For a post-carbon world to become a reality, lithium is essential. As a critical component for renewable energy storage – and especially electric-car batteries – lithium has the potential to reduce significantly the global consumption of fossil fuels. But there have been many visions of a future of clean energy, which have in turn helped shape the policies, investments, and relationships governing mineral resources today. In this talk, Javiera Barandiarán examines past and current debates about lithium and its extraction in North and South America, identifying the hopes, fears, and expectations of those involved in its production. Lithium in these regions, she argues, has long inspired a multitude of contrasting aspirations and imagined futures, including for more equitable global markets, scientific and technological prowess, and economic competitiveness.