Social Impact Investing

V. Social Impact Assessments
Social impact assessment (SIA) is a methodology to review the social effects of infrastructure
projects and other development interventions. Although SIA is usually applied to planned
interventions, the same techniques can be used to evaluate the social impact of unplanned
events, for example disasters, demographic change and epidemics.
Definition
The origins of SIA largely derive from the environmental impact assessment (EIA) model, which
first emerged in the 1970s in the U.S, as a way to assess the impacts on society of certain
development schemes and projects before they go ahead - for example, new roads, industrial
facilities, mines, dams, ports, airports, and
other infrastructure projects. In the United
States under the National
Environmental Policy Act, social impact
assessments are federally mandated
and performed
in conjunction
with
environmental
impact
assessments.
SIA has been incorporated into the
formal planning and
approval processes
in several countries,
in order to categorize
and assess how major developments may
affect populations, groups, and settlements. Though the social impact assessment has long
been considered subordinate to the environmental impact assessment, new models, such as
the Environmental Social Impact Assessment (ESIA), take a more integrated approach where
equal weight is given to both the social and environmental impact assessments.
Contents
Definitions for "social impact assessment" vary by different sectors and applications. According
to the International Association for Impact Assessment, "Social impact assessment includes the
processes of analyzing, monitoring and managing the intended and unintended social
consequences, both positive and negative, of planned interventions (policies, programs, plans,
projects) and any social change processes invoked by those interventions. Its primary purpose
is to bring about a more sustainable and equitable biophysical and human environment."
SIA's originate from the 1970's and were originally used in Anglo-Saxon environments with
indigenous peoples, like the United States, Canada and Australia. Use of SIA's, in general in
combination with Environmental Impact Assessments (ESIA) has since then developed, and are
legally required in many other countries, ranging from development countries like Sierra Leone
and Chad, emerging markets like Chili and Philippines but also other OECD countries like
Greenland and South Africa.
Increased pressure on available land and increasingly educated and competent local
communities can lead to high costs for public acceptance of complex projects with adverse risks
and effects. SIA's are increasingly seen as an effective instrument to bring these costs down by
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