Mining a sustainable future

06 - 07 July 2023 10:00 - 18:00 The Royal Society Free
Colloform sphalerite from the Lisheen deposit which was mined for zinc and lead

This event is part of the Royal Society's Summer Science Exhibition 2023.

Modern life would be unrecognisable without the rare minerals and metals mined from the Earth. From mobile phones to electric cars, we rely on unusual elements such as lithium in our devices, and they play a significant role in the green technologies the world needs to adopt in order to tackle climate change.

But how can these minerals and metals that are so critical to our future energy technologies be part of the sustainable world they will power – how should they be mined, and can they be recycled?

Explore the green technologies and the rare minerals and metals they require, then discover the journey these resources make from out of the ground and into green technology to find out how researchers are making mining sustainable.

Join scientists from the Natural History Museum and iCRAG Dublin as they explore how we can find these minerals and metals, and how we can produce them sustainably.

Attending the event

This drop-in activity will be held in City of London 3 room at the following times:

Thursday 6 July 2023, 10am — 4.30pm

Friday 7 July 2023, 10am — 6pm

  • Free to attend
  • In person only
  • No registration required
  • Suitable for everyone
  • Travel and accessibility information - contact us directly to arrange any specific accessibility requirements
  • Food and drink will be available for purchase at our onsite café

For all enquiries, please email us.