A new perspective on the energy transition
As countries shift away from fossil fuels, demand for minerals such as lithium, copper, nickel and cobalt is growing. German artist Tom Hegen explores the consequences of that demand in his new book, The Mineral Age, a project developed over six years of work across mining regions.
The book turns attention to places where extraction is reshaping land and daily life, including Chile's Atacama Desert, Indonesia's Sulawesi region and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Hegen's work considers how the benefits and burdens of the clean-energy transition are distributed, and asks how societies can decarbonize without repeating older patterns of resource exploitation.
Rather than questioning the move away from fossil fuels, the project encourages a broader conversation about the materials, communities and landscapes involved in building renewable-energy systems. As the transition advances, this perspective may help bring resource stewardship and community priorities closer to the centre of future energy decisions.
