“The commonwealth knows that you would prefer if mining didn’t come about, that it didn’t take place. But the government has had to listen not only to the voice of the Aboriginal people but to the voice of all Australians."

This is no simple task: as Jorge mentioned, it took his community three decades to understand lithium in their cultural imaginary. The extractive process started out invisible; no one was informed of the process occuring. As the years have progressed, and the impacts of brine extraction have begun to surface, young Atacameños like Jorge have sought to inform themselves, and turn the tide of communities being ill or misinformed in making decisions around the extraction happening on their land.

In 2016, the Solcor community signed an agreement with Albemarle whereby they would receive 3% of extraction profits, in exchange for their consent to lithium being mined. This has been a significant milestone, as the community are now receiving a huge revenue, but many challenges have persisted, demonstrating that financial compensation is not the end of road for those affected by mining, but the beginning of a new phase. Just a few examples of these challenges illuminate how leaders like Jorge must negotiate a myriad of positions, mechanisms and trade offs in accommodating lithium extraction on his land.

Since the initiation of revenue, there has appeared a pattern of secrecy and exclusivity of information between leaders of different Atacameños communities. As the influence of revenue filters in, communication channels have obscured. Simultaneously, the navigation of polarised opinions within the community remains. While some people have formed identities enmeshed in the mining industry, and advocate for its benefits, there are also those who are more connected to cultural, ancestral and traditional community needs. This polarisation has only deepened with the new agreement with Albemarle as more resources flow into the community, both increasing the benefits of the mine’s presence, and entrenching its place in the salt flats.

One of the biggest tasks Jorge and his community faced was the difficulty of initially interpreting and communicating the details of the agreement they signed with Albemarle. This parallels with the lack of information that the Solcor community was provided about the lithium extraction process. People feel the need to make the extraction process more culturally and environmentally sustainable, and the creation of the Plurinational Observatory of Salt Flats was integral to this process. Researching the depth and extent of the impacts of lithium mining, this organisation is essential in supporting communities like Jorge’s in exercising a management role in the future of the mine.

The pressures placed on community’s like Jorge’s to navigate decision making, resource management and community division is huge. The integrity of community organising structures is paramount in informed collective decision making, and the loss or obscurity of communication channels remains a challenge to overcome. Supporting structures like the Observatory are essential in expanding the capacity of communities to make informed decisions, and take precautionary action in managing their land.