About Session
The clean energy transition depends on an ever-increasing supply of critical minerals such as cobalt, lithium, nickel, and rare earths: $300-$400 billion in new investment is needed each year for mining, refining and smelting. But the expansion of these activities is generating a vast range of negative externalities affecting environment and biodiversity, and labor and human rights, so much so that they threaten the social license to operate of many projects. Investors, while recognizing the urgent need for critical minerals as a key to decarbonization, are concerned that they may have indirect exposure to social and environmental harms.
While there may be broad interest among ICCR’s members and experience working in critical minerals engagement, this is a relatively new and undeveloped area. This session aims to provide members with an overview of the issues, the key players, good practice leaders and laggards, and the landscape of standards, investor coalitions and civil society efforts. Critical minerals investors may find these topics informative for their engagements.
This session will cover:
• Analysis of social and environmental impacts of critical mineral extraction;
• An update on standard-setting;
• Recent, current and upcoming investor engagements in the critical minerals value chain, and how to join them;
• Precision tools for investors to use in their engagements.