Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism with Thea Riofrancos

Jan 6, 2026

Thea Riofrancos, an Associate Professor of Political Science and a leading voice on resource extraction, delves into the complex world of lithium mining in her latest book, focusing on the environmental costs of green capitalism. She highlights the ethical dilemma we face: can we achieve decarbonization without harming our planet? Thea also discusses the geopolitical implications of lithium supply chains, the rising role of China, and the transformative potential of reshoring in the U.S. as we navigate the future of clean energy.

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INSIGHT

Energy Transition Has Extractive Foundations

Thea Riofrancos framed her book around the extractive foundations of the energy transition and the ethical dilemma it poses.
She argues we must confront tradeoffs rather than ignore how decarbonization increases mining demand.

INSIGHT

Why Lithium Is Politically Significant

Lithium matters because lithium-ion batteries are essential for decarbonizing transport and storing renewable energy.
Its political salience stems from the auto industry's economic and strategic importance.

ADVICE

Design The Transition Backwards From Your Goal

Start from the equitable zero‑emissions world you want and work backwards to map material requirements.
Use that material inventory to assess how much extraction is necessary and where to mitigate harms.

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Lithium, a crucial input in the batteries powering electric vehicles, has the potential to save the world from climate change. But even green solutions come at a cost. Mining lithium is environmentally destructive. We therefore confront a dilemma: Is it possible to save the world by harming it in the process?

Having spent over a decade researching mining and oil sectors in Latin America, Thea Riofrancos is a leading voice on resource extraction. In this episode, we discuss her 2025 book Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism, in which she draws on groundbreaking fieldwork on the global race for lithium. Taking readers from the breathtaking salt flats of Chile’s Atacama Desert to Nevada’s glorious Silver Peak Range to the rolling hills of the Barroso Region of Portugal, the book reveals the social and environmental costs of “critical minerals.” She takes stock of new policy paradigms in the Global South, where governments seek to leverage mineral assets to jumpstart green development. Zooming out from lithium, we also discuss the evolving geopolitics and geoeconomics of energy transition, critical minerals, and green technology supply chains.

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Thea Riofrancos is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Providence College, a Strategic Co-Director of the Climate and Community Institute, and a fellow at the Transnational Institute. Her research focuses on resource extraction, climate change, the energy transition, the global lithium sector, green technologies, social movements, and the Latin American left. She explored these themes in her book, Resource Radicals: From Petro-Nationalism to Post-Extractivism in Ecuador (Duke University Press, 2020), peer-reviewed articles in Cultural Studies, World Politics, and Global Environmental Politics, and her coauthored book, A Planet to Win: Why We Need a Green New Deal (Verso Books, 2019). Her essays have appeared in outlets including The New York Times, Financial Times, The Washington Post, Foreign Policy, The Guardian, and more. Thea’s latest book, which we discuss on this episode, is Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism (W.W. Norton 2025).

Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism (W.W. Norton 2025)

The Security–Sustainability Nexus: Lithium Onshoring in the Global North in Global Environmental Politics 2022

Resource Radicals: From Petro-Nationalism to Post-Extractivism in Ecuador (Duke University Press, 2020)

A Planet to Win: Why We Need a Green New Deal (Verso Books, 2019)

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