This handbook addresses community engagement and development, a theme in the Leading Practice Sustainable Development Program for the Mining Industry. The program aims to identify key issues affecting sustainable development in the mining industry and provide information and case studies that illustrate a more sustainable basis for the industry. A number of other themed handbooks in the series complement this handbook.The importance of the social dimension of sustainable development is acknowledged in key industry policy statements, such as the International Council on Mining and Metals’ Sustainable Development Principles (ICMM 2003) and the Minerals Council of Australia’s Enduring Value framework (MCA 2005), both of which have been widely adopted by mining companies for a number of years. Among other things, signatories to these frameworks undertake to contribute to the social, economic and institutional development of the communities in which they operate and to engage with and respond to stakeholders through open consultation processes. In the same way, a growing number of small, medium and large companies have adopted policy frameworks which emphasise that community considerations are integral to each stage of a mining operation, from design and construction through to operation and closure and beyond.