Major challenges are still facing the mining and processing of critical minerals as national priorities change while facing serious geopolitically constrained mineral supply chains. As our national interests pivot from focusing on purely clean energy sources to the reality of energy security, reliability and affordability, one thing remains constant, and that is increased need of critical minerals and the products derived from them. To begin with, we need to acknowledge and understand the state of the U.S. mining-related industries as well as the demand of, and viability of, the downstream uses that are dependent on mined metals. The scale of the problem is daunting, causing many to doubt our ability to address it. Though we are truly facing an abyss, the U.S. has the necessary resources, and with the rapid development and deployment of mining/processing technologies, you can solve this in a way that addresses the environmental, societal, economic and national security concerns that surround critical minerals.

Douglas Wicks currently serves as a Program Director at the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). His focus at ARPA-E is on waste-to-energy, critical mineral mining and geologic hydrogen technologies. Wicks joined ARPA-E from Imerys, a French industrial minerals production and processing company, where he was most recently the Director of Transformational and External Innovation. At Imerys, he developed an innovation network composed of academic, contract research organizations, start-ups and strategic partners. Before joining Imerys, Wicks worked in a variety of roles at several start-up companies focused on innovative materials. Wicks began his career at Bayer Corporation, where he ultimately became Vice President of Research for the Coatings and Colorants division. Wicks earned a B.S. in Chemistry from North Dakota State University and a Ph.D. in Polymer Science and Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

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