With information at our fingertips, it’s surprising that the crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is being ignored. For college students across the world, it may seem like there is very little we can do to help with a crisis abroad. However, there is a surprising connection between vaping and cobalt — a mineral in high demand — that is causing many problems in the DRC.
About one-quarter of college students report using vapes or e-cigarettes in the last 30 days, and this number has been on the rise. Vapes and e-cigarettes contain lithium batteries that are made of cobalt. The DRC accounts for 70% of worldwide cobalt production; cobalt mining in the DRC is not done humanely. If the health risks of vaping are not convincing enough to quit, perhaps the human rights implications are. There has recently been a wave of TikTokers quitting vaping in solidarity with Congo, and you should do the same.
Many common electronics contain lithium batteries, including cell phones, tablets, computers, electric toothbrushes and even hoverboards. While the DRC is home to the largest cobalt reserve on the planet, there currently is no true clean and ethical way to source cobalt from this country. Mining cobalt is creating a plethora of human rights issues and violations for the Congolese people.
In an interview with NPR, Siddharth Kara, a fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, explained why cobalt poses a health issue.
“Cobalt is toxic to touch and breathe — and there are hundreds of thousands of poor Congolese people touching and breathing it day in and day out,” Kara said. “Young mothers with babies strapped to their backs, all breathing in this toxic cobalt dust.”
In general, the practice of cobalt mining is also exploitative. Miners face grueling conditions and dangerous work for mere dollars each day. Additionally, extreme poverty in the area has led to companies using child labor to make ends meet, which only furthers the risks that children in this area face regarding their health and safety. This unethical practice puts Congolese people in the position of doing extremely risky work for next-to-no salary so the rest of the world can enjoy smartphones, computers, electric vehicles and vapes with lithium batteries.
Expanding these huge cobalt mines has only led to further problems for the people of Congo. This includes evicting people from their homes and reports of human rights abuses such as sexual assault. Forcing people from their homes and wrecking their lives because companies wish to expand their mines must come to an end. Kara refers to this crisis as modern-day slavery, where parents must decide whether to send their kid to school or to the mines so they can eat that day.
While this crisis may seem distant from your own life, its effects are devastating. Quitting vaping to lower the demand for cobalt is a step in the right direction. The demand for cobalt is climbing and is expected to hit 222,000 tons in 2025, which is triple the demand for cobalt in 2010. A general decline in demand for cobalt could take some of the pressure off of this region to produce this desirable resource in unfair conditions.
The CDC found that as of 2022, monthly e-cigarette sales reached 22.7 million units, a more than 40% increase from 2020. Furthermore, the lithium batteries used annually by disposable vapes alone is the same amount of lithium batteries necessary to create 2,600 electric vehicles. As these numbers skyrocket, more people are displaced from their homes to expand mines, more people die from hazardous mining conditions and more children are forced into child labor in order to support their families.
Of course we must recognize that these lithium batteries, made using cobalt, function as an important tool to transition away from fossil fuels because they power electric vehicles and can be used to store solar energy. However, no true climate justice solution involves creating human rights violations. As scientists work to create cobalt-free rechargeable batteries, consumers should focus on buying products that do not further this crisis in Congo.
It’s highly unlikely that people will abandon using phones and computers completely. However, for those who vape or use e-cigarettes, quitting vaping is a more realistic option.
A step that everyone can take to help the DRC is to spread awareness about the atrocities and human rights violations in the area. This awareness can make people think twice about the electronics they use everyday. For the one quarter of college students who report using a vape or e-cigarette in the last month, I implore you to think deeply about your affect abroad and take action to help the Congolese people.
Mackenzie Kilano is an Opinion Columnist who writes about student life, culture and politics. She can be reached at mkilano@umich.edu.