NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

This story is part of an investigative solutions journalism series exploring the hidden human rights costs of the low-carbon transition and how local stakeholders, governments and the mining sector can respond. Follow along with the series here. 

As the energy transition progresses, some are concerned about the effect it might have on human rights. Minerals like cobalt, nickel and lithium are vital to renewable energy and battery technologies. However, the mining processes that extract these minerals have a serious human rights problem.

Photo courtesy of Fairphone.