Rising Gold Prices: What Lies Behind the Shine?

In cooperation with Austrian Foundation for Development Research ÖFSE, Austrian Centre for Peace ACP, Dreikönigsaktion DKA and Vienna Institute for International Dialogue and Cooperation VIDC

Who benefits from the gold price boom — and who bears the costs?

Gold shines as a symbol of security, wealth and stability. In 2026, its price has reached unprecedented levels, driven by financial investment, geopolitical uncertainty and large-scale purchases by central banks. High prices are intensifying pressure to expand extraction, with significant consequences for communities and the environment in gold-mining regions.

Who benefits from the gold boom and how much of the additional wealth remains in producing countries and reaches mining communities?  What happens when rising prices fuel illegal mining, environmental degradation and conflicts over land and resources? How can producing countries ensure that resource extraction generates greater benefits while reducing its social and environmental costs?  And what responsibilities do Austria and the EU have in promoting a more transparent, equitable and sustainable gold sector?

The event looks beyond the shine of gold and examines the realities of its extraction and trade. It brings together perspectives on the experiences of mining communities in Ghana and neighbouring countries, explores links between gold extraction, illicit trade and conflict; and the promises of transparency in global gold supply chains—alongside the question of what can actually be traced and verified and what remains hidden.

Opening Remarks:
Irene Horejs, Former EU Ambassador, curator at the Bruno Kreisky Forum specialized on Africa and Latinamerica as well as on development and humanitarian policy, Curator Bruno Kreisky Forum

Hannah Owusu-Koranteng, Associate Executive Director of Wacam, one of Ghana’s leading community-based human rights and environmental mining advocacy organisations.
Sophia Stanger is Senior Project Manager at the Austrian Center for Peace (ACP), with a focus on environmental security and gold.

Matthieu Bolay is a social anthropologist and an associate professor at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Geneva.
Dan Sanaren is a Research and Data Coordinator for the Conflict Resolution Program in West Africa at The Carter Center, and a PhD candidate at the CNRS, affiliated to the CERI-Sciences Po.  

Moderator:
Karin Küblböck, is senior researcher at the Austrian Foundation for development research, with a focus on resources polices and stakeholder engagement.