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Everyone in Washington knows the score: Americas rare earth supply chain runs straight through China. Its one of the few issues before Congress that enjoys bipartisan support. But most of the solutions on the table remain shortsighted, dominated by two false binaries: Mine more at home or buy more from allies abroad. And yet, the most immediate solution is one barely being discussed. What is missing from the conversation in both Congress and the Trump administration is a faster, cleaner option: recovering rare earth elements from materials weve already used. If were serious about decoupling from China, recycling rare earth elements from end-of-life products is essential. However, current federal policy has yet to fully recognize this opportunity or support it at scale. Rare earth elements power the permanent magnets that drive everything from consumer electronics and medical devices to data centers and defense systems. China controls over 90% of rare earth processing capacity and 70% of production. Billions of dollars have been invested in reshoring some of this value chain, but the pace is glacial, and opening new mines will take years, if not decades. Recycling as an option Meanwhile, the U.S. is sitting on an untapped domestic source of these very elements: smartphones, cars, appliances, hard drives, and other products we discard every year. Less than 1% of rare earth elements are recycled. Today, the vast majority end up in landfills or are shipped abroad for low-value scrap. With the right policy and technology support, we could be recycling a meaningful share of the rare earth elements we need, right here at home. To be clear, recycling wont eliminate the need for new mining altogether, but it can dramatically reduce our dependence on an unstable supply chain. So why has Congress largely ignored this path? In part, its due to outdated thinking. For decades, rare earth elements were treated as byproducts, not priorities. But the world has changed, and the stakes have risen. As we transition to an electrified economy where everything from personal mobility to manufacturing depends on electrified systems, we need to treat these elements as the national security assets they are and plan for their full lifecycle. Three steps to hasten recycling Recent moves by the Trump administration to invoke the Defense Production Act to support the critical minerals supply chain show that wake-up calls are finally being heard at the highest levels. But waivers alone wont solve the issue. The administration and Congress can take three concrete steps now to accelerate domestic rare earth recycling. 1. Treat end-of-life rare earth elements as a strategic resource. Just as we stockpile oil, we should be inventorying our above-ground, urban minethe stream of magnets and motors already in circulation. This potential is huge: By 2035, the U.S. is expected to generate 43,000 metric tons of end-of-life magnets that could otherwise end up in overseas scrapyards. This untapped above-ground mine is a unique opportunity to secure our critical supply chains, and it should be protected with reinforced export controls.2. Empower federal agencies to take action. The Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Energy are globally recognized as the most powerful accelerators of strategic industries, fueling Americas rise in defense, technology, and energy leadership. Their contribution has never been more needed. Without immediate action to recycle our retired defense systems, we risk losing critical ground. Congress and the administration now have a unique opportunity to empower these agencies and secure vital elements, strengthen our innovation ecosystem, and ignite a domestic industry, before its too late. 3. Direct federal budgets to scale domestic capacity. We now have the tools and technologies to reshape our critical elements supply chain. Traceability solutions are ready and aligned with DOD requirements to avoid entities of concern, yet the majority of rare earths are still processed in China. Agencies like the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, and DOD form the powertrain to fast-track strategic projects and scale domestic capacity. Whats needed now is for the administration to seize the full potential of this moment and direct budget to turn readiness into resilience. Invest in infrastructure and incentives now The urgency is real. China has once again demonstrated it can rapidly snap export controls in and out of effect, perpetuating volatile market dynamics, serving as a not-so-subtle reminder of how fragile our current supply chain really is. To break the dependency, Congress should support all viable paths to resilience, including setting policies that will leverage the existing above-ground mine. We dont need to wait a decade to build new mines or hope for more reliable trade partners. The materials we need are already here, in products weve already used. We can start recovering rare earth elements here and now. But unlocking that potential will take broader thinking. Policymakers must expand their focus beyond extraction and invest in the infrastructure and incentives that will save this above-ground mine. By keeping critical elements within our borders and recovering them from end-of-life materials, we can strengthen national security, drive economic growth, support American jobs, and secure the future of U.S. innovation and technological leadership. The industry stands ready; it is now up to the administration to capitalize on this momentum. Ahmad Ghahreman is CEO and cofounder of Cyclic Materials.
Category:
E-Commerce
When Ricardo Dollero graduated from UCLA last May with great grades and a robust resume of extracurriculars, he wasnt expecting a particularly difficult job search. After majoring in anthropology, he looked for jobs at museums or nonprofits, but after months of scouring online job boards and applying for everything he felt qualified for, Dollero still hadnt found a job. Thats when my partner and I decided, lets leave the United States and live an adventure and start our careers in another country where our degrees actually have value, he says. By February, they had secured positions teaching English in a school in Thailand. Its a path recent graduates looking to experience a new culture have chosen for decades. The agency Dollero used, Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), has been around since 1947. In recent years, though, grads from U.S. universities have increasingly been choosing to go abroad to escape the challenging job market at home. Although June data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics paints a rosy picture of the current job market, with 147,000 jobs added and unemployment falling to 4.1%, entry-level jobs are becoming ever more elusive. Starting in September 2018, the percentage of unemployed recent graduates has consistently been higher than the overall unemployment rate. As of March 2025, the percentage differed by nearly 2%, with 5.8% of recent grads unemployed compared to 4.0% of all workers. This means young college-educated workers have spent years facing an especially competitive and difficult job market. And these challenges are only growing as more companies remove entry-level jobs in favor of using AI. In fact, 40% of employers expect to reduce their workforce and automate tasks with AI. With so few opportunities available, many recent graduates struggling in their job search are seeking alternatives to traditional nine-five office jobsincluding opportunities to work abroad. We have indeed observed a notable increase in interest from recent college graduates seeking TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification and opportunities to teach abroad, says Ian OSullivan, owner of the TEFL Institute. The appeal of gaining global experience, developing transferable skills, and making a meaningful impact has driven more young adults to consider TEFL as a viable and exciting option. The TEFL Institute is one of hundreds of organizations providing certification courses that teach people how to teach English as a foreign language. Many of these courses require no prior teaching experience and many of the companies offering them also guide new teachers through the process of finding a job abroad. The extra support makes these programs ideal for recent graduates, many of whom have never traveled outside their home countries or worked a full-time job before. For Dollero, having an organization help with the process of getting set up in his new home made it easier to jump into his role as a teacherone that he describes as very fulfilling. One very specific thing that has marked my time here in Thailand is the respect that the students have for the teachers, Dollero says. Its just heartwarming that they want you there. These positive experiences differ from teaching in the United States, where teacher shortages prevail not because there is a lack of passionate new teachers but because of low salaries, difficult working conditions, and a lack of support at work, according to a recent analysis from the Learning Policy Institute. A typical contract for teaching English at a school or language center abroad lasts one academic year, typically 9 to 12 months. Many teachers choose to renew their contracts or find a new TEFL job in yet another country. Others choose to use their experience in education to find teaching jobs closer to home. While he isnt yet sure what the rest of his career will bring, or whether he will choose to extend his time in Thailand, Dollero notes that his teaching experience has already helped him grow as a person. He’s learned to effectively manage people, organize his time, and become more adaptable. While the need for technological skills in the labor market is expected to grow the fastest, many soft skills are also expected to rise in importance over the next five years, according to insights from the World Economic Forums 2025 Future of Jobs Report. Creative thinking, resilience, flexibility, agility, and curiosity have all become increasingly important as the workforce adapts after the COVID-19 pandemic and in the wake of innovations like AI. These skills, and many others, are the type one can learn from taking on new experiences, such as navigating a new culture and managing a classroom. Regardless of whether recent graduates choose to remain teachers after their TEFL experience, the soft skills they develop can open doors. Many of our graduates have shared inspiring stories about how TEFL has transformed their professional and personal lives, opening doors to international careers, remote work opportunities, and lifelong friendships, OSullivan says. The experience not only enhances employability but also fosters a global perspective that is highly valued in todays interconnected world. Back at home, many graduates are pessimistic about the job market. Over half (56%) of the class of 2025 reports feeling somewhat or very pessimistic about starting their careers according to a recent report by the job board Handshake. For students having trouble finding a job after college, like he did, Dollero highly recommends a TEFL job. Im 100% for others doing what I did, Dollero says. Just because youre being rejected from hundreds of jobs in the United States doesnt mean its going to be the same thing in another place.
Category:
E-Commerce
Last Friday, a federal judge axed a Biden-era rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that would have prohibited consumer credit reporting agencies from including certain medical debts on consumer credit reports. The CFPB rule amended a Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regulatory exception that allowed creditors to obtain and use information on medical debts. The rule had been finalized shortly before the Biden administration left office and was set to take effect on March 15. However, legal challenges delayed its start date. The rule prohibited creditors from considering medical information when determining credit eligibility and restricted credit reporting agencies from including certain types of medical debt information in consumer credit reports. Medical debt will stay on credit reports On July 11, 2025, U.S. District Judge Sean Jordan of the Eastern District Court in Texas reversed the Biden-era rule. In his opinion, Jordan, a Trump appointee, said that the court found that rule exceeded the CFPB’s authority under the FCRA. The federal lawsuit was filed on January 7, the same day the Biden-era rule had been finalized. In the legal complaint, the Cornerstone Credit Union League and the Consumer Data Industry Association asserted that the rule violated the law and that only Congress had the authority to make such changes. The Trump-era CFPB, along with acting director Russell Vought, joined the lawsuit on April 30, with the agency asking the court to vacate the rule. In response to the ruling, Senate Democrats led by Raphael Warnock of Georgia wrote a letter to Vought asking for an explanation about the reversal. Medical debt collections information is often inaccurate, and studies show that it is not useful in determining a consumers ability to repay other debts,” the senators wrote. Fast Company reached out to CFPB for comment. Court order impacts millions of Americans with medical debt CFPB research found that a medical bill on a credit report isn’t a good indicator of a person’s ability to repay a loan. Research also showed that medical debt on credit reports contributed to mortgage application denials for loans that consumers would have been able to afford. In its January announcement, the CFPB stated that the rule would remove an estimated $49 billion in medical bills from credit reports and affect approximately 15 million Americans. It added that people with medical debt on their credit reports could see an average boost of 20 points on their score. However, now that the rule has been reversed, debt will remain on consumer credit reports, and creditors are still allowed to consider medical debt when making credit decisions.
Category:
E-Commerce
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