PSIA is pleased to host a screening of the recent documentary Lithium Rising: The Race for Critical Minerals, directed by Dr. Samuel George of the Bertelsmann Foundation. Following the screening, Dr. George will engage in a short discussion with Dr. Marc Ringel, Chairholder of the European Chair for Sustainable Development and Climate Transition at Sciences Po, before concluding with a Q&A session.

"Lithium Rising” is a cinematic journey through the global race for critical minerals—the metals powering our green transition. Filmed across five continents, the documentary explores how the drive to decarbonize has sparked fierce geopolitical competition, while also imposing steep costs on vulnerable communities at the frontlines of extraction.

From the salt flats of the Andean highlands to the cobalt pits of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the film meets miners, indigenous leaders, titans of industry, and policymakers navigating the promises and perils of this new resource boom. Whether it’s water scarcity threatening communities in the Atacama or tribal tensions over lithium extraction in Nevada, Lithium Rising reveals how the quest for a greener future risk repeating the extractive injustices of the past.

With intimate access and sweeping visuals, the film asks: who benefits from the green boom—and who gets left behind? Directed Bertelsmann Foundation’s award-winning filmmaker Samuel George, Lithium Rising is an urgent, human-centered exploration of the hidden costs of our electric age.

With:

Samuel George, Director, BFNA Documentaries, Bertelsmann Foundation;  
Marc Ringel, Chairholder at the European Chair for Sustainable Development and Climate Transition at Sciences Po