Currently, I am traveling around the world, conducting interviews for my research project. Within two days in Finland, I learned of two very large projects, each with very different levels of public support and opposition.

The first project, Botnia's Uruguay pulp plant in Fray Bentos, is being analyzed using stakeholder theory by our colleagues at the Helsinki University of Technology and VTT. This project was fraught with public opposition, including protests, road blocks, material withholding, international court proceedings and political contention. For more information, please refer to the forthcoming article "Stakeholder Salience in Global Projects" by Eloranta, K., Kujala, J., Oijala, T., in the International Journal of Project Management (Summer, 2008).

To say the least, the second project surprised me due to the current lack of public opposition. During a recent lunch at a company cafeteria in Finland, one of my hosts mentioned that she was raised in Kiruna. This Artic town in northern Sweden is currently being moved - Yes, Moved! - in order for the local mining company to access approximately 800 Million tons of crude ore in the ground. Despite the fact that over half of the town will be moved over the next 40 to 50 years to a site approximately 3 miles away, there has been little, if any, opposition. The cost to move the buildings alone is estimated at over US$4 Billion dollars, which will be borne by the state-owned mine, the city, and the country.

Why is there such a difference in the level of public opposition? In Kiruna, the fate of the town is interconnected with the fate of the mine. The mine is one of the largest employers within the town and has a tremendous effect on the town's economy. Because of this, the residents are calmly accepting the move, which will see much of their history demolished. As my host indicated, "The mine is the heart of the town. Residents accept that in order to keep the town running, the mine needs to be running. To do that, the town needs to move. It isn't a big deal". For more information on Kiruna, see: http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL12350858.

~ Amy Javernick Will ~

Posted by ajwill at April 20, 2008 4:46 PM