Open to Debate Think Twice About War, Tech, & Dirty Supply Chains: The Elements of Power with Nicolas Niarchos
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Feb 20, 2026 
Nicolas Niarchos, journalist and author of The Elements of Power, reports on batteries, mining, and Congo’s tangled supply chains. He explores cobalt’s role in lithium-ion tech. He traces colonial legacies, artisanal miners’ dangers, and global competition between China and the U.S. He probes corporate responsibility, recycling, and whether tech shifts really solve deeper political and environmental problems.
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Batteries Hide Dirty Supply Chains
- The lithium-ion battery supply chain is deeply polluted with human-rights abuses, corruption, and environmental damage.
- Nicolas Niarchos argues the tech appears green but depends on very unpleasant, old extraction practices.
Cobalt Packs Battery Energy Tight
- Cobalt sits in lithium-ion cathodes and lets batteries store far more energy per small package.
- That property enabled long-lasting small devices and the mobile revolution.
Leopold’s Private Rule Fueled Extraction
- King Leopold II treated the Congo as his private property and oversaw brutal exploitation for rubber and other resources.
- Photographs of severed hands helped expose the atrocities and led Belgium to take back control in 1908.
