Lithium is a standout among the critical minerals essential to clean energy technologies and the wider energy transition in the era of decarbonisation. In pursuit of a just energy transition, governance is key to ensuring that exploitation of this mineral does not deepen socio-economic inequalities or worsen environmental impacts.

 As a generation facing the long-term consequences of inadequate ecological and just transition policies, youth are spearheading social movements that campaign for green transitions. Youth is a potential force for social mobilisation and a growing voice in decision-making spaces such the UN Conference of Parties (COP) and the G20. As highlighted by the World Economic Forum, youth are deeply concerned about climate change, with 70% expressing high levels of apprehension. Young people are acutely aware of the negative effects of predatory mining and climate change in general. This awareness drives them to influence public policies, innovate and multiply knowledge. Across the globe, they are increasingly organising themselves in political movements and becoming change-makers, scientists and activists. However, without transparency and inclusion in civil society, youth are silenced.

In Brazil, in one of the poorest regions of the state of Minas Gerais, the Jequitinhonha Valley has the potential to make the country a leading lithium producer globally within the next decade. However, this is  a vulnerable region, inhabited by Indigenous and quilombola communities. It is thus especially important to demand transparency and community consultations in decisions related to mining projects in the area.

There are several examples globally of lobbying prevailing over socio-environmental responsibility, transparency and dialogue with local populations. In Catamarca, northern Argentina, during consultation processes, local participation was restricted via registration barriers, limited mobility and access to the hearings, strict time limits for public comments, police presence and job offers being made even before the project had received approval. In Austria, in the Wolfsberg project to mine the Weinebene lithium deposit, little information was provided to the media and a corporate strategy to delay public engagement was noted by approximately 59% of surveyed secondary-school students. At the Romano and Barroso mines in Portugal’s Argemela Mountains, the Montalegre lithium project has been contested by various environmental organisations. These groups have accused the project of corruption, lack of public consultation, failure to respond to local communities, fraud and irregular licensing.

The conflict between collective and private interests is often overridden by industry’s lobbying efforts. Therefore, it is essential that the OECD’s Responsible Business Conduct and Due Diligence Guidelines are upheld across borders. These norms should be aligned with the G20’s principles on energy cooperation and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly goals 7, 11, and 17, which emphasise effective institutions and sustainable communities. Additionally, the standards set forth in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) should be taken into consideration even when countries or companies are not formally bound to them. Such global standardisation is key to the South African 2025 G20 presidency’s goals of strengthening the multilateral trading system, promoting predictable and sustainable financing for development and addressing inequalities between the Global North and South.

These technical frameworks carry particular weight where national regulations are absent or decision-making processes compromised, especially in developing countries. It is imperative that governments integrate the principles set out in these frameworks into both their own policies and political coordination efforts such as G20 summits. Unchecked lobbying can undermine transparency and exclude those most in need of being consulted during decision-making processes, especially considering the power relations between multinational companies and governments in the Global South. This not only threatens local livelihoods and ecosystems but also deepens socio-economical inequalities.

Young people are capable of co-creating solutions with companies and state authorities. Youth leaders are strategic to the call for more accountability and transparency. The youth’s participation needs to be welcomed, expanded and recognised. In the case of lithium mining, it is important that civil society demands the process be guided by transparency, free and accessible information and more inclusive participation genuinely supported by governments.

To mainstream the voices of youth from marginalised communities like the Jequitinhonha Valley in just energy transition policies, the G20 must mandate their inclusion in governance, secure transparent green finance via independent audits and enforce mandatory socio-environmental due diligence in the critical minerals value chain, moving from consultation to co-creation.