Professor Deanna Kemp

Director of the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining (CSRM), The University of Queensland

Deanna is responsible for developing the Centre’s research strategy, managing its annual budget, and overseeing 40 staff and post-graduate students. She serves on the leadership team of UQ’s Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI) – a research institute focused on understanding and implementing the principles of sustainable development in extractive industries. Within the SMI, Deanna engages with sustainable development challenges across exploration, mining, processing, expansion, and closure. She is the Chair of the International Council of Mining and Metals (ICMM) New Member Review Panel and Co-Chair of the Board of the IHRB. Prior to UQ, Deanna worked for BHP for ten years in site-based and corporate roles. She is one of the world’s most highly cited social researchers in her field. Her book, Extractive Relations: Countervailing Power and the Global Mining Industry, with John Owen, covers topics including social license to operate and social impacts in mining. Her most recent book, Credibility Crisis: Brumadinho and the Politics of Mining Industry Reform, with Andrew Hopkins, challenges the industry’s approach to rebuilding credibility post-disaster. Deanna’s forthcoming work is focused on community resistance to mining, the local costs of mining benefits, and the drivers of irresponsibility across the sector.