Reflection on the Materiality of Transition – 8th session of the Webinar TTI.5

This 8th session of the Webinar TTI.5 will be held online on Friday, January 19, 2024, from 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM. The session will be held in French.

The extraction, importation, and transformation of raw materials play a crucial role in the low-carbon transition. Emerging technologies such as renewable energy, electric vehicles, and energy storage devices rely on so-called rare metals, such as lithium and cobalt.

However, the use of these resources can lead to environmental problems, mining-related conflicts, challenging working conditions, and inequalities in access to the benefits of the transition. The geopolitical balance is disrupted.

Thus, the responsible management of raw materials becomes a crucial issue to ensure an environmentally sustainable and socially equitable transition.

Program

To discuss all these topics, three specialists are announced among the speakers :

Damien GOETZ | Professor-Researcher at GEOSCIENCES Mines Paris – PSL
Mineral resources specialist – with expertise in extraction methods, economic assessment of development, and availability for economic and industrial growth – Damien GOETZ is a teaching researcher at GEOSCIENCES. He is in charge of the Mineral Resources option for transitions in the education of engineers at Mines Paris – PSL.

Brice LAURENT | Researcher at CSI Mines Paris – PSL
Researcher at the Center for the Sociology of Innovation (CSI), Brice LAURENT also serves as the director of the Social Sciences, Economy, and Society Directorate at the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES). His research focuses on the relationships between science and democracy, investigated through surveys conducted in places involved in the promotion, regulation, or contestation of innovation. His current work includes inquiries into experimental forms of innovation and research projects addressing political issues related to subsurface resources.

Farah BENRAMDANE | Phd Student at theUniversity Bordeaux-Montaigne
Farah BENRAMDAME has been working on a thesis since 2021 within the École doctorale Montaigne – Humanités in partnership with the unité de recherche Cultures et Littératures des Mondes Anglophones (CLIMAS). Her thesis focuses on « Conflits miniers et territoire “cédés” : la remise en cause systématique de la souveraineté amérindienne aux Etats-Unis »and is under the supervision of Lionel LARRE, President of the University Bordeaux-Montaigne and professor of American civilization.