Welcome to Highgrade and this podcast series on the responsible sourcing of minerals. Over the last four episodes, we have looked at the main production steps in the supply chain of cobalt - a metal necessary for high-performing batteries, and as such key to support the transition to a future free of fossil fuels. Today in our final stop, we explor…

Welcome to Highgrade and this podcast series on the responsible sourcing of minerals. Starting at mine site, we have followed cobalt through the supply chain. Today, we'll look into the making of automobiles at a time in which the industry is being transformed by the growing craze for electric cars. Global sales are on the rise, and so is the deman…

Our ability to store electricity is central to the ongoing energy transition – and cobalt is a critical input into efficient batteries. But cobalt is a metal tainted by a reputation of human and environmental harm. Can battery producers reconcile the increasing social appetite for both cobalt and responsible mining? We are joined by Gillian Davidso…

Our second episode in this podcast series on responsible sourcing puts the spotlight on commodity traders – the invisible hand moving natural resources around the world. Traders connect production from artisanal miners in DRC with global customers, and as such they are critical to improving the traceability and sustainability of cobalt supply chain…

Are the products we consume responsible for human and environmental degradation? To answer this question, this podcast series takes us on a journey through the supply chain of cobalt, a commodity that is critical to the global energy transition. We start at mine site - but not any mine site. A significant proportion of cobalt is sourced from artisa…

In February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. Oil prices surged overnight – reaching their highest level since 2008. Was this short-term stress or a structural shift? How will current events reshape the global energy agenda? To help us look beyond the fog of war, we sat down with Professor Paul Stevens – one of the brightest and clearest thinkers on th…

The Financial Times called it one of the best books of 2021. The World for Sale is an eye-opening dive into one of the most secretive and powerful business sectors in the world: commodity trading. Commodity traders pull the invisible strings that move natural resources around the world. Their dealings have long been kept in the shadows, but the ind…

Following dense weeks packed with global climate talks in Glasgow, Highgrade brings to you an executive summary of the climate change crisis; a digest of the discussions and all you need to know about COP26. To do this, we have called upon Tom Burke, climate change expert, founding Director of E3G – and an old friend of the house. *** Highgrade Med…

Chile has often been praised as an example of how to use natural resources to foster economic growth. The industry is now at a crossroad - and Chilean society has made it clear that it expects to see more tangible benefits from it. Will it succeed? Our guest today has had a remarkable trajectory at the top of Chile’s copper industry: Diego Hernánde…

For nearly a century, fossil fuels have been a key source of geopolitical tension. How is international politics changing with the surge in renewables? Join us in this fascinating conversation with Morgan Bazilian, Professor at the Colorado School of Mines and Director of the Payne Institute, and a global specialist in energy security and geopoliti…

Nobody knows what the future holds, but this may be the closest you’ll get - for the extractives industry anyway. Join the Highgrade Editorial team in conversation as we discuss five key trends that will define the industry in the years to come. *** Highgrade is a not-for-profit organisation that produces interviews and documentaries that identify,…

In 2001, the world's largest mining corporations created the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) to improve the industry sustainability credentials. 20 years on, the Council sees change on the horizon and in response it has just appointed Rohitesh Dhawan as its new CEO. His mandate is to steer the organisation through strong winds of …

You can't manage what you can't measure. Strange as it may sound, until recently, there has been no serious attempt to compare mining company performance across environmental, social and governance dimensions. Enter the Responsible Mining Index. Launched in 2018, the index has been gaining momentum since. Today we talk to Hélène De Villiers-Piaget,…

Do you want to leave a lasting mark on the world? Throw a plastic bottle into the sea – and chances are that it will still be there well after you are gone. In this podcast, we discuss our global plastic addiction and what we can do about it. We spoke with Denise Hardesty, an expert on plastic pollution at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial…

If you are interested in the field of natural resources and economic development, then you surely know Veronica Nyhan Jones. Currently at the IFC Sustainable Infrastructure Advisory, she has been central to the implementation of World Bank Group development programmes in the extractives. After decades of persistent reduction in global poverty, do w…

Are there unethical companies, or economic sectors altogether? Is the ethical choice down to the producer or the consumer? In this episode, we tackle the thorny issue of morality in investment decisions. We discuss with John Howchin, Secretary General of the Council on Ethics for the Swedish National Pension Funds. His job is to discern good from b…

La edad de piedra le daba el bronce. La Edad del Hierro. La manera en la que usamos minerales ha ido de la mano con el desarrollo humano. Hoy la humanidad contempla un futuro más allá de los combustibles fósiles y así crece la demanda por nuevos minerales. El litio aparece como un posible ganador, con oportunidades y desafíos para países que lo pro…

For centuries the undisputed energy king, coal has made possible the great advancements of the industrial age. But coal is now tarnished with a dirty reputation, and both investors and consumers have started to avoid it. We met Anne-Claire Howard, Executive Director of BetterCoal, to ask: is the end of coal coming with a bang or a whimper? *** High…

Images of Australia, Brazil and California literally burning triggered global sorrow. And suddenly, we remembered the trees. The fires are now raging again and so we ask, what is happening to the forest? Daniel Nepstad, founder and director of the Earth Innovation Institute, believes that the challenge is dire, but there are solutions. *** Highgrad…

Not a mineral producing nation per se, Germany is a fundamental player in international cooperation in the extractives sector. Consolidating this position, the German Federal Institute for Geoscience and Natural Resources (BGR) has launched the LION programme, seeking to improve local procurement in the mining supply chain. To understand the progra…

We are drawn to the organic world perhaps because we see in it our own fleeting reflection. And yet, there is something magical about the enduring rock: a silent witness not just of evolution, but the origin of the universe itself. In this episode we explore the world of minerals - all the way from Creation to the marketplace. We are joined by Kevi…

In most cases, the ultimate owner of underground resources is the State. Governments grant companies the privilege to exploit these resources. And for that privilege, companies pay - in the form of taxes. It is not the only thing that countries get for their minerals, but taxes is very much at the centre of any benefit-sharing system. Is it time to…

If it’s not grown, it must be mined. Our societies rely heavily on the supply of metals and minerals. From copper to aluminium; from plastic to cement; mining is all around us. Yet, mining is not loved - to say the least. Are the extractives good or bad? In this episode, we are joined by Tony Addison, recently appointed Professor in Economics at th…

Our seas are under pressure. Overfishing, acidity, pollution are decimating fish stocks. We all feel it is bad - but how bad is it really? In this episode of The Natural Resources Podcast we talk to Rashid Sumaila, one of the world’s leading researchers on oceans and fisheries, currently Professor at UBC Fisheries Centre in Canada and winner of the…

Highgrade now has more than four years under its belt, and an archive full of interesting conversations. We have seen some amazing people through our studio and we have published some amazing video interviews. Over time people have been asking us to put those interviews into podcast format, and that is exactly what we have done. This is the first e…

Welcome to Highgrade's podcast on the world of natural resources. We kick off our podcast journey with a theme that goes to the very core of the extractives industry, to its heart. We explore the fundamental topic of mining productivity. Sounds boring? Think again: this is a window to what the industry has been, and what it will be. We talk about m…