Date:
23 - 24 November 2017
Organised by:
Geological Society Events, IUGS Resourcing Future Generations, 2018 Year of Resources
Venue:
The Geological Society, Burlington House
Event status:
EVENT CLOSED
The mineral resource needs of the future will be different to those of the past and present. Delivering the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and implementing the COP 21 Paris Agreement to decarbonise the global economy will alter and add significantly to the demand for metals and minerals by both developed and developing countries. Our growing global population rightly expects greater prosperity and more equitable access to resources, and is becoming more industrialised and urbanised.
We are only beginning to understand the challenge of meeting these needs in a way which is environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. Meeting this challenge will depend on cutting-edge research across the geosciences and in other disciplines, including engineering, economics and social sciences – and will require engagement with industry, the financial community, policy-makers and the wider public.
This meeting is part of our Year of Resources running throughout 2018, and brought together a wide community of geoscientists and others to explore how we can address this challenge, and start to develop a roadmap for this multidisciplinary effort.
It was held in conjunction with the IUGS Resourcing Future Generations initiative, and will inform the major IUGS conference on this topic to be held in Vancouver in June 2018.
Speakers included:
- Peter Buchholz (DERA – German Mineral Resources Agency)
- Daniel Franks (United Nations Development Programme)
- Karen Hanghøj (EIT Raw Materials, Berlin)
- Sian Bradley (Chatham House)
- Richard Herrington (Natural History Museum)
- Henry Sanderson (Financial Times)
- Kathryn Goodenough (BGS)
- Andrew Bloodworth (BGS)
- Frances Wall (Camborne School of Mines)
- Alex Lemon (Mkango Resources Ltd)’
Conference Themes
Theme 1: Future Supply and demand
KEYNOTE: Peter Buchholz (DERA – German Mineral Resources Agency)
'Demand trends for mineral raw materials relevant to the energy transition'
Raimund Bleischwitz (University College London)
'Sustainable resource governance, the nexus and saturation levels'
David Manning (Newcastle University)
'The shape of the industrial minerals sector in 2050'
David Merriman (Roskill Information Services Ltd)
'The diversification of raw materials by new technologies'
Sian Bradley (Chatham House)
'Metals and minerals for the energy transition: Challenges for global governance'
Panel-led discussion: How confident can we be about future demand trends? How can we plan for an uncertain future?
Theme 2: Where will future resources come from?
KEYNOTE: Richard Herrington (Natural History Museum)
'Sourcing metals for the future: The why, the where and the how'
Kathryn Goodenough (British Geological Survey)
'Developing new exploration models for rare earth elements and associated critical metals'
Panel-led discussion: Does it make sense to think about ‘running out’ of mineral resources? What are the constraints on current and future resource availability?
Andrew Bloodworth (British Geological Survey)
New prospect or old rubbish? A geological perspective on secondary metal resources and the ‘urban mine’
Alex Lemon (Mkango Resources Ltd) Raw Materials and Technology for the Clean Tech Revolution
Andrew Bloodworth (British Geological Survey) New prospect or old rubbish? A geological perspective on secondary metal resources and the ‘urban mine’
Alex Lemon (Mkango Resources Ltd) Raw Materials and Technology for the Clean Tech Revolution
Theme 3: Meeting the resource challenge responsibly
KEYNOTE: Daniel Franks (United Nations Development Programme)
'Reconsidering the role of minerals and matter in international development'
Natalia Yakovleva (Newcastle University)
'Opportunities for mining companies to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals in Sub-Saharan Africa'
Sarah Gordon (Satarla Ltd)
'Social responsibility in the mining sector''
Frances Wall (Camborne School of Mines)
'Responsible sourcing of minerals'
Gavin Hilson (University of Surrey)
'Rethinking the Narrative: Building A Case for Formalizing Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Sub-Saharan Africa'
Julia Dent (WSP Water Services)
'The Importance of water in project development, and how to reduce risk'
Panel-led discussion: How can we share the benefits and risks (economic, environmental and social) of mining more fairly? Can the resources needed for global development be sourced in an environmentally and socially acceptable way?
Theme 4: Who do should we engage in this effort, and how?
KEYNOTE: Karen Hanghøj (EIT Raw Materials)
'Mobilising the European raw materials sector'
Froydis Cameron-Johansson (Anglo American)
'FutureSmart Mining'
Henry Sanderson (Financial Times)
'The Great Battery Race and the New World of Resources'
Simon Ratcliffe (Department for International Development)
'Arches or beams? What can we learn from the Romans?'
Thomas Evans (Policy Connect)
'Getting policymakers on board with the mineral resource challenge'
Panel-led discussion: How can we build a roadmap for meeting future resource needs, an interdisciplinary community up for addressing this challenge, and the social and political capital to make it possible?
Convenors
Nic Bilham (Geological Society)
Edmund Nickless (Geological Society / IUGS)
Andrew Bloodworth (BGS)
Frances Wall (Camborne School of Mines)
Natalia Yakovleva (Newcastle University)
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