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Mapping Social Impacts in the Battery Value Chain: INEGI Presents at SETAC Europe 2026

28May

Mapping Social Impacts in the Battery Value Chain: INEGI Presents at SETAC Europe 2026

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What does social sustainability look like across a second-life battery value chain? This was the question at the heart of INEGI’s contribution to the SETAC Europe 36th Annual Meeting, held from 17 to 21 May 2026 in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

Rui A. dos Reis and Emanuel J. Lourenco from INEGI presented a poster titled “Evaluating the Social Impacts in the Emerging Second-Life Battery Sector: A Comprehensive Framework.” The poster introduced a Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) methodology developed within BIG LEAP, structured around four phases: Goal and Scope Definition, Social Inventory Analysis, Stakeholder Engagement, and Conclusions and Recommendations.

The framework addresses a documented gap in the field: while technical and environmental performance of second-life batteries receives significant research attention, social impacts along the value chain remain largely unmapped. INEGI’s approach combines quantitative and qualitative methods, drawing on partner data, PSILCA and SHDb databases, and direct stakeholder engagement through interviews, surveys, and workshops.

The connection to BIG LEAP is direct. As a project dedicated to overcoming barriers in the reuse of first-life batteries for energy storage applications, BIG LEAP requires a holistic understanding of sustainability. INEGI’s social framework provides exactly that, identifying social hotspots and priority subcategories to inform strategies that enhance social value and promote responsible innovation in the second-life battery sector.

SETAC, the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, convenes thousands of researchers, policymakers, and industry professionals annually. Presenting at this conference positions BIG LEAP research within a leading international forum for environmental science and sustainability.

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