 Critical resourcesGian Andrea Blengini Chapter 30 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment, 2026, pp 99-102 from Edward Elgar Publishing Abstract: Raw materials are fundamental to modern economies, supporting job creation, competitiveness, and quality of life. With increasing global population and economic growth, the demand for raw materials is intensifying, particularly for clean energy technologies and advanced systems. The European Union has highlighted their importance through initiatives like the Raw Materials Initiative and the Critical Raw Materials Act. Critical Raw Materials (CRMs), essential for key sectors, face high supply risks and low substitutability, making their sustainable management crucial. Competing demands from sectors such as wind energy, e-mobility, and digital technologies further amplify supply challenges. Definitions of CRMs vary globally, but they typically combine high economic importance and supply risk. Addressing these challenges requires sustainable resource supply and circular use to balance economic, environmental, and social needs. Global cooperation and tailored strategies are essential to manage supply disruptions and ensure secure access to these critical resources. Keywords: Critical raw materials; Sustainable resource management; Supply risk; Circular economy; Global resource competition (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:22215_30 Ordering information: This item can be ordered from Access Statistics for this chapter More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing |
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