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Fostering economic development for Indigenous people, particularly through the provision of opportunities for direct employment and enterprise development, has assumed increasing importance for the minerals industry since the early 1990s. Early in 2006 the Board of the Queensland Resources Council (QRC) endorsed a revised set of goals and priorities for the QRC. One of the goals is to maintain the industry's 'social licence to operate'. A priority beneath that goal is to develop a QRC strategy for the resources industry in relation to Indigenous education, employment and business development. In developing this strategy, the QRC determined that it needed to gain an understanding of contemporary practices and initiatives within the resources sector with respect to Indigenous education, employment and business development. The University of Queensland's Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining (CSRM) was engaged to undertake this task. The objectives of the project are to: (1) map current activity relating to Indigenous employment and business development in the resources and government sectors in Queensland and other Australian jurisdictions; (2) highlight examples of good practice in these areas; and (3) assist QRC in developing a strategic position on Indigenous employment and business development. The focus was not only to be on what industry can and should be doing, but also on the contribution that state and Commonwealth governments are making, and can make in this area.