Jeannette Graulau is associate professor of political science at Lehman College, New York. Speaking to Srijana Mitra Das at Times Evoke, she draws the links between mines, trade — and the environment:
What is the core of your research?
I look at the conditions under which mining became what I call the heart of the world that followed the capitalist world economy, wherever it goes, needs mining. Capitalism lives through mining it cannot leave extractive economies, with their good, bad and ugly aspects, behind. Why this is so guides my research.
This involves studying the history of mining, its landscapes and its eco logical impacts including the environmental destruction we cannot see now but which will affect future generations. My work involves navigating the paradoxes of mining because alongside its catastrophes, for many, mining is an engine of growth and progress. We see evidence of mining throughout the world’s history, from the pyramids to the Colosseum. The won drous sculptures by Michelangelo point to the existence of extractive industries. Mining is everywhere in our world and I look at how it has shaped civilisations.
You’ve researched silver mining and capitalism — can you share some findings?
When we assemble all the evidence of mining for the last 500 to 600 years — that’s not a capricious benchmark as it is in this time we see the true birth of globalisation — it becomes evident that after 1492, for the first time, all continents of the world, their markets, people, cultures, commodities and minds got integrated into a global economy. This was ‘the long 16th century’, the period of maritime expansion of the Iberian empires and the growth of a capitalist economy, with companies being formed and shareholders established, rules for leasing territories set, expertise sought in science, etc. This was the rise of the true ‘invisible hand’ which pushed Europe out to the rest of the world. Yet, just before this happened, western Europe was only a
tiny peninsula of Eurasia — China was the industrial powerhouse of the world. Western Europe was sinking into a feudal underdeveloped economy while China was sending all sorts of commodities —silk, ceramics, iron artefacts, salt to the Afro Eurasian world. These goods moved through medieval silk routes with other Asian markets such as India, selling spices and gems dispatching products to western Europe.
All this trade was moving through Venice and Genoa in exchange for silver. Internal developments in China had privileged silver bullion as the most important currency for international trade while currencies based on copper, bronze and gold were flourishing as well. This was thus a world economy in expansion, demanding increasing amounts of metals, with huge implications for mining. Before 1492, such extraction came largely from western Europe that changed. And the most important force to trigger the boom was global trade in commodities and monies. Western Europe went through seismic change now — the ‘multinationals’ of the medieval world emerged. Think of the Fugger House, one of the largest banking concerns of southern Germany whose metallic portfolio I’ve researched.
The Medici of Florence, the Grimaldi and Spinola of Genoa, etc., were early capitalists who emerged from feudal economies, taking advantage of these new demands for silver and expensive Asian commodities and growing on the safe havens of mining. This was a capitalist breakthrough. Once the Mediterranean nations expanded around the world, conquest and colonisation began — the silver mines of Mexico, Bolivia, etc., were then exploited at an unprecedented rate.
What were some environmental impacts?
These actually pose the difficulties of how to see this business which sustained global economics thus. The environmental damage caused by mining in fact has no solution under the present conditions of the capitalist world economy — yet,
today, more than ever, this economy has shaped mineral-driven economic growth. Mining has the most catastrophic
impacts on land, water and even air —it has literally grown capital by the destruction of the environment.
Today, mining has become much more sophisticated — it doesn’t mean just a bunch of ores. Modern mining entails a huge amount of fixed capital in solar-powered batteries, electric vehicles, etc., all of which destroy ecology for extraction. This is the contradiction of mining accumulation and value creation through destruction. Hence, it has an anti-value element embedded in it.
Mining has also triggered large displacements of people. Latin America has remote places like Chile’s Atacama
desert yet, even there, mining causes significant displacements of indigenous communities. This is the heavyweight question facing…
What is the core of your research?
I look at the conditions under which mining became what I call the heart of the world that followed the capitalist world economy, wherever it goes, needs mining. Capitalism lives through mining it cannot leave extractive economies, with their good, bad and ugly aspects, behind. Why this is so guides my research.
This involves studying the history of mining, its landscapes and its eco logical impacts including the environmental destruction we cannot see now but which will affect future generations. My work involves navigating the paradoxes of mining because alongside its catastrophes, for many, mining is an engine of growth and progress. We see evidence of mining throughout the world’s history, from the pyramids to the Colosseum. The won drous sculptures by Michelangelo point to the existence of extractive industries. Mining is everywhere in our world and I look at how it has shaped civilisations.
You’ve researched silver mining and capitalism — can you share some findings?
When we assemble all the evidence of mining for the last 500 to 600 years — that’s not a capricious benchmark as it is in this time we see the true birth of globalisation — it becomes evident that after 1492, for the first time, all continents of the world, their markets, people, cultures, commodities and minds got integrated into a global economy. This was ‘the long 16th century’, the period of maritime expansion of the Iberian empires and the growth of a capitalist economy, with companies being formed and shareholders established, rules for leasing territories set, expertise sought in science, etc. This was the rise of the true ‘invisible hand’ which pushed Europe out to the rest of the world. Yet, just before this happened, western Europe was only a
tiny peninsula of Eurasia — China was the industrial powerhouse of the world. Western Europe was sinking into a feudal underdeveloped economy while China was sending all sorts of commodities —silk, ceramics, iron artefacts, salt to the Afro Eurasian world. These goods moved through medieval silk routes with other Asian markets such as India, selling spices and gems dispatching products to western Europe.
All this trade was moving through Venice and Genoa in exchange for silver. Internal developments in China had privileged silver bullion as the most important currency for international trade while currencies based on copper, bronze and gold were flourishing as well. This was thus a world economy in expansion, demanding increasing amounts of metals, with huge implications for mining. Before 1492, such extraction came largely from western Europe that changed. And the most important force to trigger the boom was global trade in commodities and monies. Western Europe went through seismic change now — the ‘multinationals’ of the medieval world emerged. Think of the Fugger House, one of the largest banking concerns of southern Germany whose metallic portfolio I’ve researched.
The Medici of Florence, the Grimaldi and Spinola of Genoa, etc., were early capitalists who emerged from feudal economies, taking advantage of these new demands for silver and expensive Asian commodities and growing on the safe havens of mining. This was a capitalist breakthrough. Once the Mediterranean nations expanded around the world, conquest and colonisation began — the silver mines of Mexico, Bolivia, etc., were then exploited at an unprecedented rate.
What were some environmental impacts?
These actually pose the difficulties of how to see this business which sustained global economics thus. The environmental damage caused by mining in fact has no solution under the present conditions of the capitalist world economy — yet,
today, more than ever, this economy has shaped mineral-driven economic growth. Mining has the most catastrophic
impacts on land, water and even air —it has literally grown capital by the destruction of the environment.
Today, mining has become much more sophisticated — it doesn’t mean just a bunch of ores. Modern mining entails a huge amount of fixed capital in solar-powered batteries, electric vehicles, etc., all of which destroy ecology for extraction. This is the contradiction of mining accumulation and value creation through destruction. Hence, it has an anti-value element embedded in it.
Mining has also triggered large displacements of people. Latin America has remote places like Chile’s Atacama
desert yet, even there, mining causes significant displacements of indigenous communities. This is the heavyweight question facing…
Read More: ‘Mining powered the rise of global capitalism, colonisation — and ecological