What can YOU do about conflict minerals?
How we can take action on the home front and why the problem continues to be so hard to solve.
Hello, Friends of Africa New Day,
Last month, we wrote a blog post providing an overview of the cobalt crisis in the DRC. We explained how impoverished “artisanal miners” in the DRC are being exploited, working for just dollars a day to survive. They’re working in horrifying, subhuman conditions, often experiencing injury and death. Children, trafficked individuals, and mothers with babies on their backs are working side by side in artisan mines.
Even though this type of mining is illegal, it happens in dozens of mines all over the country, and the cobalt is mixed into the legal supply chain. So far, tech companies have been able to shrug their shoulders and say that, as far as they know, all their cobalt comes from legal channels.
Cobalt isn’t the only conflict mineral mined in the DRC that ends up in our electronics. Gold, tin, tantalum (coltan), and tungsten are four other minerals mined in terrible conditions in the DRC and used in consumer electronics all over the world.
After we shared last month, the response was overwhelming. You wanted to know:
How can we get this information out there to more people?
What can we do to put pressure on tech companies and policymakers?
So we're doing our best to answer those questions for you. Together, we can move the needle on this challenging topic and continue to stay informed.
How can we spread awareness so more people know about conflict minerals/the cobalt crisis?
The most grassroots way of spreading awareness is just talking about it. Here are a few action steps to consider:
1. Be open to having uncomfortable conversations with your friends and family. While talking about child labor in Africa might not come up organically in conversation, we have a few prompts you could toss into a conversation with a loved one:
A. Ask a question: “Hey, have you heard about the conflict mineral crisis in the DRC? I've been reading up on it recently, and it's pretty eye-opening.”
B. Connect to a broader topic: “Lately, I’ve been reading about how our electronic devices contain minerals sourced from conflict zones like the DRC. It got me thinking about the impact of our consumption on global conflicts."
C. Frame it as a current event: "Did you catch the news about the latest efforts to address the conflict mineral trade in the DRC? It's such a complex issue, but I want to learn more. Do you know anything about it?"
2. Share on social media and encourage your friends to subscribe to our newsletter. One place you can get updates on current events and the positive changes happening in the DRC is right here on the Africa New Day email list. Encourage any of your friends and family who express interest to sign up for our email newsletter at the bottom of our homepage. When you come across social media posts from Africa New Day or other accounts sharing this valuable information, share them in your stories or DM them to interested friends. People won’t know about this crisis unless someone brings it to their attention, and that someone can be you!
3. Host a local awareness event. We’d love to give you resources to host a local awareness event. If you’re involved at a church, school, or community center that would let you host an event, invite everyone you can. If it’s a big enough church or event, sometimes our US team can come out and speak. Or, if it’s on a smaller scale, we can send you materials to help you share locally.
We truly wish we could share a step-by-step path for you to sign this petition, reach out to this representative, and attend this rally. Then, our voices would be heard, and the problem would be addressed. But as you’ve likely already realized, the challenges with the cobalt crisis are much more complex than that.
While we certainly can make an impact as individuals, the most powerful changes will need to be systemic, both here and in the DRC.
In the DRC, warring factions seeking control of the profits from conflict minerals continue to fuel corruption. There have been several national and international initiatives intended to help end the use of conflict minerals including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Section 1502) in the U.S. and the European Union Conflict Minerals Regulation. But even when there are people on the ground to regulate the purity of the supply chain, they’re often paid off and artisanal mining persists.
Tech companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Tesla need to know that consumers care about where they are sourcing their minerals, and to some extent, they are aware. Big tech companies already release annual reports regarding their commitment to using conflict-free minerals (you can check out Apple’s 2023 report here).
But consider this quote from a recent Reuters article discussing a recent 3-0 ruling from the US Court of Appeals in favor of big tech. The complaint was coming from 15 plaintiffs, including representatives from five deceased child laborers, regarding Google (Alphabet), Apple, Tesla, Dell, and Microsoft’s reliance on child labor.
“The appeals court said buying cobalt in the global supply chain did not amount to ‘participation in a venture’ under a federal law protecting children and other victims of human trafficking and forced labor.
Circuit Judge Neomi Rao said the plaintiffs had legal standing to seek damages, but did not show the five companies had anything more than a buyer-seller relationship with suppliers, or had power to stop the use of child labor.”
Tech companies continue to feign ignorance and turn a blind eye to the corrupt supply chain, and so far the US Court of Appeals ruling enables them to continue to do so. And despite pressure from the DRC government itself on Apple, Apple has yet to take any concrete steps to ensure its supply chain does not contribute to exploitation.
We’re going to keep our ear to the ground for initiatives we can support. In the meantime, supporting Africa New Day so we can help keep people out of the mines and spreading awareness in your own local circles are two ways you can make an impact.