Bellagio Residency: April 2023
Project: “Green Justice: Excavating the Future in “Lithium Valley””
Dr. Chris Benner is a distinguished scholar and sociologist whose work centers on the relationships between technological change, regional development, and economic opportunity, with a particular focus on regional labor markets and the transformation of work and employment. Chris visited Bellagio in April 2023 to work on a group project with Manuel Pastor examining the socio-ecological and economic justice implications of mining lithium, a mineral key to the emerging electrical vehicle industry and renewable energy storage market, in California’s Salton Sea area. He is currently the Dorothy E. Everett Chair in Global Information and Social Entrepreneurship, and a Professor of Environmental Studies and Sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz.