They say if you want to test how well you know a subject, try explaining it to a 5-year-old. As a tailings engineer, explaining concepts like tailings deposition strategies or dam breach assessments can be challenging. Meaningfully communicating such concepts to a variety of project stakeholders is not always an easy feat, let alone to my 5-year-old.
In today’s environment, meaningful engagement with stakeholders is crucial, as projects often face pressures from communities, regulators and others. For tailings management, meaningful engagement isn’t just beneficial—it’s required for compliance with the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM). Tailings operators must consult and listen to stakeholder perspectives in a manner that involves measures to overcome structural and practical barriers to the participation of diverse and vulnerable groups of people.
Technological advances have offered new forms of communication. You could put on a VR headset and immerse yourself in a drone flight over a mine site anywhere on the planet. Despite the digital age’s immersive technologies, there’s value in stepping back from screens. Tactile learning experiences offer an alternative pathway to reconnect with the physical world.
What began as an innovative experiment quickly revealed the power of 3D-printed mine site models for communication. Having physical models of my projects on my desk saw conversations with colleagues shift from computer screens to hands-on interactions with the miniaturised sites. Bringing 3D models of site topography, along with ‘dam fill material’ (aka modeling clay) and ‘tailings’ (aka water beads) to student nights and conferences has offered visitors an interactive taste of tailings dam site selection studies. Physical models have allowed our clients to improve communication with a variety of stakeholders, from illustrating site closure concepts in internal workshops to engaging with the community in pop-up events to explain expansion projects.
By harnessing the tactile and visual appeal of physical models, we can move beyond dependence on screen time to a universally understandable approach. The impact of 3D-printed physical models as tools for meaningful engagement? Well, not only can my 5-year-old explain how a closure spillway works, but he now dreams of becoming ‘a miner’ when he grows up.
