now, more than ever, innovation and research will be critical to drive impactful decisions and to enable businesses to be innovative and agile in responding to current issues. The Mining Innovation & Research Battlefield is a platform for the mining industry, academia, business, NGOs and young people who have a vested interest in sustainable mining for development solutions to come together.

Our goals:

To develop and test innovative solutions to tough sustainability and development challenges related to mining

To strengthen collaboration between the mining industry and academia

To engage young people studying at university and impassion them about the opportunities mining can bring, and how the industry can support communities and improve livelihoods

To connect with researchers, academia, students and organisations that may have innovative research ideas to achieve sustainable development outcomes

To increase the profile and contribution of research to good mining for sustainable development practice on the ground

To collaborate and create effective partnerships to solve existing and future sustainability problems

Thank you to our Sponsors and Partners for the 2025 Innovation and Research Battlefield

Battlefield Organisers

Battlefield Partners

2024/25 Battlefield Key Dates

ENTRIES OPEN, 1 OCTOBER 2024

You’re invited to submit a proposal to the battlefield - from researchers and academia to organisations. All you need is an idea and an innovation that answers the challenge.

SHORTLISTING, 8 NOVEMBER 2024

Entries close on Tuesday 31 October. Up to ten applicants with the highest scores will be shortlisted and invited through to the heats.

ROUND 1 - ONLINE, 28 NOVEMBER 2024

Our shortlisted applicants will each present a 5 minute pitch to our panel of industry-leading judges online. We’ll then decide on up to 4 applicants to progress onwards to pitch at Mining Indaba.

ROUND 2 - MINING INDABA, 4 FEBRUARY 2025

The 4 finalists will pitch to another panel of judges at Mining Indaba. We’ll announce the winner of the Battlefield and the Innovation Grant that day.

Benefits and Details

Finalist Benefits

All finalists will secure themselves an exclusive opportunity to pitch in front of global leaders in mining and receive peer recognition for your research. Use the Battlefield as a unique platform to test and contribute new ideas on the global stage, and receive instant feedback from leaders in both industry and academia.

Finalists in the Battle Round 2 will receive a delegate pass to Mining Indaba, in Cape Town, South Africa (valued at £2,395).

Winner Benefits

In addition to having the opportunity to pitch in front of the world’s top mining companies and receive recognition for your research, the winning Innovation & Research proposal will receive:

- A unique platform to test and contribute new ideas on the global stage and receive instant feedback from leaders in both industry and academia

- An innovation Grant to support your research up to US$25,000, thanks to Anglo American

- Industry Networking Event with the judges for winner and runners-up at Mining Indaba. This is a rare opportunity to make face-to-face connections and form partnerships with both industry and academia.

Who can apply?

Researchers, academia, students and organisations from all over the world are invited to submit their proposals. We encourage a diversity of applications for both new and existing innovative research - collaborations, university research, or even startup-backed ideas.

Note: To apply, you must be affiliated with either an institution or an organisation who will assist in managing the awarded Innovation Grant.

2024 Winner

Grace Akinyi, representing Women in Mining Kenya

Eco-her Green Gold Innovate

In her pitch, Grace Akinyi introduced ‘Eco-her Green Gold Innovate’ as a solution for mercury pollution in ASM. Her innovation included an integrated system of protective gloves made from bacterial cellulose derived from coconut water, along with a multifunctional system featuring alternative heating sources. The aim was to address health risks from direct mercury contact, primarily affecting women, and reducing the environmental impact of mercury in gold mining.

Grace received a US$25,000 Innovation Grant from BHP Xplor, a speaker opportunity at the Mining Indaba Young Leaders Forum, and a spot on MITV.

The 2024 Innovation Grant was sponsored by BHP Xplor. Implementation partners included Hyve Group and the Brunswick Group.

In 2024, we produced an Alumni Magazine that detailed the entries and innovations produced by our Round 1 and Round 2 finalists.

Read the 2024 Alumni Magazine

2022 Winners

Shilpa Rumjeet, (Research Coordinator) and Tapiwa Chimbgana, (PhD Candidate), representing The University of Cape Town.

Land remediation in post-mining economies

The consortium was awarded a US$28,600 Innovation Grant, speaker opportunities at events such as the Young Leaders Forum and tickets to attend Mining Indaba 2023. They were also nominated in Women in Mining’s top 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining 2022.

The 2022 Innovation Grant was sponsored by BHP. Our implementation partners included Hyve Group, Business for Development and the Brunswick Group.

Find out more about the 2022 winning entry

Help shape the future of mining innovation.

Partner with us to make the 2025 Battlefield bigger and better than ever.

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