ContentsDefinitions for "social impact assessment" vary by different sectors and applications.According to the International Association for Impact Assessment, "Social impactassessment includes the processes of analyzing, monitoring and managing theintended and unintended social consequences, both positive and negative, of plannedinterventions (policies, programs, plans, projects) and any social change processesinvoked by those interventions. Its primary purpose is to bring about a more sustainableand equitable biophysical and human environment."SIAs originate from the 1970s and were originally used in Anglo-Saxon environmentswith indigenous peoples, like the United States, Canada and Australia. Use of SIA's, ingeneral in combination with Environmental Impact Assessments (ESIA) has since thendeveloped, and are legally required in many other countries, ranging from developmentcountries like Sierra Leone and Chad, emerging markets like Chili and Philippines butalso other OECD countries like Greenland and South Africa.Increased pressure on available land and increasingly educated and competent localcommunities can lead to high costs for public acceptance of complex projects withadverse risks and effects. SIAs are increasingly seen as an effective instrument to bringthese costs down by determining views of affected communities on risks, effects andmitigation measures based on a sound socio-economic baseline study.The IFC Performance Standards are generally seen as the benchmark for ESIAs andinsert this in an overarching Envrironmental and Social Risk Management System,which is based on proven risk management techniques. The IFC Performance Standardis used by multinational companies and commercial investors. Commercial banks haveunited themselves under the Equator Principles with over 90 members in 37 countries.SIA overlaps with monitoring and evaluation (M&E). Evaluation is particularly importantin the areas of:1. public policy,2. health and education initiatives, and3. international development projects more generally, whether conducted bygovernments, international donors, or NGOs.In all these sectors, there is a case for conducting SIA and evaluations at differentstages.The Hydropower Sustainability Assessment Protocol is a sector specific method forchecking the quality of environmental and social assessments and management plans.Non-experts and local people should participate in the design and implementation ofproposed developments or programmes. For example, in the field of research projects,it can be identified what people using social media platforms say and share about thesocial impact of science. This can be achieved in the process of doing an SIA, throughadopting a participatory and democratic research process. Some SIAs go further thanPage 98 of 211
this, to adopt an advocacy role. For example, several SIAs carried out in Queensland,Australia, have been conducted by consultants working for local Aboriginal communitieswho oppose new mining projects on ancestral land. A rigorous SIA report, showing realconsequences of the projects and suggesting ways to mitigate these impacts, givescredibility and provides evidence to take these campaigns to the planning officers or tothe courts.Page 99 of 211