A clarion call for justice and democracy in the quest for clean energy

What happens in Lithium Valley will not stay there. This tiny patch of California is a microcosm of the broad climate challenges we face; understanding Lithium Valley today is the key to grasping the future of our economy and our planet.

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CHARGING FORWARD

“A clarion call for justice and democracy
in the quest for clean energy”

California's Salton Sea region is home to some of the worst environmental health conditions in the country. Recently, however, it has also become ground zero in the new "lithium gold rush"—the race to power the rapidly expanding electric vehicle and renewable energy storage market. The immense quantities of lithium lurking beneath the surface have led to predictions that the region could provide a third of global demand. But who will benefit from the development of this precious resource?

A work of stunning analysis and reporting, Charging Forward shows that the questions raised by Lithium Valley lie at the heart of the "green transition." Threading movement politics, federal policy, and autoworker struggles, noted experts Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor stress that getting the lithium out from under the earth is just a first step: the real question is whether the region and the nation will get out from under the environmental degradation, labor exploitation, and racial injustice that have been as much a part of the landscape as the Salton Sea itself.

What happens in Lithium Valley, the authors argue, will not stay there. This tiny patch of California is a microcosm of the broad climate challenges we face; understanding Lithium Valley today is the key to grasping the future of our economy and our planet.

Read an excerpt from the book below:

What's New?

  • Charging Forward book events

    From LA to SF to NYC tp Washington D.C., catch Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor at special book talks, events, and signings.

    EXPLORE

  • Op-Ed: Imperial County residents deserve to benefit from a potential lithium boom

    Manuel Pastor and Chris Benner make the case in this September 26, 2024 op-ed in the Los Angeles Times.

    Read

  • New Books Network podcast

    Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor spoke on the questions raised by Lithium Valley lie at the heart of the “green transition.”

    Click Here
  • artistic image of the shoreline of the Salton Sea

    Big lithium plans for Imperial Valley, one of California’s poorest regions, raise a bigger question: Who should benefit?

    September 26, 2024

    By Manuel Pastor and Chris Benner

    Read

Power in the Desert

The Lithium story is not just confined to Imperial Valley. For the last year, book co-authors, Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor, have been collaborating with Argentine filmmaker and documentarian Emiliano Rodriguez Nuesch to create a dialogue between the experience of Lithium Valley in California and the so-called “Lithium Triangle” in Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia. Their conclusion: the future of these regions may be uncertain but the communities there that have too often been left behind and kept behind are linked in their concerns for people and the planet. To get a glimpse of the forthcoming full-length documentary, view the trailer below.

“Charging Forward takes us on a highly readable romp through the complexities of a just transition to electric vehicles, offering a microcosm of the larger environmental, racial and social challenges of a clean energy tomorrow. It’s a must-read.”

— Denise Fairchild, Emerald Cities Collaborative president emerita

“Over a decade ago, I wrote about how we could save the planet, generate jobs, and ensure justice. This vision is finally being realized and perhaps nowhere more dramatically than in ‘Lithium Valley.’ Charging Forward brilliantly uses the Valley to illustrate what’s at stake as we move to a clean energy world. Clear-eyed that we cannot change the way we deliver power until we change who wields power, Benner and Pastor offer both hard-headed analysis and hope for a just future.”

— Van Jones, author of The Green Collar Economy

“Two of our most inspired intellectuals bring us an important glimpse into the future – and the choices we face in making a more equitable world.”

— Natalie Foster, Economic Security Project president and author of The Guarantee: Inside the Fight for America’s Next Economy

"Charging Forward covers the planet, exposing the damages of mineral extraction worldwide and finally landing us in a California desert with enough lithium to fuel our national transition to a cleaner future. With companies circling for profits and communities uniting in power and devising solutions, Benner and Pastor offer us a ringside seat to the fights that will determine whether we get the future frontline communities want—and deserve."

— Gloria Walton, The Solutions Project CEO

Upcoming events

Join Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor for Charging Forward book events across the country!

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