The scramble for critical minerals

"The world is in the midst of a new scramble for natural resources, this time not for fossil fuels but for critical minerals […]" — Adam, Arezki and van der Ploeg (2026)

Oxford EARTH researchers have contributed four papers to a special issue of The Oxford Review of Economic Policy. Together, these papers explore the socio-economic, geological, political and environmental dimensions of the global scramble for critical minerals.

➡️ The Scramble for Critical Minerals – C. Adam, R. Arezki and F. van der Ploeg

➡️Critical Raw Materials: Geological Perspectives, Unconventional Resources and Disruptive Opportunities – J. Blundy

➡️Detecting Critical Mines: A Perspective from the Sky – S. Barzin, R. Arezki and F. van der Ploeg

➡️On the Politics and Economics of the Shift from Fossil Fuels to Critical Minerals – R. Arezki, M. Ross and F. van der Ploeg

🔗 View the full journal issue here