CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2025
| Author | Pliatsuk, Ielyzaveta |
|---|---|
| Title | How do local actors in Chile frame China's involvement in lithium extraction: as development or neocolonial extraction? |
| Summary | This thesis examines how Chilean actors frame China's involvement in lithium extraction in the Atacama Desert, Chile, in the global green energy transition context. The thesis argues that the Chilean government presents lithium mining as an opportunity for national development. At the same time, the civil society and indigenous people remain much more critical, pointing out the ecological degradation, exclusionary politics and power asymmetries. Through the use of critical discourse analysis, the study draws on sources such as government statements, NGO reports, and Indigenous testimonials to uncover how narratives about development and sustainability are constructed or contested. The findings reveal three main framings: lithium as an opportunity for green development, lithium as greenwashing concealing destructive practices, and lithium as the violator of ecosystems and indigenous land. The official discourse echoes Chinese concepts of "win-win cooperation", while civil activists expose issues due to asymmetries regarding environmental burden and knowledge recognition. This thesis concludes that green extractivism poses serious risks in reproducing historical inequalities under a new eco-friendly label and underscores the importance of including marginalised voices in debates over sustainability, development and decision-making. |
| Supervisor | Fetzer, Thomas |
| Department | Undergraduate Studies BA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2025/pliatsuk_ielyzaveta.pdf |
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