General secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions GAWAIN LITTLE calls for support and participation in the national partnership organised to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1926 general strike
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How lithium became a new global flashpoint
Lithium is crucial for batteries — but because deposits form only under rare geological conditions, its extraction is a geopolitical flashpoint between the imperial West and the rest of the world, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
OUSTED: A man holds a sign that reads in Spanish: ‘Evo [Morales], your people need you,’ as supporters of the toppled Movement for Socialism government march against the coup in Bolivia, November 2019
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LITHIUM has been around for a very long time. Along with hydrogen and helium, it was one of the three elements synthesised in the Big Bang.
In its elemental form, it is a chalky white alkali metal, soft enough to be cut with a knife. Lithium is unstable due to its high reactivity, and does not naturally occur in elemental form on Earth.
It is typically found in mineral form (combined with other elements) within igneous rocks — formed by the cooling and solidification of molten lava from deep beneath the Earth’s surface.
A type of rock called granitic pegmatite hosts the largest concentrations of lithium-containing minerals. Lithium can be directly mined from these rocks, like in Australia at Greenbushes, the world’s largest lithium mine.
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