Berlin, Cape Town, Jakarta, Lima, Manila, 17 November 2025: On the occasion of COP30, six organizations from all over the world call on the Global North to drastically reduce the consumption of raw materials as part of the so-called green transformation, as the extraction of raw materials in the producing countries causes serious social and environmental damage. A recent series of studies from the Philippines, South Africa, Indonesia and Peru shows that the increasing demand for so-called transition minerals is directly linked to water pollution, human rights violations, environmental degradation and minimal local economic benefits. All authors argue that efficiencies in resource use alone cannot prevent these effects.
"The EU already uses 25 to 30 percent of the world's metals, despite accounting for only 6 percent of the world's population," stresses Rhoda Viajar of Alyansa Tigil Mina, an environmental network from the Philippines, and calls for "degrowth and profound societal change to reduce unsustainable raw material consumption."
“Women in mining-affected communities face an increased burden: unsafe and arduous ways to get water, social and care work for children and sick family members and frequent exclusions from formal employment opportunities, especially in the mining sector", stresses Maxine Bezuidenhout from the South African organisation AIDC.
"European countries, as final consumers of the extracted minerals, must reduce their consumption of primary minerals and improve the social and environmental standards under which these raw materials are mined and further processed," says Pius Ginting from Indonesian NGO AEER. ‘The high concentration of metals in coastal waters poses a health risk to both aquatic organisms and local residents.’
"A just energy transition will only be possible if global demand for critical raw materials is reduced," argues Jaime Borda of the Peruvian Network for Environment and Human Rights Red Muqui.
“The four studies from very different countries underline the need to promote the reduction of metal consumption in Germany and Europe. The decisive change must take place here in the Global North in order to combat the climate crisis, massive environmental destruction and human rights violations", says Constantin Bittner from the German NGO PowerShift. “The mobility sector, moving from large, heavy cars to sustainable mobility, is one of the biggest levers in this area, as the studies show.”
The four studies of the participating organisations, supported by MISEREOR and PowerShift, are available online at:: https://power-shift.de/raw-materials-reduction-series/
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact:
- Constantin Bittner, Coordinator of the AK Raw Materials at PowerShift, +49 (0)30 419 341 82, constantin.bittner@power-shift.de
- Adrian Bornmann, Public Relations Officer at PowerShift, adrian.bornmann@power-shift.de, +49 (0)30-27590497
