Curiosity is my main motivation - Gunlla Reischl

Gunlla Reischl is senior researcher at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. She is leading work package two, which focuses on the geopolitics of critical raw materials and departs from the programme’s emphasis on trade-offs by introducing the security-related considerations that shape national decision-making on critical raw materials. These considerations impact upon notions of criticality in different systems and organisations, and can potentially impede fair, sustainable and resilient governance.

Gunlla Reischl leads work on the geopolitics of critical raw materials.

In this article, she highlights what research her and her colleagues will explore in the programme, and what motivates her as a researcher.

What drives you as a researcher?

I am motivated by curiosity. I love digging into puzzles and in the end be able to better understand how certain phenomena came about. I am fascinated by and want to better understand the complexities of power dynamics and decision-making processes that shape our society, in particular those related to sustainability transitions.

What are you going to explore in your work package?

Our workpackage focuses on the geopolitical dimension of CRM. We are interested in how security-related considerations shape national decision-making on CRM. We study potential goal conflicts between actors’ security perceptions, the different perspectives behind these perceptions, and dependencies on strategic resources to deepen our understanding of geopolitical dimensions of sustainability transitions.

How would you like your research to be used?

We need a better understanding of the rapidly changing and increasingly demanding geopolitical context in which sustainability transitions take place. Access to CRM is affected by new complex interdependencies. By developing a better understanding on what strategic resources are, how different actors perceive them we will be able to unpack strategies and implications of resource competition.

Who can gain from your results?

Our research will be relevant for policymakers focusing on CRM, both in Sweden and beyond, but also business actors that seek a deeper understanding of a more demanding geopolitical context for CRM governance. Our research could hopefully support decision-making on sustainability transitions that needs to take rivalry and competition into account and has to strike difficult trade-offs often involved security and sustainability concerns. 

Why is the field of research important?

The geopolitical dimensions of CRM extraction are already in center of analysis and research, and also merges with wider trends of global fragmentation and rivalry. However, more needs to be understood on how conflicts have and will emerge in the CRM area. In addition, of great importance is to understand what clashing perspectives lie behind those conflicts and what the consequences are. The urgency involved in sustainability transitions is a complicating factor, as is the uncertainty of the implications of geopolitical competition for sustainability transitions. Research is needed to navigate this landscape and to contribute to more informed decision making.