Vince Beiser (Spencer Lowell)

A book from an award-winning journalist about the paradox that underlies the future of clean energy has won the $70,000 Balsillie Prize for Public Policy.

Vince Beiser’s Power Metal: The Race for the Resources That Will Shape the Future (Riverhead Books/Penguin Random House) was named the winner of the annual prize at a private dinner in Toronto on Nov. 25.

Vancouver-based Beiser was one of four authors shortlisted for this year’s prize. Administered by the Writers’ Trust of Canada, the annual prize, now in its fifth year, recognizes nonfiction books that further policy discussions on social, political, economic, and cultural topics.

In their citation, the jury wrote that Beiser’s book “rests on an inescapable paradox: that the most viable path to combating and solving climate change depends on extracting critical minerals from the warming planet itself.”

The jury, comprised of doctor and author Samantha Nutt, policy expert Taki Sarantakis, and digital strategist Scott Young, chose this year’s finalists from 58 titles submitted by 35 Canadian publishing imprints.

“As Canada looks to maximize its geological endowment amidst an increasingly uncertain geopolitical landscape, this book raises essential considerations and uncomfortable questions for policymakers and citizens alike,” they wrote of Power Metal. “It invites them to walk a tightrope — balancing the need to minimize our dependencies and reduce our environmental footprint, while still achieving our green goals.”

To mark the prize’s anniversary, the purse was increased, with the winner receiving $10,000 more than in previous years. Finalists each receive $7,500, up from $5,000 in previous years.