Cultures Of Energy

Dominic and Cymene begin with the war on Chicago and Kelly Hayes's amazing essay, "In Chicago, We Run Toward Danger Together" which everyone should read. Then (15:20) we welcome Javiera Barandiarán to the podcast to talk about her new book, Living Minerals: Nature, Trade, and Power in the Race for Lithium (MIT Press, 2025), and what Javiera loves about the element of lithium. We discuss lithium's futurity and multiplicity, why Javiera thinks it's wrong to think about lithium as a single thing. From there, we talk about lithium's role in nuclear fusion, what rights of nature minerals should enjoy, and why so many people believe minerals create wealth. Then we wrap up with Javiera's other new book this year, a study of the efforts to create a new constitution for Chile, Demanding a Radical Constitution: Environmentalism, Resilience, and Participation in Chile's 2022 Reform Efforts (Palgrave Macmillan, 2025). Please also check out Lithium Landscapes and this article on Chile's energy transition. Hang in there,