Managing social-related risks and impacts

We address the social and community aspects of our operations and projects at the business unit (BU) level.

We have a comprehensive governance framework that extends from the board of directors through executive and senior management to the staff levels in each BU. Read more about our sustainable development governance structure.

To support our BUs in operationalizing our Stakeholder Engagement Principles, we provide Social Performance Guidance with recommended internal processes and external engagement to understand and address stakeholder priorities. Based on this guidance, each BU manages local social risks, priorities and regulatory requirements, enabling tailored, region-specific business goals to address unique challenges and opportunities.

Stakeholder Engagement Principles	Social Performance Guidance
Proactively identify and seek out stakeholders. Include stakeholders in the design and implementation of the engagement process. Listen to understand stakeholders’ interests, concerns and culture. Communicate openly. Seek solutions that create mutually beneficial relationships and build long-term value for both the company and our stakeholders. Follow through on our commitments and stand accountable for the results, both internally and externally.	Community Engagement: Identifying our stakeholders and how they may impact or be impacted by company activities. Human Rights: Assessing potential risks to stakeholders’ human rights, incorporating risks into planning and providing a grievance mechanism. Indigenous Peoples: Consulting with Indigenous stakeholders to understand their culture, identify their priorities and work together to address them. Security and Human Rights: Implementing the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights. Community and Social Investment: Aligning investments with community needs and company strategy.

Stakeholder Engagement Principles

Social Performance Guidance

Proactively identify and seek out stakeholders.
Include stakeholders in the design and implementation of the engagement process.
Listen to understand stakeholders’ interests, concerns and culture.
Communicate openly.
Seek solutions that create mutually beneficial relationships and build long-term value for both the company and our stakeholders.
Follow through on our commitments and stand accountable for the results, both internally and externally.

Community Engagement: Identifying our stakeholders and how they may impact or be impacted by company activities.
Human Rights: Assessing potential risks to stakeholders’ human rights, incorporating risks into planning and providing a grievance mechanism.
Indigenous Peoples: Consulting with Indigenous stakeholders to understand their culture, identify their priorities and work together to address them.

Security and Human Rights: Implementing the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights.
Community and Social Investment: Aligning investments with community needs and company strategy.

Risk and impact assessment

By understanding the social, economic, political and environmental factors affecting stakeholders, we can identify and monitor emerging trends, manage potential impacts and reputational risks associated with our operations and add value to the communities where we operate.

Our stakeholder identification process is a key component of social risk assessment. Each BU is responsible for identifying stakeholders to understand their perspectives and concerns. Through our ongoing relationships with stakeholders, we identify important issues as well as potential opportunities for collaboration. From this we develop an engagement plan to address concerns and foster mutually beneficial relationships. By having open dialogue, we are able to identify and address potential impacts associated with our operations. This is done through our integrated sustainable development (SD) risk management process where existing and planned exploration and production as well as major projects are examined against the physical, social and political settings of our operations. Social assessments consider:

Impacts to communities, including human rights, Indigenous Peoples rights, labor rights, security, public health, political and economic issues.
Stakeholder priorities, including support of or opposition to company activities.
Risks and impacts related to supplier and contractor activities.
Cumulative effects of company and/or industry activities.

Examples of social-related risks and mitigation activities

Physical risks	Mitigation actions
Stakeholder opposition	Establish early, ongoing engagement with local communities, Indigenous groups, NGOs and civil society to understand concerns before they escalate. Coordinate stakeholder engagement and communication campaigns. Identify opportunities for targeted community investment activities. Incorporate community feedback into business development and operational activities.
Policy risks	Mitigation actions
Social and human rights policy changes and regulations	Engage with organizations developing social and human rights frameworks, standards, metrics and targets directly or through Ipieca. Assess alignment with, and gaps in, voluntary and regulatory social-related disclosure requirements and recommendations.
Reputational risks	Mitigation actions
Social and traditional media campaigns	Establish early, ongoing engagement with local communities, Indigenous groups, NGOs and civil society to understand concerns before they escalate. Collect community feedback to identify emerging issues. Maintain regular and open dialogue through all project phases.

Integrating stakeholder input

We aim to build strong relationships founded on transparency, courtesy and trust. This approach not only enables us to effectively manage potential risks and impacts to local stakeholders and our business but also supports the development of mutually beneficial relationships. Through this dedication to transparency and trust, we foster the creation of long-term value and opportunities for both the community and our organization.

The following examples show how stakeholder feedback is used in project planning and day‑to‑day decision making at select operated assets. They reflect approaches tailored to local conditions, stakeholder views and ongoing engagement over recent years.

In Alaska, we are committed to ongoing engagement throughout the state including with North Slope communities, especially those near our operations and within the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A). We travel to villages and host in-person meetings to listen to stakeholder feedback and concerns. We attend regular city and tribal council meetings, regional assembly and planning commission meetings, and participate in community events to develop relationships with local leaders and community members. Through our community investment activities, we support projects and events that are important to our stakeholders and enhance communities throughout Alaska.

We are committed to honoring the subsistence lifestyle of North Slope residents. We seek feedback from stakeholders, and implement and refine mitigation measures such as reduced speed limits and pullouts and ramps to improve subsistence access along the road system. We also consult with stakeholders on the placement and design of infrastructure to minimize impacts to subsistence and improve subsistence access.

We recognize that our operations intersect with communities in Australia. Through transparent and inclusive engagement, we work closely with stakeholders to understand and address the social and environmental impacts of our business. Our involvement in regional committees, social investment collaborations, and direct workforce participation ensures that our approach is proactive, solutions-focused and mutually beneficial.

By prioritizing long-term partnerships, investing in local capacity building, and empowering communities through education, workforce pathways and cultural engagement, we remain deeply embedded in the regions where we operate, helping to drive sustainable, positive change for the future.

In Canada, our collaborative contracting process allows us to work closely with Indigenous communities to create economic development opportunities. In both Montney and Surmont, we established business working groups to incorporate community feedback and consider:

Contracting capacity alongside ConocoPhillips contracting opportunities.
Community contracting priorities and focus areas.
Comments and feedback on ConocoPhillips procurement processes.

Together we discuss how to measure the success of these efforts.

Over the years, potential partners have expressed challenges with learning about upcoming contracting opportunities in a timely manner. As a result, ConocoPhillips shares short- and long-term opportunities in an iterative process, working to proactively identify the opportunities that align with current or future contracting capacity and/or interest.

The company’s high standards regarding safety, cost competitiveness and technical expectations as well as local considerations in our sourcing events have resulted in our procurement process being recognized by our community partners for its integrity.

In the U.S. Lower 48, we continued hosting leadership roundtables for our assets. The roundtables provide an opportunity for the company to share updates on our operations and report on community investment and sponsorship activities.

However, the most valuable aspect is the feedback we receive, as it helps us understand the needs and objectives set by locally appointed leaders in the counties and cities near our operations. The engagements have shaped the company's involvement in various projects.