Critical raw materials

Timeline

• 2021Aluminium, chromium, germanium, iron, and nickel were added to the 2021 list, while palladium was removed.
• 2022UK The United Kingdom's Critical Minerals Strategy: Resilience for the Future was published in July 2022, and updated in March 2023.
• 2024On 5 April 2024, MSP partners launched the Minerals Security Partnership Forum to enhance cooperation in respect of CRM critical to "green and digital transitions".
• 2025The 2025 Critical Mineral List included ten new minerals.
• 2026On February 24, 2026, during the 2026 Critical Minerals Ministerial, the U.S.

Read

• Alexander KlugeTara Forrest · 2011Book
• Strategic and critical raw materialsUnited States Military Academy. Dept. of Social Sciences. · 1942Book
• Mining and Processing ResiduesAlexandre Chagnes · 2023Book
• Future-Proofing Fuel CellsMartin David · 2021Book

Listen

• Responsible Raw Materials PodcastDr Sarah Gordon and Critical ProductionsPodcast

By the numbers

• 4.7CO₂ per person (t) — global, 2024 (World Bank)
• 31.1Forest area (% land) — global, 2023 (World Bank)

Debates

• Should nations prioritize domestic extraction of critical raw materials over international trade?One view: Domestic extraction enhances national security by reducing reliance on potentially unstable foreign suppliers. · Another: International trade allows for cost-effective sourcing and fosters global economic interdependence, which can prevent conflicts.Open question
• Is a fully circular economy for critical raw materials a realistic goal?One view: Advancements in recycling technologies and product design can significantly reduce the need for new extraction, making a circular economy achievable. · Another: Current technological limitations, economic costs, and the complexity of mixed materials make full circularity impractical for many critical raw materials.Open question
• Should environmental protection always take precedence over critical raw material extraction?One view: Protecting ecosystems and biodiversity is paramount, as environmental damage can have irreversible long-term consequences. · Another: Strategic access to critical raw materials is essential for green technologies and economic development, requiring a balance with environmental concerns.Open question

Glossary

• Critical raw materialsMaterials vital for modern technologies and economies, facing high supply risk.
• Rare earth elementsA group of 17 metallic elements crucial for electronics, magnets, and green energy technologies.
• Supply chainThe network of organizations, people, activities, information, and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer.
• Circular economyAn economic model designed to minimize waste and maximize resource use by reusing, repairing, and recycling materials.
• GeopoliticsThe study of how geography and resources influence international politics and relations.
• Resource scarcityThe limited availability of natural resources relative to demand, leading to potential competition and conflict.

Careers

Roles this can lead toward

Student research

Published policy papers by One Young India delegates — every delegate leaves published under their own name.

• A Critical Look at India's Digital DivideShreeyans Sharma
• Global Inflation after the Pandemic: Cyclical Pressures, Structural Drivers, and Policy MisstepsGayatri Satish
• Global Emissions and Carbon Offsetting: Examining Conservational Approaches and Regulatory GapsVinayak Raj
• The Decline of Regional Languages in India – Preserving Linguistic Diversity in a Globalized EraSajinkya Sharan Gupta
• Capitalism and Global Inequality: A Unified AnalysisRuveer Vohra
• Untangling The Threads of the TikTok Ban's Impact On Global Trade via Trade, Technology, and DiplomacyAanya Menon

Threads 5

Where this connects to other fields — and why it's worth knowing.

• Biodiversity Loss Environment

  Running the whole world's supply through one narrow strait or one factory is efficient, but it's the same trap as a farm growing only one crop. There's no backup if something goes wrong. Nature survives shocks by being diverse, which means diversity is really just insurance.

• Trade, Money & Economies History

  The Ottomans controlled the land routes that spices travelled to Europe, and could squeeze them. That blockage pushed Europeans to gamble on risky sea voyages instead, which kicked off the Age of Exploration and centuries of colonial empires. One jammed trade route rerouted world history.

• Game Theory & Strategy Mathematics

  Taiwan makes most of the world's advanced computer chips, and that's its 'silicon shield.' Invading would wreck the very factories everyone needs, so attacking hurts the attacker too. It's the old cold-war logic of mutual destruction, rebuilt out of a supply chain instead of nukes.

• Energy Systems & the Power Grid Technology

  On the power grid, when one line overloads and trips, its electricity dumps onto the next line, which overloads too, and a blackout cascades across whole cities. Global trade breaks the same way: block one key shipping route or cut off one rare mineral, and the shock jumps from country to country far from where it started.

• Homeostasis Health

  Your body survives by keeping backups: stored sugar, extra water, spare everything, so a missed meal doesn't kill you. Modern supply chains did the opposite, stripping out all the spare stock to save money. But that extra 'wasteful' stock is exactly what makes both bodies and supply lines survive a shock.