For a holistic perspective on equity and justice, it's important to keep an eye on how miners in DR Congo are being treated. These are people who make batteries in our phones and laptops possible.
Currently, as new Covid-19 policies are being enforced, these workers are being held in confinement 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, at their workplace and forced to work longer hours without pay.
Hoping Apple, Google, Microsoft, Dell et al will address this.
- More than 60% of the world's cobolt comes from DR Congo
- It is estimated that 35,000 children work in congolese mines
- About 20% of cobolt in DR Congo comes from small, unregulated mines where children work
- About 60% of the weight in your phone battery is cobolt
- Varying based on energy density, cobolt makes up 6-12% of the weight of the battery in an electric car
https://www.raid-uk.org/blog/dr-congo-mine-workers-risk-during-covid-19