he CI follows the developments of major regulations and policies affecting cobalt and cobalt substances, mainly in the areas of Environment, Health & Safety, Sustainability and International Trade.

The CI keeps its members abreast of the most relevant developments of these policies and regulations. It also provides general information and scientific data on cobalt and cobalt substances where and when required to support regulators and other stakeholders in making informed decisions on the benefits against the risks of the use of cobalt substances.

It is important to balance the hazard, the intrinsic properties of a substance, against actual exposure to substances, so that effective actions can be taken to control the risk. If exposure is properly controlled, then hazardous substances can be used safely without harm to human health or the environment.

The CI also provides information on the sustainability of production of cobalt to the supply chain, through Life Cycle Assessments (LCA).

The CI is an active participant in the activities of several industry associations which play an advocacy role on issues of strategic importance to the metals industry at global level such as the International Council of Mining and Metals, at regional level such as Eurometaux, the Critical Raw Materials Alliance and the North American Metals Council, or at national level such as the Non-Ferrous Alliance in the UK. It also participates in many other informal groups which lead specific initiatives (e.g. the Cross-Industry Initiative) and has many interactions with other industry, professional or civil society stakeholder groups.

The main regulations affecting cobalt and its substances are from the major jurisdictions such as the European Union, the USA, Canada, Japan or Australia which are widely followed internationally. New legislation has emerged from other regions, particularly in Asia (Korea, China, Taiwan), the Middle East (Turkey), and Latin America (Brazil).