The Current State of Female Leadership in Mining
Women represent only 17% of the Canadian mining workforce, a figure that falls well below the national workforce average of 28%. This statistic is often misrepresented as significant progress when in reality, mining remains one of the least gender-diverse sectors in the Canadian economy. The slow pace of change becomes even more apparent when examining leadership positions, where female representation drops to single digits at board and executive levels.
Beth Borody , former mining executive and founder/CEO of Femina Collective, has witnessed these disparities firsthand throughout her career. “The isolation women feel in mining leadership positions creates a different kind of pressure,” explains Borody. “Not having female camaraderie was a glaring gap in my professional journey. Traditional networking events lacked the depth needed for meaningful connection.”
Women leaders in mining face unique challenges that extend beyond representation numbers. The industry’s deeply entrenched culture creates an environment where women often experience professional loneliness, lacking peers who understand their specific challenges. This isolation becomes particularly pronounced at higher leadership levels, where female executives report having to navigate complex decisions without the benefit of same-gender mentorship.
Perhaps most concerning is the persistent barrier to funding for female-led mining ventures. When female CEOs pitch mining projects, they frequently face skepticism about their technical expertise and leadership capabilities, regardless of qualifications. One telling statistic reveals that more Canadian mining boards have men over 80 than women under 65—a stark illustration of the industry’s resistance to generational and gender diversity.
Why is Female Leadership Essential in Transforming the Mining Industry?
The benefits of increased female leadership in mining extend far beyond diversity metrics. Operations led by women demonstrate measurably higher safety compliance rates—up to 23% better in some studies—compared to male-dominated operations. This improved safety performance translates directly to operational efficiency, with fewer work stoppages and lower incident-related costs.
Female-led mining companies also show distinct advantages in holistic decision-making. Companies with gender-balanced boards demonstrate 15% higher ESG compliance scores, positioning them favorably with institutional investors who increasingly screen for sustainability metrics. This integrated approach to risk assessment considers community impacts, environmental stewardship, and governance challenges in the mining industry alongside traditional financial metrics.
“Women investors evaluate risk through holistic ESG lenses, not just financials,” notes Emily King, a mining executive with global experience. “This comprehensive view actually improves long-term profitability because it anticipates and mitigates issues that traditional risk frameworks often miss until they become crises.”
Female leadership brings unique insights from global experiences that might otherwise remain hidden. King shares an illuminating anecdote from her fieldwork: “In certain conservative jurisdictions, I gained access to family operations where male colleagues couldn’t enter. I discovered that mining is fundamentally a family business globally—women hold invisible operational power in many regions, managing logistics, finances, and community relations without formal recognition.”
This behind-the-scenes influence represents untapped knowledge that could transform industry practices. Women’s perspectives on community engagement, environmental management, and workforce development bring innovative approaches to long-standing challenges. By incorporating these viewpoints at leadership levels, mining companies can develop more sustainable and socially responsive operational models.
The Origin Story & Methodology Behind Femina Collective
Femina Collective began in early 2020 as an informal virtual Zoom group, responding to the isolation female mining professionals experienced during the pandemic. What started as a single conversation among colleagues transformed remarkably quickly, growing from zero to 46 members across 16 companies in just four calendar quarters.
“I started Femina unintentionally,” Borody explains. “It grew organically when we stopped being titles and started being humans. Women in the industry consistently expressed that they wanted genuine connection beyond typical networking events. That’s how our community grew—we prioritized authentic relationships over transactional networking.”
The virtual nature of the community proved crucial to its success. By eliminating geographical barriers, Femina created unprecedented accessibility for women across different mining regions, commodities, and career stages. The digital-first approach allowed participation regardless of travel limitations, family responsibilities, or remote site placements—factors that traditionally hinder women’s professional networking opportunities.
Femina’s methodology differs fundamentally from conventional diversity initiatives. Rather than focusing on single-event representation or panel discussions, the collective builds sustained community through regular interaction, skill-sharing, and mutual support. This membership-based model emphasizes consistency and depth over sporadic engagement, creating lasting professional relationships that translate into tangible career advancement.
The community maintains an impressive 83% retention rate over three years—significantly higher than the industry average of 68% for professional development programs. This stability allows for long-term mentorship relationships, knowledge transfer, and collaborative problem-solving that extends beyond immediate career concerns to address systemic industry challenges.
Challenges and Myths Around Female Funding in Mining
Despite growing evidence supporting the business case for gender diversity, female-led mining ventures continue to face significant funding obstacles. A particularly revealing example emerged during a junior mining pitch: a highly qualified female CEO with extensive geological expertise had her proposal rejected explicitly because her board lacked “credible” male industry insiders—despite her team’s superior technical credentials.
This scenario illustrates a persistent myth: that women-led projects receive preferential funding due to diversity initiatives. The reality proves dramatically different. Only 2% of venture funding goes to women-led companies across sectors, a statistic that mining mirrors or even worsens due to its male-dominated investment networks.
“People don’t want to put their own necks on the line to invest differently—particularly in female CEOs, fearing heightened repercussions for failures,” explains Borody. “Failure with female leadership gets amplified, success gets minimized. This asymmetric risk perception creates an invisible barrier that statistics alone don’t capture.”
The funding challenge becomes particularly acute for female founders in technical mining specialties. Nearly 78% of female CEOs report needing male endorsements to establish credibility with investors, regardless of their expertise or track record. This “vouching” requirement creates an additional hurdle that male founders rarely encounter.
The psychological dynamics of mining investment committees compound these challenges. Risk tolerance for female-led ventures demonstrably decreases when women constitute less than 30% of the decision-making group. With 62% of limited partners in mining funds having zero female general partner representation, this threshold rarely materializes in practice.
What is the Femina Investment Club & How Does it Aim to Change the Mining Industry?
The Femina Investment Club represents a groundbreaking approach to addressing systemic funding disparities. Set to officially launch in 2025 as a pilot private investment club in Canada, this initiative will pool financial resources from accredited female investors to create meaningful impact at larger scales than individual investments could achieve.
“We’re engineering ownership pathways from club to full mine operations,” states Borody in describing the 10-year roadmap. The club’s initial structure requires a $250,000 minimum buy-in for the pilot program, with plans to scale toward a $50 million pooled fund by 2027, leveraging a 3:1 ratio with institutional partners.
The Investment Club’s formation follows a carefully structured approach:
- Educational programming for prospective participants about accredited investor qualifications ($1M net worth or $200K annual income) and mining investment fundamentals for women
- Implementation of comprehensive due diligence frameworks centered on ESG-responsible standards, with IRMA certification as a mandatory criterion
- Development of a collaborative decision-making model that ensures significant financial influence while distributing risk appropriately across the membership
The investment strategy employs a three-phase capital deployment approach: allocating 15-20% to exploration, 50-60% to feasibility and development, and 25-30% to production support. This balanced portfolio approach addresses mining’s notorious boom-bust cycles while maintaining sufficient growth potential.
“IRMA certification reduces pre-production risks by 40%,” notes the club’s technical advisory panel, highlighting the business rationale behind their strict ESG requirements. By applying rigorous standards early in the investment process, the club aims to identify more sustainable projects while avoiding environmental and social pitfalls that frequently derail mining ventures.
How Does the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) Play a Role?
IRMA Certification has rapidly emerged as a critical framework for responsible mining investment. With nearly 100 mine sites currently applying IRMA standards globally, this certification has transitioned from an aspirational guideline to a concrete requirement for projects seeking long-term investment.
The Femina Investment Club has positioned IRMA compliance as a mandatory criterion for investment consideration—not merely as an ethical stance but as a fundamental risk management strategy. This approach acknowledges that ESG challenges and opportunities in mining represent the most common causes of mining project delays and cost overruns.
“Using IRMA standards from early exploration phases results in more comprehensive risk identification and project de-risking, essential for long-term mining investment success,” Emily King explains. This perspective challenges the conventional industry view that ESG considerations should only enter during later development stages.
IRMA’s comprehensive framework addresses 26 critical areas including water management, community consent, labor rights, and pollution control. For investment purposes, this granularity provides unprecedented visibility into operational risks that traditional due diligence might overlook.
The certification’s growing market influence stems from mounting pressure throughout the supply chain. Downstream manufacturers increasingly demand responsibly sourced minerals, creating market incentives that align with the investment club’s criteria. Major automotive and technology companies now incorporate IRMA standards into their procurement requirements, establishing a competitive advantage for certified operations.
Beyond environmental protection, IRMA standards specifically address gender impacts in mining—an aspect frequently overlooked in conventional assessments. This includes evaluating projects for their effects on women in surrounding communities, gender-based violence risks, and opportunities for meaningful female participation in consultation processes.
The Real-World Impact & Case Studies: Female Investors Empowering Mining Innovation
The potential impact of concentrated female investment power becomes evident through existing case studies. Beth Meyers, the first investor in Prospector (a mining data platform), provided crucial funding despite the industry downturn during COVID-19. This capital enabled the company to weather market volatility while continuing technological development.
“Her investment wasn’t just financial—it was strategic validation during a period when traditional investors were retreating,” notes a company representative. “She recognized the long-term value proposition when others could only see immediate market conditions.”
This pattern of contrarian investment success appears consistently across female-led funding decisions in the mining sector. Women investors demonstrate greater patience with development timelines, particularly for projects incorporating the transformative role of sustainable mining practices or community-centered operational models.
The investment club model creates significant ripple effects beyond direct funding. By securing board positions and advisory roles as investment conditions, female investors gain strategic placement in decision-making forums. This representation influences corporate governance, hiring practices, and operational priorities—extending impact far beyond the initial capital deployment.
Femina’s longer-term vision extends beyond the investment club structure to eventually establish a female-owned investment fund. This progression would enable professional management of larger capital pools while maintaining the founding principles of gender-balanced decision-making and ESG integration.
The ultimate goal—operating mines with inclusive management strategies—represents a revolutionary approach to an industry that has changed little in its fundamental power structures over centuries. By controlling both capital and operations, women could implement workplace policies that address persistent challenges like inadequate family support, harassment, and inflexible work arrangements.
How Can Increased Female Ownership and Influence Transform Mining Over the Next Decade?
The projected benefits of gender-balanced investment in mining extend across multiple dimensions of industry performance. Perhaps most significantly, women’s increased financial influence would accelerate leadership parity across decision-making roles, creating a virtuous cycle of inclusion and mentorship.
Data from adjacent industries suggests that reaching 30% female representation at investment committees represents a critical tipping point for culture change. Beyond this threshold, unconscious biases diminish significantly, and selection criteria shift toward objective qualifications rather than relationship-based trust signals.
The resulting leadership changes would transform operational practices. Female-directed operations consistently demonstrate improved profitability through enhanced risk assessment methodologies, higher safety records (reducing costly incidents), and more effective stakeholder engagement (preventing project delays).
Current problematic investment culture in mining heavily rewards exploration rather than responsible operations. This emphasis on “discovery” over sustainable production creates misaligned incentives that female investors are uniquely positioned to correct. By valuing operational excellence and community relationships, women-led investment vehicles could shift industry focus toward long-term success metrics.
“When Canadian women control 50% of the country’s wealth by 2030, as projected, mining will face unprecedented pressure to adapt its investment practices,” notes an industry analyst. This financial power shift represents both a challenge and opportunity for an industry that has historically resisted external change pressures.
The transformation extends beyond individual companies to industry standards. Female investors consistently demonstrate greater willingness to require third-party certification, transparent reporting, and verifiable impact assessments—practices that improve market credibility and reduce greenwashing concerns. Additionally, understanding future trends in mining finance will be crucial for women looking to make strategic investments in the sector.
FAQs: Female Leadership and Investments in Mining
What percentage of the Canadian mining workforce is female?
Women currently constitute approximately 17% of the total Canadian mining workforce—a number often perceived as sufficient progress but still significantly short of parity. This figure falls well below the national workforce average of 28% female participation. At leadership levels, the representation drops further, with women holding less than 10% of board positions in Canadian mining companies, according to research from McKinsey.
Why are female investors vital for mining’s future?
Female investors are increasingly crucial due to the substantial untapped financial potential—by 2030, Canadian women will control 50% of the country’s wealth, representing an enormous, unexplored investment base for responsible mining initiatives. Beyond capital access, women bring distinct risk assessment approaches that better identify environmental and social liabilities early in project development. Research demonstrates that female-influenced investment decisions typically produce stronger long-term returns in volatile commodity markets through more comprehensive due diligence processes.
What is IRMA Certification, and why is it important for mining investment?
IRMA Certification is a comprehensive global standard for responsible mining operations, providing clear frameworks that help identify and mitigate ESG risks early, crucial in securing responsible and sustainable project funding. The certification evaluates mines across 26 critical areas including water management, community relations, labor rights, and pollution control. For investors, IRMA-certified projects demonstrate 40% lower risk profiles for expensive operational delays related to community conflicts or environmental incidents. Major end-users of minerals, including automotive and technology manufacturers, increasingly require IRMA certification in their supply chains, creating market advantages for compliant operations.
Actionable Steps: How Women Can Get Involved in Mining Investment
For women interested in participating in mining investment opportunities, several actionable pathways exist:
- Identify accredited investor qualifications: Determine if you meet the financial thresholds required for private investment opportunities ($1M net worth or $200K annual income). Non-accredited investors can explore publicly traded mining companies or mining-focused ETFs as alternative entry points.
- Engage in educational programs: Participate in mining investment workshops specifically designed for women investors. These programs address both technical aspects of mineral development and the unique considerations of ESG-focused investment strategies. Organizations like Femina Collective, Women in Mining, and mining-focused business schools offer specialized courses.
- Join community investment groups: Connect with existing women-led investment circles focusing on natural resources. These communities provide peer learning, shared due diligence resources, and potential co-investment opportunities, creating lower-barrier entry points into the sector.
- Develop evaluation frameworks: Establish personal criteria for responsible mining investments based on recognized standards like IRMA. Understanding the key risk indicators and performance metrics provides confidence when assessing potential opportunities and engaging with technical teams.
- Advocate for transparency: When investing in public mining companies, actively participate in shareholder engagement to promote gender diversity, ESG reporting, and responsible operational practices. This collective action creates market pressure for improved industry standards.
Expert Opinions & Trust Signals
Beth Borody brings substantial credibility to Femina’s approach through her dual expertise as both a mining executive and IRMA sector lead. This combination of operational experience and sustainability certification knowledge uniquely positions her to bridge traditional mining finance with responsible investment frameworks.
“When women have financial power within mining, we don’t just see an ideological shift—we see entire operations becoming safer, more innovative, more profitable, and fundamentally sustainable,” states Borody. Her leadership in developing practical pathways for female investors addresses a critical gap in the industry’s approach to gender inclusion.
Emily King, Prospector CEO and industry veteran, reinforces these perspectives through her global fieldwork across diverse mining jurisdictions. Her firsthand observations of women’s hidden operational influence in family mining enterprises worldwide provides compelling evidence for the untapped leadership potential that formal investment structures could unlock.
The combined expertise of these leaders, alongside their growing community of practice, establishes a credible foundation for the transformative approaches they advocate. Their work is further validated by emerging research from mining-focused business schools and industry associations documenting the financial advantages of gender-diverse leadership teams.
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