Women face bans on research underground

When I began my research career nearly a decade ago, there were no female academics in the mining-engineering department at Central South University in Changsha, China. Only this year did the department appoint me as its first female professor. I welcome that change, but it shows that the expectations around who can pursue mining careers have only recently begun to shift. I have visited many mines for research and fieldwork, in China and abroad, only to be told that I could not go underground. Sometimes, this happened after I had already planned the work and travelled there. The situation felt absurd: a researcher who helped to design a monitoring or warning system for a deep mine could not see the environment that it would operate in. How to widen access to the critical minerals that the world needs I do not blame mine managers for refusing access. They must comply with labour rules and manage immediate, severe hazards: unstable rock, heat, water, dust, heavy machinery and restricted escape routes. But protection becomes unfair when every activity labelled ‘underground mining’ is treated as though it involves the same risk exposure. China’s 2012 law improving workplace rights and health rules for women still prohibits underground mine work for female employees. Dozens of countries have similar restrictions. The rule has a protective purpose: women face unique risks in mines (O. S. Mokwena et al. Safety 12, 1; 2026). However, it does not distinguish between repeated shifts and a brief, supervised visit to calibrate a sensor or inspect a monitoring system. Resolving that tension requires regulatory reform. The timing matters. Modern mining encompasses much more than excavation. Researchers install and test sensors, analyse seismic signals, model ventilation, supervise autonomous equipment, examine cores, operate remote-control systems and plan ecological restoration. Many of these tasks take place entirely on the surface. Others might require limited underground access. The risks are not identical, so the rules should not be either. I am calling for a task-based system with three pathways. Demand for lithium is surging: here’s how to make mining more sustainable Long-duration, high-exposure production work should be subject to the strictest statutory protections. No employer should use inclusion as an excuse to weaken safety requirements, reduce staffing or pressure anyone to accept risks. Brief visits for research and education, however, should have a lawful pathway. Entry should depend on a site-specific risk assessment, mandatory training, correctly fitted protective equipment, strict time limits, real-time tracking, supervision and an emergency plan. Participation must be voluntary. When these safeguards cannot be guaranteed, or when the same objective can be achieved from the surface, underground entry should not occur. Candidates for surface-based roles should be assessed on the basis of competence, not underground-access eligibility rules from a different era.