First, we look at the entire value chain, from the companies that mine the raw materials used in batteries to battery cell manufacturers to OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) and all the way to recyclers. Second—and critically—we counterbalance industry voices with those of non-corporate stakeholders. The politically neutral space we've created is especially rare in today's geopolitical environment, where access to resources and domesticated supply chains are key issues. We're focused not on these geopolitical concerns, but on the steps needed to create a universal standard for sustainable battery performance and to implement the sustainable value chain by 2030.

A battery passport is a digital product passport that can be compared to a personal passport that an individual needs to cross a border. For example, if a battery wants to enter the EU and be sold on the EU market, it would have to show its passport at the border, showing where its materials and minerals come from and demonstrating that it has a "visa" on issues like human rights performance and battery carbon footprint.

After working with our partner organizations Audi, Tesla and their entire value chains to launch three separate proof-of-concept pilots, we are now looking to scale to a minimum viable product over the next couple of years. Part of that will require defining the remaining sustainability metrics. We started with metrics related to the battery's carbon footprint, child labor and human rights due diligence. These are very important, but they are only three salient issues in the value chain. We've gone through a prioritization exercise with our members to decide which issues to address next.

We don't embrace the ideas of winners and losers, and majority voting where you see different camps form. Instead, we take a systemic consensus-building approach that asks strategic questions and offers various options. For example, we might ask, "Should the GBA develop substantive databases and IT infrastructure to deliver on the battery passport, or should we focus instead on rulemaking?" The answers could be different degrees of investment or a compromise, such as a strategic partnership with a third party that delivers on the infrastructure. You then test the group's level of resistance to each option and try to refine the option with the lowest level of resistance to get the highest level of buy-in. Ultimately, our members are united in their commitment to a more sustainable battery value chain and recognize that batteries are essential for the energy transition.

I'm optimistic that it's going to be a reality for some battery products, maybe not for all. When I look at some of the biggest players we've brought together, I see a real commitment and a profound realization that a sustainable value chain is not a nice-to-have, but rather a must-have. This is being reinforced by regulations, such as the EU Batteries Regulation and Ecodesign Directive. So there's real traction and, if policies like these are harmonized at the global level, you will see transformation accelerate.