As an essential element in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and consumer electronics, cobalt plays a critical role in the global low-carbon transition to combat climate change, and in the diffusion of information technology. Over the past decade, there has been a boom in cobalt mining in the Central African country of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Two thirds of the global supply of cobalt comes from the DRC, and a considerable portion of this supply is mined by an informal workforce of artisanal miners, called “creuseurs”, who face dangerous working conditions, human rights abuses and are paid poverty wages. They are the ‘invisible face’ of a multi-billion dollar industry supporting our demand for the EVs that we rely on to meet Net Zero Carbon targets.
‘Cobalt Rush’ is a portrait of three individuals working in the Southern Congolese cobalt mining town of Kolwezi. It explores the universal themes of resilience, hope, and the obligation to make ends meet, as we see our protagonists hunt meaning and opportunity out of their dismal circumstances. Their stories are fraught with danger, and set amidst a context of corporate greed, exploitation and neo-colonialism. Ultimately, our own complicated relationship with “green” technologies and climate change is revealed, as we are confronted by the invisible side of the insatiable global demand for cobalt.
Roy Maconachie, Simon Wharf, Bossissi Nkuba