Play Book Tag discussion

A powerful and heart breaking look at the human rights atrocities involved in mining cobalt which is used for longevity in batteries for smart phones, tablets, laptops and electric (EV) vehicles. All the trying to do the right thing for the environment really is devasting the landscape and people of the DRC.

Kara travels several times to visit the DRC visiting government officials, mine leadership and especially the communities of the mines especially the "artisan miners" which is a fancy term for the hardest and most dangerous work often done by children using few if any tools and protections to find the cobalt. While global corporations earn millions and billions, with statements that they ensure that the cobalt used is not entangled in human rights concerns, Kara found that there is very little evidence of any safe mining in the DRC where cobalt is mostly found.

The stories are horrific. I've seen poverty on the African continent and this is far beyond poverty as people risk their lives and those of their children for a $1 a day and a chance to get by to another day. Women are assaulted, children are shot, buried in tunnel collapses or losing limbs. It is a vicious cycle with no avenues accessible to the communities to get out of the mines. Even the "model" mines supposedly accountable to non-profit audits are not really held accountable. The system is terrible enriching a few in the DRC leadership, Chinese corporations and even Western companies dependent on the cobalt but not really caring enough to ensure those who work for the cobalt meet any standards of living. It would cost so little to provide more for the communities but instead it is all about profit.

Everyone should read this. I wish that there were easier answers to support the bottom of the chain for rechargeable batteries. Why shouldn't this modern miracle make lives better in the DRC as well as the consumers? I hope that I can do more research to do better for my part in the supply chain.

I have this on my tbr and I think it is very timely right now.

I suspect that rare earth elements in Greenland and cobalt deposits and other minerals in Canada are the drive behind the desire for them.

I hope that they set up the system better at the start in Greenland. It does make sense for those to be on the list of annexations as much as that idea makes sense.

Wonderful review, Jen! I applaud the other for calling attention to the human rights abuses going on in the DRC, and the reasons it is happening. It was 5 stars for me, too.

I agree everyone should read this book.

Thanks Joy! It is so sad that not much has improved since the King Leopold days.

I know - they've gone from one horrible state of affairs to another. Have you read King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa?

Joy D wrote: "I know - they've gone from one horrible state of affairs to another. Have you read King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa?"

YES, it was so good! Terrible but excellent book.