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On August 9-10, 2023, the Thomas J. O’Keefe Institute for Sustainable Supply of Strategic Minerals at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) hosted the third annual workshop on ‘Resilient Supply of Critical Minerals’. The workshop was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and was attended by 218 participants. 128 participants attended in-person in the Havener Center on the Missouri S&T campus in Rolla, Missouri, USA. Another 90 participants attended online via Zoom. Fourteen participants (including nine students) received travel support through the NSF grant to attend the conference in Rolla. Additionally, the online participation fee was waived for another six students and early career researchers to attend the workshop virtually. Out of the 218 participants, 190 stated their sectors of employment during registration showing that 87 participants were from academia (32 students), 62 from the private sector and 41 from government agencies. Four topical sessions were covered: A. The Critical Mineral Potential of the USA: Evaluation of existing, and exploration for new resources. B. Mineral Processing and Recycling: Maximizing critical mineral recovery from existing production streams. C. Critical Mineral Policies: Toward effective and responsible governance. D. Resource Sustainability: Ethical and environmentally sustainable supply of critical minerals. Each topical session was composed of two keynote lectures and complemented by oral and poster presentations by the workshop participants. Additionally, a panel discussion with panelists from academia, the private sector and government agencies was held that discussed ‘How to grow the American critical minerals workforce’. The 2023 workshop was followed by a post-workshop field trip to the lead-zinc mining operations of the Doe Run Company in southeast Missouri that was attended by 18 workshop participants from academia (n=10; including 4 students), the private sector (n=4), and government institutions (n=4). Discussions during the workshop led to the following suggestions to increase the domestic supply of critical minerals: (i) Research to better understand the geologic critical mineral potential of the USA, including primary reserves/resources, historic mine wastes, and mineral exploration potential. (ii) Development of novel extraction techniques targeted at the recovery of critical minerals as co-products from existing production streams, mine waste materials, and recyclables. (iii) Faster and more transparent permitting processes for mining and mineral processing operations. (iv) A more environmentally sustainable and ethical approach to mining and mineral processing. (v) Development of a highly skilled critical minerals workforce. This workshop report provides a detailed summary of the workshop discussions and describes a way forward for this workshop series for 2024 and beyond.
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Bringing farm advisors into the sustainability conversation: Results from a nitrogen workshop in the US Midwest
Increasingly, farmers are looking to private sector advisors to inform their nitrogen decisions, but little is known about these important actors. We held a Sustainable Nitrogen Roundtable workshop to bring together important groups—private sector farm advisors, Extension educators, scientists, and farmers—to discuss new research and more sustainable use of nitrogen in midwestern cropping systems. We gained important insights by reaching outside academia and including private sector farm advisors as valued participants. Ninety percent of participants found that their understanding of varied viewpoints on nitrogen management improved, and an equal proportion would recommend such a workshop to a colleague.
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- PAR ID:
- 10067158
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of extension
- Volume:
- 55
- Issue:
- 5
- ISSN:
- 1077-5315
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- #5IAW2
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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On August 7-8, 2024, the Thomas J. O’Keefe Institute for Sustainable Supply of Strategic Minerals at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) hosted the fourth annual workshop on ‘Resilient Supply of Critical Minerals’. The workshop was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and was attended by 212 participants. 143 participants attended the workshop in-person in the Havener Center on the Missouri S&T campus in Rolla, Missouri, USA. Another 69 participants attended online via Zoom. Twenty participants (including 12 students and 4 early career researchers) received travel support through the NSF grant to attend the conference in Rolla. Out of the workshop 212 participants, 199 stated their sectors of employment during registration showing that 88 participants were from academia (34 students), 58 from the private sector and 53 from government agencies. The workshop was followed by a post-workshop field trip to US Strategic Minerals (formerly Missouri Cobalt) in southeast Missouri that was attended by 18 workshop participants from academia (n=11; including 4 students) and the private sector (n=7). Four topical sessions were covered during the workshop: A. The Critical Mineral Potential of the USA: Evaluation of existing, and exploration for new resources. B. Critical Minerals Workforce Development: How to grow the US critical minerals workforce. C. Critical Mineral Processing and Recycling: Maximizing critical mineral recovery from existing production streams. D. Critical Mineral Policy and Supply Chain Economics: Reshoring critical mineral production. The topical sessions were composed of two keynote lectures and complemented by oral and poster presentations by the workshop participants, as well as a 30-minute open discussion at the end of each topical session. Breakout sessions that concluded each day discussed: • Can mining lead the new materials future? • Critical minerals research: where to go from here? • Should the Bureau of Mines be restored? Discussions during the workshop highlighted, for example, that: (i) Mining companies need to better address downstream needs and develop company cultures inclusive of younger generations; (ii) Although funding opportunities over the past year’s started to make a difference for critical minerals supply chain resilience, additional funding that is aimed at strengthening academia – private sector partnerships as well as international collaborations is needed to ensure a long-term impact; (iii) The majority of participants would welcome the reestablishment of the Bureau of Mines, although no consensus was reached on its potential responsibilities. This workshop report provides a detailed summary of the workshop demographics and discussions.more » « less
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