‘Going green’ has long been a buzz phrase – bandied about ever more in recent years in connection with technologies like electric vehicles.
However, the human cost of saving the planet is often overlooked – especially when it’s cashed out in terms of Congolese child labourers working dangerous mines to extract the lithium and cobalt needed for EV batteries.
Moreover, while e-cars are cleaner than their fossil-fuel counterparts, the multinational miners operating in DR Congo are causing significant amounts of pollution, poisoning local waterways that in turn harm locals. Not so green after all.
As @Chakabars (on Instagram), an activist who’s dedicated himself to raising awareness about the multiple crises facing DRC, and raising funds to address them, says in this clip, global pressure helped end apartheid in South Africa – there’s no reason it can’t be harnessed now to end genocide, hunger and exploitation in Congo.
We’d love to know what you think about what Chakabars here says.