Rio Tinto Enlists ANU to Embed Indigenous Insights in Net Zero Effort

The Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra, Australia on Sept. 16, 2020. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

The Australian National University (ANU) has joined a global research initiative led by Rio Tinto to ensure that the cultural knowledge of Indigenous Australians plays a key role in the shift towards sustainable energy.

This collaboration is part of the newly established Rio Tinto Centre for Future Materials, which seeks to develop more sustainable ways of sourcing, processing, and recycling materials required in the global energy transition.

The centre is backed by a $US150 million investment over the next 10 years,  with ANU as the only Australian university involved in the initiative.

ANU will work alongside Imperial College London, University of British Columbia, University of California, Berkeley, and the University of the Witwatersrand.

ANU’s role will focus on ensuring cultural knowledge is recognised and respected within the centre’s research and industrial applications.

Rio Tinto Chief Innovation Officer Dan Walker emphasised the urgency of the initiative.

“The path to net zero demands innovation and collaboration,” he said.

“We’re ensuring Indigenous communities have a meaningful voice in decisions that affect their lands and lives. This means reimagining how we operate—from exploration through to rehabilitation,” he said.

“Many technologies needed for the energy transition don’t exist yet, and no single organisation can solve these challenges alone. Our partnerships with ANU and other research universities will help us develop better ways to produce materials responsibly.”

Experts Emphasise Local Community Engagement

The collaboration comes amid a growing call from experts for deeper engagement with local communities in the sustainable management of critical minerals.

At the World Economic Forum, experts like Benita Kayembe, Senior Program and Research Coordinator at Harvard Ministerial Leadership Program, and Jemilah Mahmood from Sunway University, highlighted the importance of involving Indigenous communities.

“By actively involving local and Indigenous groups in decision-making, business and government can ensure that resource extraction aligns with international human rights standards and respects Indigenous land rights,” they said in Nov. 2024.

They also noted that local communities can contribute to circular solutions, such as recycling programmes for critical minerals, which reduce the need for further exploitation and promote a just, sustainable resource economy.

Professor Peter Yu, ANU Vice-President (First Nations), underscored the significance of the partnership. “It is exciting to be bringing together expertise from across a range of societal, Indigenous, environmental, scientific, social scientific, and technological perspectives,” he said.

Global Energy Policies Face Uncertainty

As the initiative pushes forward with its goals, the global energy landscape remains unclear.

In the United States, former President Donald Trump openly opposed clean energy and climate policies, dismissing them as a “green new scam.”

His administration has signalled a renewed withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, raising concerns about America’s role in international climate efforts.

This includes proposals to reduce the U.S.’s role in institutions like the International Energy Agency, arguing it overemphasises climate issues at the expense of energy security.

However, experts like Senior Research Scholar Jonathan Elkind from Columbia University warned that disengaging from global institutions could undermine U.S. influence, leaving a vacuum for other major players like China and the EU to lead on climate policy and energy security.