You're listening to The Great Simplification with Nate Higgins.

That's me.

On this show, we try to explore and simplify what's happening with energy, the economy, the environment, and our society.

Together with scientists, experts, and leaders, this show is about understanding the

bird's eye view of how everything fits together, where we go from here and what we can do

about it as a society and as individuals.

Simon Mischo is a professor of geometalurgy at the Geological Survey of Finland.

He has degrees in physics and geology and a PhD in mining engineering.

Simon's long-term work is on the development and transformation towards a circular economy,

navigating the twin challenges of the increasing scarcity of minerals

and the eventual, but inevitable, transition away from fossil carbon and hydrocarbons.

On this show, I often use the term energy blindness to represent how little our culture understands and appreciates how energy,

particularly cheap and abundant fossil energy, underpins our society and current living standards.

Today, Simon and I talk about minerals blindness, or how in a similar way we also ignore mineral and material limits that

will affect human futures.

This is a wide and deep topic and Simon has a lot to say.

So please enjoy what will probably be part one of a series of conversations with Dr. Simon Michelle.

Greetings, my friend.

Goody, Nate.

How you doing?

I am doing well.

How do I greet an Australian who's in Helsinki, Finland?

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