I follow the issue fairly closely and might throw in a consideration or two. Short one first. Lithium is an expensive, environmental disaster with a hugely psychoactive element that's gonna get in the water supply, for better or worse. Use sodium instead.

On a note more relevant to what you said for long term solutions, I suggest looking for biological solutions because in the long run the leave no residue. We tend to be obsessed with mechanical solutions which are almost certain lo leave something behind, even with good recycling. Biological solutions will not. Compare petro-plastics to bio-plastics or styrene foam to fungal packing. It goes a lot further and we should shift our biases towards bio-solutions.