What if the next stars of recycling were… bacteria?

In Les précieuses minuscules (The Precious Little Ones), a comic book created by Camille Van Belle in collaboration with Éric van Hullebusch, Deputy Director for Knowledge Transfer and International Relations at the Institut de physique du globe de Paris (IPGP), microorganisms take centre stage to reveal their hidden talents: recovering precious and critical metals from electronic waste.

Our smartphones, computers and other everyday devices contain real treasures: gold, copper, lithium, cobalt and many other metals that are essential to modern technology. Yet mining these resources raises major environmental challenges, while vast quantities of electronic devices are discarded every year.

So, instead of digging for gold, why not ask bacteria to lend a tiny helping hand?

This is the idea behind metal bio-recovery, an approach being explored by IPGP scientists. Certain bacteria and microscopic fungi have remarkable natural abilities: they can help dissolve materials, capture metals or even accumulate them inside their cells.

There is just one tiny catch: once these microscopic workers have collected the metals, scientists still need to figure out how to retrieve them! This remains an active area of research.

Combining a fashion show, gold-loving bacteria and accessible scientific explanations, this comic book offers a humorous introduction to a research field that could help develop new, more environmentally friendly recycling methods.

Bio-recovery is not yet a miracle solution, but it reminds us that even the smallest living organisms can have very big ambitions.

Ready to meet the new queens of recycling?

👉 Discover Les précieuses minuscules and explore the fascinating world of these tiny microbes with a real golden touch!