In March 2023, the H2020 BIORECOVER project organized an online seminar series in collaboration with several European projects, including ION4RAW, EIS, AfricaMaVal, and SCRREEN2. The seminars delved into the pressing issue of raw materials and their pivotal role in the global energy transition, which poses significant challenges to our world today.
Europe’s heavy reliance on raw materials for its growth, competitiveness, and transition to a greener economy makes it imperative to establish and maintain sustainable supply chains for raw materials. However, the current scale of unlocking unexploited ore reserves falls short of meeting the demand. Therefore, innovative and transformative strategies are needed to develop environmentally and socially sustainable raw material value chains that align with Europe’s climate, security, and economic ambitions.
The webinar series comprised of three seminars, each addressing a distinct aspect of raw materials sustainability. The first seminar on “Establishing responsible global partnerships” took place on 7th March 2023. It was followed by a second webinar focused on “Improving the sustainability of critical raw materials extraction” on 9th March 2023. Finally, the last webinar on “Researching unexploited European reserves” took place on 15th March 2023. ION4RAW took part in both the second and final webinar which provided a platform for leading experts to share their experiences and insights, shedding light on the opportunities and challenges in developing sustainable raw material value chains.
The ION4RAW project is proud to have been part of this important seminar series and looks forward to continuing collaboration with other projects and stakeholders to drive positive change in the raw materials sector.