Video

Why Brazil’s subsoil has entered the United States’ radar

In the global race toward the energy transition, Brazil occupies a position few countries can claim: it holds strategic reserves of heavy rare earth elements. The minerals are essential for building technologies such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, and high-performance military systems.

This geopolitical context turns Brazil’s subsoil into a major point of interest for global powers. The dispute is no longer centered on oil alone; critical minerals are now reshaping global production chains. The United States, for example, faces a strong dependence on China in this sector, which makes access to Brazilian reserves a central element of its national security strategy.

At the same time, Brazil is moving slowly. Despite having one of the largest reserves in the world, its capacity for extraction and refining remains limited. Worse still, the main projects requirement for technology transfer, local industrial development, or respect for environmental and social limits.

Repeating old patterns is a real risk. Brazil may once again become a supplier of raw materials to the Global North, while bearing the environmental and social costs of this extraction. So-called “green mining” can be - and in practice often is - just a new label for old dynamics of dependency.

Want to dive deeper into this topic?

Watch the full video to better understand why Brazilian rare earths are at the center of a geopolitical game involving the United States, China, and the Amazon.

Disclaimer: The video is in Brazilian Portuguese, but simultaneous translation and subtitles are available in multiple languages.

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News

Meet the Rammed Earth House built in England

In the English countryside, a house built with earth shows that high-performance architecture can be achieved using only natural, local materials. The project, titled Rammed Earth House, is located in Wiltshire and was designed by the British architecture firm Tuckey Design Studio. It uses compacted raw earth, with no cement or industrial materials.

The house was built on the site of a former brick factory. Instead of removing the debris, the architects used clay from the site itself and recycled aggregates to form the walls. This reduced transportation needs and carbon emissions, while making use of resources already available on site.

The technique used is known as unstabilized rammed earth, meaning there is no cement in the mix. The earth is compacted in thin layers and hardens naturally over time. As a result, the walls are thick, providing thermal insulation and comfort without the need for air conditioning.

The project also includes:

• A roof with wide eaves to protect against rain;

• A drainage system and raised foundation to prevent moisture;

• Solar panels and a heat pump to reduce reliance on external energy;

• Rainwater harvesting for garden use.

As a result, the project’s embodied carbon is lower than typical levels found in concrete and brick construction.

For the construction, clay was taken directly from the ground on site, excavated, mixed, and compacted locally. The team used simple equipment and manual techniques, with support from the Austrian company Lehm Ton Erde, a reference in raw earth (rammed earth) construction.

Because the UK lacks a specialized workforce in this technique, local professionals were trained throughout the construction process, generating positive impacts beyond the building itself.

The Wiltshire house demonstrates that:

• It is possible to build with raw earth even in humid climates;

• Using local resources reduces emissions and transportation;

• Natural materials can deliver comfort and energy efficiency;

• Training local labor strengthens the sustainable construction chain.

The project does not rely on complex materials or expensive technologies. Instead, it turns what lies beneath the ground into high-quality architecture, a model that can inspire accessible and sustainable solutions in other contexts.