The Criticality of Gender Equality in the Race for Critical Minerals

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, developed with the ILO and UNDP, examines the risks that the increasing demand for critical minerals—specifically cobalt, copper, graphite, lithium, and nickel—poses to gender equality. It argues that without deliberate gender-responsive safeguards, the expansion of mining can negatively impact the rights, health, and livelihoods of women, particularly those who are Indigenous or rural.

• The increasing demand for critical minerals such as cobalt, copper, graphite, lithium, and nickel may exacerbate existing gender inequalities in the mining sector if governments and companies do not implement deliberate gender-responsive safeguards.
• Mining expansion poses specific risks to the rights of Indigenous and rural women, affecting areas such as land, food security, health, unpaid care work, livelihoods, and safety.
• The report proposes several policy recommendations to make mineral governance gender-responsive: utilizing intersectional gender analysis and gender-disaggregated data in Gender Action Plans; ensuring free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) and inclusive consultation; and creating benefit-sharing mechanisms to improve women's access to jobs, compensation, and economic opportunities.

APA

Tekinbas,, M. E. (2026). The Criticality of Gender Equality in the Race for Critical Minerals. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/gender-equality-in-race-critical-minerals

Chicago

Tekinbas,, Maria Ezpeleta,Ege. The Criticality of Gender Equality in the Race for Critical Minerals. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2026. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/gender-equality-in-race-critical-minerals.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tekinbas, |first1=Maria Ezpeleta,Ege |title=The Criticality of Gender Equality in the Race for Critical Minerals |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=13 May 2026 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/gender-equality-in-race-critical-minerals |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tekinbas2026criticality, author = {Tekinbas,, Maria Ezpeleta,Ege}, title = {{The Criticality of Gender Equality in the Race for Critical Minerals}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2026}, month = may, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/gender-equality-in-race-critical-minerals}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }