Benedikt Sobotka: We have a responsibility towards children in countries where we extracts garbage to the batteries industry.
Hydrocarbons remain the key supply of energy in 2019. Nevertheless, people in civilized world are now increasingly choosing electric cars, as petrol and diesel engines emit skin tightening and businesscasestudies.co.uk into the atmosphere and pollute mid-air with nitrogen and sulphur compounds. The number of electric cars will reach up to 130 million by the end of 2030 and each home and office will probably use smart devices ran by batteries. Oslo, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Paris, London, Madrid already stated that they are going to ban all vehicles focusing on petrol or diesel fuel in central areas. The way the situation is going, batteries will replace the environmentally damaging coal and oil as fuel sources.
Minerals for batteries has to be extracted and processed with robust safety standards, proper working conditions, norms for responsible extraction and business ethics in mind.
Global social responsibility
Take, for example, cobalt. Over two thirds of cobalt are extracted within the Democratic Republic in the Congo. Cobalt mining brings a lot of employment for people all over DRC but a sizable percentage could possibly be tainted by illegal child labour.
In 2017, world leading companies including BASF, Enel and Volkswagen met at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos to debate business ethics in minerals extraction for that output of batteries. As a result, the businesses gathered to found the Global Battery Alliance, with Eurasian Resources Group as being a founding member, targeted at prohibiting the use of child labour and promoting battery recycling to increase the sustainability from the industry.
The CEO of Eurasian Resources Group, Benedikt Sobotka reiterated the business’s persistence for help tackle child labour within the Democratic Republic from the Congo. He hopes that over the Alliance and collaboration between major companies, international organisations and civil society, the illegal involvement of kids in mining in the battery supply chain will be addressed.
Eurasian Resources Group supports children in the DRC
Through longstanding partnerships including while using Good Shepherd Sisters and Pact, Eurasian Resources Group targets helping tackle child labour and strengthen child protection norms.
In 2018 and early 2019, ERG continued to guide over 10,000 students through its educational initiatives inside the DRC.
Benedikt Sobotka, CEO of Eurasian Resources Group, holds that the global battery sector should confer benefits to its participants across the value chain including children and local communities inside the DRC.
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