UT Austin Hosting Inaugural Critical Minerals Workshop

March 25, 2025

Registration has opened for the University of Texas at Austin Jackson School of Geosciences’ inaugural North American Workshop on Critical Mineral Research, Development, and Education. The event will take place August 13–14, 2025, at UT. It is being organized by Jackson School Associate Professor Marek Locmelis, doctoral student Shelby Clark, and a committee of researchers from the Jackson School’s Bureau of Economic Geology and the UT Cockrell School of Engineering.  

Critical minerals are essential for a host of modern technologies including cellphones, electric vehicles, semiconductors, solar power and batteries. As demand for these technologies increases, so does the demand for critical minerals. However, these elements often come from countries that the U.S. considers foreign adversaries, which makes their supply chains vulnerable. To ensure the security of the supply, it’s essential for the U.S. to bolster its own critical minerals resources, Locmelis said. 

The goal of this event is to bring together professionals from different backgrounds to work toward a common goal: securing a U.S. supply of critical minerals. The workshop is one of few venues where geologists, engineers, metallurgists, environmental scientists, political scientists, and others interested in any part of the critical mineral supply chain can convene on this topic. 

“What’s so unique about this workshop is that we have such a breadth of participants from all different kinds of sectors that would otherwise very rarely meet,” Clark said. “Geologists go to geology conferences; engineers go to engineering conferences; so this is one of the very few places in the world where we have an overlap of completely different disciplines.”  

Over the course of two days, participants will be able to attend keynote addresses, oral and poster presentations, and breakout sessions on various topics such as geology, mineral exploration technologies, mineral processing focused on recycling technologies, workforce development and policy. For example, the implications of the recent presidential executive order “Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production” will be a topic of discussion, with the goal of kickstarting interdisciplinary collaborations between participants. 

There will also be a dinner in the Great Hall of the Texas Science & Natural History Museum, beneath the “Texas Pterosaur” Quetzalcoatlus northropi. The dinner is sponsored by ElementUSA, a company that specializes in producing critical minerals from recycled waste.  

This workshop is open to the public. Learn more on the event webpage. 

The following keynote speakers are slated for the event: 

• Stefanie M. Brueckner, assistant professor, Harquail School of Earth Sciences, Laurentian University: “Critical metals in volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits.” 

• Daniel Alessi, professor, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin: “Development of lithium manganese oxide sorbents for the recovery of lithium from brines.” 

• Robert J. Bodnar, C. C. Garvin professor and university distinguished professor, Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech: “Challenges and opportunities for students in critical minerals space.” 

• Leah Turner, director of education and strategic partnerships, Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science: “Inspiring the Next Generation: Success Stories and Strategies from Youth Outreach.” 

• Jesica Urbina, founder and CEO, Infinite Elements: “Revolutionizing Critical Mineral Recovery: Bridging Biotechnology & Mining for a Sustainable Future.” 

• Simon Jowitt, Arthur Brant chair of exploration geology, University of Nevada-Reno; director and state geologist, Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology: “The 21st Century Minerals Industry; Energy Transition Challenges and Opportunities and Policy Influences on Metal Supply and Demand.” 

Other organizing committee members from the Bureau of Economic Geology are Research Associate Professor Brent Elliott, Research Assistant Professor Jani Das, Research Associate Professor Esti Ukar, Research Professor Julia Gale, Research Associate Professor Andras Fall, and Chief Economist Ning Lin. Wen Song, assistant professor at the Hildebrand Department of Petroleum and Geoscience Engineering, is also on the organizing committee.