From Castles to Concrete: Not All Sand is Created Equally

Using sand at a pace far faster than nature can replace it, booming demand for the world’s second most traded commodity has sent us borrowing into the future while sand mafias, pirates, and counterfeiters want to cash in on this lucrative business. Jorden Dye joins Kimberly as her new co-host to discuss the many uses for sand, the problems caused by extraction, and how to decarbonize the cement industry.

Key Topics

• The many ways in which we’re surrounded by sand

• How the demand for concrete and computer chips is depleting the Earth’s sand reserves

• Where there’s demand, someone will find a way to meet it

• How to prepare for trivia night by learning the difference between construction and silica sands

• Where in the world sand comes from and where it’s going

• Identifying sustainable strategies for the world’s voracious sand consumption

• More on sand next week in Kimberly’s Substack follow-up post, Building Islands from the Sand

Recommended Resources

• World Economic Forum 2023 Report

• The NYT article Jorden mentioned in the episode: "How to Steal a River"

• India’s sand mafias

• From Sand to Semiconductors

• All about concrete recycling

• Decarbonizing cement
  

Sahara Desert Camel Train