Abstract Mining Co-operatives wield significant influence over the mining sector. These organizations have been getting increasing importance to support diggers through initiatives and policies to improve small-scale mining activities. In spite of the importance of cooperatives to the local communities, studies on their role and contribution towards sustainable business practices in the sector are still scarce. This paper investigates the scenario of mining Co-operatives in Brazil through a set of interviews to the managers of these Co-operatives, which allowed to conclude on the relevance of the sector to establish a sustainable network into the mining sector in the country. The results indicated some key concerns related to lack of awareness towards cooperative principles and environmental impacts and the reduced engagement with local community. The need to improve knowledge and academic background of both diggers and managers emerged as a major challenge to be overcome to ensure that cooperative principles are effectively put in place and guide the cooperatives towards sustainable development

中文翻译：

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采矿合作社：建立可持续发展网络的模型

摘要采矿合作社对采矿业产生了重大影响。这些组织越来越重视通过改善小型采矿活动的倡议和政策来支持挖掘者。尽管合作社对当地社区很重要，但对于合作社在该部门中对可持续商业实践的作用和贡献的研究仍然很少。本文通过对这些合作社的管理人员进行了一系列访谈，调查了巴西采矿合作社的情况，从而可以得出结论，该部门对于在该国建立可持续发展的网络具有重要意义。结果表明，与缺乏对合作原则和环境影响的认识以及与当地社区的参与减少有关的一些关键问题。