Geertje Schuitema: Listening, Trust, and Raw Materials - What Psychology Teaches the Mining Sector
Responsible Raw Materials PodcastShow Notes
This episode of Responsible Raw Materials explores what happens when psychology meets geochemistry. Joining us is Dutch psychologist and behavioural scientist Prof. Geertje Schuitema whose career has spanned research into electric vehicle adoption, smart energy technologies, and, more recently, the societal challenges surrounding critical raw materials. From tackling ‘range anxiety’ in the early days of electric vehicles to understanding why people need an override button on smart technologies, we explore how human behaviour shapes the adoption of new systems and infrastructure. But the conversation quickly turns to mining, public trust, and why the extractive industries often struggle to communicate effectively with society. Drawing on insights from the Horizon Europe VECTOR project, we unpack what the public really thinks about mining and critical raw materials, why listening matters more than persuading, and how open conversations can help bridge the gap between industry and society. We also reflect on the 100 Perceptions of Raw Materials documentary and what happens when people are trusted to form their own opinions, without being pushed towards a particular conclusion. This episode is a thoughtful discussion about responsibility, transparency, and what the mining sector can learn from psychology: that being responsible isn’t only about meeting regulations, it’s also about integrity, honesty, and connecting with ourselves. Watch Geertje's talks from previous Responsible Raw Materials Conferences, and learn about the importance of trust and effective engagement in the raw materials space: https://responsiblerawmaterials.com/post/geertje-schuitema-2025-learnings-from-working-in-a-large-interdisciplinary-consortium/ https://responsiblerawmaterials.com/post/geertje-schuitema-2024/ https://responsiblerawmaterials.com/post/geertje-schuitema-a-community-perspective-on-just-transition/
More from Responsible Raw Materials Podcast
Dr Matt Grimshaw is an exploration geologist and a Yorkshireman through and through. His curiosity about the landscape took him from Leeds to the Yukon, collecting soil samples by helicopter during the white gold rush, then back for a PhD on the region’s gold. After years of technical consulting worldwide, he stepped sideways into risk and sustainability, and has since co-founded Worth Discovery. Matt’s challenge is to the assumptions the industry rarely questions. Finding a deposit is not the same as finding a project. With mines taking fifteen to twenty years to reach production, why are so many decisions still based on designs from decades ago? And why justify exploration with shifting narratives, from rare earths to defence, rather than the enduring role of a steward of the land? Responsibility, he argues, can’t simply be declared. It has to be demonstrated. The conversation also moves through Yorkshire’s mining past, from Pennine lead to the Woodsmith Mine, the Hunger Games of junior exploration, why generalists matter, and the question his daughters will one day ask. Produced by Critical Productions. Learn more at responsiblerawmaterials.com
What happens when a geologist’s daughter grows up, ignores the rocks, and then finds herself championing the very industry she once overlooked? In this episode, Susie - affectionately known as “Minerals Mum” - joins us to explore her journey from product design and teaching into the world of minerals, geology and extractives. Growing up in Cornwall with a geologist for a dad, Susie was surrounded by rocks and mining heritage, but it took a different career path and a passion for education to bring her back to the sector. Now, through Minerals Matter, she is working to change perceptions of the minerals industry and inspire the next generation. We talk about taking geology and mining into schools, the importance of field trips and teacher engagement, the huge range of careers within the sector, and why young people need to understand just how much modern life depends on minerals. Susie also shares the challenges facing the industry, from an ageing workforce and skills shortages to misconceptions about mining, and the exciting opportunities emerging as Cornwall’s minerals sector embraces new technologies and projects. From STEM fairs and school visits to encouraging more women into the industry, this is a conversation about awareness, passion, collaboration and creating that first spark of curiosity. And yes, there’s plenty of talk about rocks along the way. Produced by Critical Productions. Sponsored by Satarla. Learn more at responsiblerawmaterials.com
How can better information help us keep critical raw materials in circulation? In this episode, Sarah speaks with Jessica Green, an expert in traceability, circularity and digital product passports, about the role of data in building a more circular economy. Jessica explains why circularity is about much more than recycling, and why products need to be designed with repair, reuse, remanufacturing and material recovery in mind. She explains how digital product passports could help us understand where materials come from, what products contain, how they perform throughout their lives, and what happens to them at end of life. The conversation also explores the challenges around data quality, verification, trust, regulation and international standards, and how better traceability could create greater accountability across global supply chains. Produced by Critical Productions. Sponsored by Satarla. Learn more at responsiblerawmaterials.com
Platinum Group Metals and the 100% Recycled Myth, with Emma Schofield. Emma Schofield is a chemist who spent 22 years in the platinum group metals (PGM) industry at Johnson Matthey, the world's largest secondary refiner. A former inorganic chemistry lecturer at Trinity College Dublin, she found her way into industry by reading the labels on lab bottles. Her work spanned catalyst chemistry, new uses for palladium and PGM policy, and she now consults as an associate with Satarla. PGM recycling is one of the circular economy's quiet success stories, driven by value and two centuries of stewardship. Yet Emma challenges the growing demand for 100% recycled platinum. With the market in deficit and only around a fifth of annual demand met by recycling, one buyer claiming recycled metal simply pushes others towards mined supply. The industry, she argues, still needs mining. The conversation also covers catalytic converter recycling, closed-loop supply chains, why design for recycling loses out to performance, extended producer responsibility, battery passports, the risks of stockpiling small metal markets, and why policymakers should swap cross-assuming for cross-learning. Produced by Critical Productions. Sponsored by Satarla. Learn more at responsiblerawmaterials.com
Liv Carroll is a geologist and mining transformation specialist whose career spans the UK minerals industry, mineral exploration in Turkey and a decade using data and AI to transform mining and metals companies. The spark came at nine, when the Gaia Atlas of Planet Management showed her the scale of global resource use, later leading her to choose geology over medicine. She now runs her own advisory firm and starts a part-time PhD in January.Her research asks how to build secondary metal supply chains at scale, recovering metals from wind turbines, EV batteries and copper pipes. Liv argues business as usual cannot meet critical minerals demand driven by electrification, data centres and defence. The harder barrier isn't engineering. It's supply, demand, skills and policy, with government, industry and academia needing to work as one system.The conversation also covers the circular economy, why the UK exports its scrap copper, why transformation should be iterative rather than linear, the habit of thinking two steps ahead, and the value of diverse thinking in the minerals industry and why a thriving community is one you help build.Produced by Critical Productions. Sponsored by Satarla. Learn more at responsiblerawmaterials.com