Industrial waste valorization is an important research area in the Laboratory for Strategic Materials, focused on transforming large-volume industrial residues into valuable sources of critical and strategic elements. Our work targets complex by-products from metallurgical and chemical industries that are traditionally landfilled or underutilized, developing extraction and separation pathways that unlock their resource potential. We have investigated the recovery of scandium and rare earth elements (REEs) from bauxite residue, REEs from phosphogypsum, and titanium and niobium from electric arc furnace (EAF) slag using integrated hydrometallurgical and advanced separation approaches. By converting industrial wastes into secondary resources, our research supports waste minimization, value creation, and more sustainable materials supply chains aligned with circular economy principles.