Illicit rare-earth mining in Myanmar is a storyline most of us are unlikely to encounter in our entrepreneurial echo chambers. Yet, as someone deeply connected to innovation and sustainability discussions, I feel compelled to spotlight an issue hiding behind the sleek electric vehicles and green tech we often celebrate. You might wonder what a Dutch startup founder like me, creator of the "gamepreneurship" framework through Fe/male Switch, has to say about this humanitarian and environmental crisis. The answer is this: when you build companies, especially in tech, understanding global supply chains is no optional luxury. It’s essential awareness.
The Rare-Earth Rush in Myanmar
Rare-earth elements (REEs) such as dysprosium, neodymium, and terbium are critical in producing clean energy technologies, like EV batteries, wind turbine motors, and even fighter jets. As global demand surges, Myanmar has emerged as the world’s largest source of heavy rare-earth exports. Why? China, previously the top supplier, began cracking down on domestic mining due to disastrous environmental outcomes, transferring the problem to Myanmar's underequipped regions.
The mining hubs lie mostly in Myanmar’s volatile borderlands, areas controlled by ethnic armed groups like the United Wa State Army (UWSA). These quasi-governmental militias regulate mining operations with minimal oversight, leading to rampant environmental abuse, chemical mismanagement, and appalling labor conditions. The sites primarily supply China, which processes over 60% of the world's rare-earth materials. As a result, Myanmar accounts for approximately two-thirds of China’s REE imports.
Entrepreneurs and the Hidden Cost of Progress
A typical startup founder in Europe might not connect their fast-paced brainstorm on EV app monetization to rural villages in Myanmar. But entrepreneurship thrives on responsibility, especially when it comes to understanding how new innovations affect the world. Startups streaming investment into industries reliant on REEs, whether it's software for autonomous vehicles or supply chain apps, should stop to evaluate the sourcing of these materials. Transparency connects us all.
Facts You Should Know About Myanmar's Rare-Earth Crisis
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Gigantic Expansion Under Lawlessness: Post-2021 Myanmar coup, rare-earth mining expanded without regulation. From roughly 130 sites in 2020, there were over 370 mines by 2024, mostly in Shan State and Kachin State.
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Human Vulnerability: Workers are vulnerable to landslides, acid burns, and respiratory diseases. Around 50 miners were buried alive in landslides in Kachin mining accidents between 2023 and 2025.
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Environmental Costs: Toxic mining methods create contaminated water sources full of cadmium, lead, and mercury, which are harmful to both people and agriculture. Satellite imagery shows over 32,000 hectares of deforested terrain near key mining areas in Kachin State.
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Unregulated Money Pipeline: In Shan and Kachin, minerals indirectly fund armed groups. For example, the UWSA facilitates large-scale mining and receives heavy support (or investment) from Chinese entities.
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Impact Beyond Borders: Contaminated water flows from Myanmar to northern Thailand, threatening neighboring ecosystems and local farmers’ harvests.
Lessons for Female Entrepreneurs in Europe
Too often, we allow the glossy aesthetics of technology to obscure its origins. As women entrepreneurs, we’re already blazing paths in innovation while juggling societal challenges. But leading also means asking uncomfortable questions:
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Trace the Supply Chain: If you’re working in an industry that touches tech, electronics, or energy systems, push your stakeholders to reveal where core minerals are sourced. Familiarize yourself with global certifications like the Responsible Mineral Initiative.
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Learn to Address Indirect Responsibility: No startup, no matter the stage, is isolated from the ethical consequences of its supply chain or partnerships. If mining regions like Myanmar suffer because of unchecked demand, take steps to amplify transparency within your business’s procurement chain.
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Advocate for Cross-Sector Accountability: Collective change is driven by collective voices. Lobby for better international mineral regulation. Use your product-development sprints to test whether emerging technologies, like blockchain tracing for minerals, might have merit in your company model.
How to Incorporate Sustainable Practices Into Startup Growth
There’s a myth that small businesses can’t drive change. When done smartly, you can weave sustainability into company culture early on:
- Use Tools That Check Certification: Research platforms offering traceable sourcing solutions. Whether it’s fair trade certification or emerging blockchain tracking, your suppliers’ integrity should be nonnegotiable.
- Seek Out Conscious Investors: The venture capital world is slowly shifting towards environmental funding mandates. Firms such as DBL Partners and Breakthrough Energy Ventures prioritize sustainable investments.
- Educate Teams in Context: Host internal workshops covering supply chains' impact beyond Europe’s borders. Invite guest speakers working in environmental monitoring or law to provide a frontline view.
Avoid These Common Mistakes
- Ignoring Red Flags: Trusting suppliers without demanding transparency feeds unsustainable practices.
- Greenwashing: Adopting trendy sustainability jargon without implementing actual policies risks eroding trust with customers down the line.
- Inaction Due to Perceived ‘Scale’: Believing your startup is “too small to matter” only postpones structural accountability into higher-growth stages.
An Urgent Takeaway for Europe’s Startup Ecosystem
My perspective is shaped by years of building businesses that intersect science, management, and tech. And if there's a trend that stands out today, it’s this: nature is no longer backing our technological shortcuts. Entrepreneurs who claim to be forward-thinking can’t look away from the environmental and humanitarian crises tied to their industries.
Progress doesn’t have to mean profit at all costs. If we use Myanmar’s rare-earth crisis as a turning point, there’s every chance our startups can grow while respecting communities globally. Shop slower. Innovate wisely. Above all, lead consciously.
Are you curious how supply chain technologies, like traceability software or blockchain, can integrate into your startup? Check out my step-by-step educational game, Fe/male Switch, focused on helping entrepreneurs like you navigate challenges fast, playfully, and responsibly. Why not build profitability and responsibility simultaneously? Together, we can redefine what scalability really means.
FAQ
1. Why is Myanmar a critical source for rare-earth elements (REEs)?
Myanmar has become the world's largest provider of heavy rare-earth elements as Chinese restrictions on mining created demand for outsourced production. Its underequipped and lawless regions, particularly Shan and Kachin States, host extensive mining operations. Explore the details of Myanmar's rare-earth mining boom
2. Which rare-earth minerals are predominantly mined in Myanmar?
Myanmar supplies dysprosium, neodymium, and terbium, critical materials for EV batteries, wind turbines, and military hardware. Learn more about Myanmar's impact on global REE supply
3. What has been the environmental impact of rare-earth mining in Myanmar?
Unregulated mining has caused toxic contamination in water sources, deforestation over tens of thousands of hectares, and cross-border pollution affecting Thailand. See satellite-enabled studies
4. How has rare-earth mining affected local communities in Myanmar?
Mining operations expose workers to landslides, chemical hazards, and respiratory illnesses, while local villagers face water pollution, agricultural losses, and displacement. Discover the human cost of mining
5. Who oversees mining operations in Myanmar's border regions?
Ethnic armed groups like the United Wa State Army (UWSA) manage mining zones, partnering with Chinese entities for profitability, often indirectly funding local militias. Learn about governance issues
6. How does Myanmar's rare-earth extraction affect neighboring countries?
Toxic runoff from mining flows into Thailand's rivers, threatening biodiversity and agricultural productivity in northern Thailand. Read about cross-border pollution risks
7. What has driven the growth of rare-earth mining in Myanmar?
Following Myanmar's 2021 military coup, lawlessness led to unregulated expansion, increasing active sites from roughly 130 in 2020 to over 370 by 2024. See an investigation into mining post-coup
8. What global initiatives exist to address mineral accountability?
Standards like the Responsible Mineral Initiative emphasize transparency and ethical sourcing in REE supply chains. Understand global certification efforts
9. How can startups verify ethical sourcing in their supply chain?
Entrepreneurs can adopt blockchain technologies for mineral traceability and partner with suppliers certified under international frameworks for responsible sourcing. Explore supply chain tools
10. Why should environmental accountability matter to businesses?
Unchecked mining practices from resource demand not only harm ecosystems but also implicate businesses in indirect ethical violations. Transparency fosters trust and sustainability. Learn about conscious leadership
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
