Although complex and challenging, ASM is an important sector in many developing countries with significant untapped potential to allevieate poverty.  CASM and its partners are presently working in many countries to better understand the issues at stake and propose the strategies to address them.  ASM is much more than just mining.  CASM has adopted some themes relevant to ASM Communities around the world: 

• Large Scale/Small Scale Mining (LSM/ASM): CASM recognizes the need for a better collaboration between Industrial Mining Companies and Small scale and artisanal miners.  CASM is facilitating dialog and conflict management between ASM, LSM and Communities.
   
• Gender: In ASM communities, key gender inequities relate to lack of participation in decision-making processes, access to resources (e.g. capital, land, information, education and training), and basic human rights. CASM promotes gender equity and women empowerment.
   
• Child Labor: CASM recognizes the extent and nature of dangerous child labor and a commitment to rid ASM of this unacceptable activity. CASM officially signed the ILO Declaration at its 2005 Annual Conference in Brazil and encouraged countries involved in CASM to sign up.
   
• Mercury: CASM recognizes the need to improve or replace the use of mercury in gold mining, through partnership with UNIDO, the US EPA and NGOs.
   
• Conflict Diamonds: CASM supports the efforts to go beyond statistics in solving the conflict diamonds issues through partnership with NGOs (e.g. Partnership Africa Canada and Global Witness),private companies (e.g. De Beers) and governments through the DDI.