René Kleijn joins UN panel on resource use
How can we manage our natural resources more sustainably? That’s the key question behind the United Nations’ International Resource Panel (IRP). The panel recently welcomed a new member: René Kleijn, Professor of Industrial Ecology at Leiden University. We asked him three questions about his new role.
What exactly will your role on the panel involve?
‘The International Resource Panel is like the UN’s climate panel (IPCC) but focused on natural resources instead of climate. My own expertise is in so-called critical materials: materials that are essential to the economy but whose supply is uncertain due to geopolitical tensions or physical scarcity. Examples are copper, lithium, and nickel.
So far, the panel has mainly concentrated on large material flows like construction materials and biomass. But there’s growing awareness that critical materials also play a key role – in the energy transition, IT, defence and other sectors. At the same time, mining these materials often comes with significant environmental and social challenges. That’s why circularity – keeping materials in use for as long as possible – is an important theme too.
As a panel member, I’ll contribute to reports and can also propose new topics. Our research group is already doing a lot of work in this area, and now we can bring that knowledge to the international stage.’
How did you end up joining the International Resource Panel?
‘My colleague Ester van der Voet contributed to the panel for many years, but her term is coming to an end, and she has now retired. When the call for new members went out, I applied. There were around 600 applications, and in the end, twelve new members were selected – I’m one of them.’
What is the International Resource Panel?
The International Resource Panel (IRP) consists of 42 experts from around the world, representing a broad range of scientific disciplines. The panel publishes authoritative, independent reports on the sustainable use of natural resources – from extraction to final consumption – and on how we can decouple economic growth from environmental degradation.
What does this membership mean for CML and the university?
‘It’s very valuable for the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) to stay involved in this influential UN panel. It gives us a direct line to policymakers around the world, which helps us increase the societal impact of our research. The panel’s publications also tend to attract a lot of media attention, which raises the visibility of our contributions.’