Fair Trade Jewelry

The pioneering UK fair trade jewellery company has launched an exciting new venture called CRED Sources (www.credsources.com). This new business represents a significant breakthrough in the transparency and traceability of the gold supply chain.

Working with the international fair trade movement, CRED Sources will provide fine gold grain, 18ct yellow and white gold in sheet and wire format to the jewellery trade.

Christian Cheesman, CRED’s Business Director says, “We are very excited about this development and the opportunities it presents to the trade and the consumer. We really want the small jewellers, goldsmiths and designer makers to have access to the remarkable developments taking place through the fair trade movement and the social, environmental and transparency revolution that is taking place within our industry”.
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Tags: Announcements, Best Practices, CSR, Diamonds, Environment, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade Jewelry, Gold, Green Issues, Manufacturing, Mining, Platinum, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Transparency, Trends by Greg Valerio
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Introduction:

What is an ethically sourced gemstone and who supplies them? While Columbia Gemhouse is widely known, other suppliers are coming on line as well, including the “Open Source” Platform developed by Mike Angenent.

(This is the second of two articles that explore new ethical sources for colored gemstones that are coming into the market.)

To view the information on Open Source, here’s a PDF.

~ Marc Choyt, Publisher, Fairjewelry.org.
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Tags: Announcements, Diamonds, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Fair Trade Jewelry, Green Issues, Interviews, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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Introduction:

Guy Clutterbuck, who was recently featured in the GIA Winter Loop Magazine, has been sourcing gemstones in Africa and around the world for decades.

His relationships with small scale miners, based on trust, is highly unusual and stands in contrast to the generally toxic relationship between the small scale miners and their typical buyer.
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Tags: Diamonds, Environment, Ethics, Fair Trade Gems, Interviews, Rad Transparency, Transparency by Marc Choyt
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An article posted on DTB Online, written by Chaim Even-Zohar reports that Ian Smillie is quitting Partnership Africa Canada and departing from Kimberley’s governing body. No one is more respected in ethical diamond sourcing issues than Ian Smillie. His departure is a major blow to the legitimacy of the Kimberley Process Certification. [Read more →]

Tags: Announcements, Diamonds, Editorial, Environment, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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Introduction:

PT Kapitmas (www.kapitmas.com) was the first company outside of the US to be a Harmony Metal Hoover and Strong distributor. I have worked with this company for ten years and visited their plant on numerous occasions.

Here, the Director of the Company, Ben Morice, originally from New Zealand, describes his operations.

~ Marc Choyt, Publisher
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Tags: Best Practices, CSR, Diamonds, Environment, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Jewelry, Green Issues, Interviews, Manufacturing, Rad Transparency, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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JCK Las Vegas Jewelry Show – Monday, June 1st, 2009

April 28, 2009, Las Vegas –

The annual Rapaport Fair Trade Jewelry Conference will be held Monday, June 1, 2009 at the JCK Las Vegas Jewelry Show. Registration is free and open to all.

The annual Rapaport Fair Trade Jewelry Conference presents an opportunity for members of the jewelry trade, development NGO’s and government agencies to participate in open discussions and learn how they can participate in the development of Fair Trade Jewelry. Hear from members of the jewelry industry who are manufacturing and selling Fair Trade / Development jewelry; the NGO’s working to establish definitions and guidelines for Fair Trade; and representatives of African development communities.

“Fair Trade Jewelry offers an unprecedented opportunity for the jewelry industry to play a vital role in the sustainable economic development of impoverished and disadvantaged sectors of the jewelry trade. We can and must make a difference in the lives of millions of artisanal diggers who mine our precious metals and gems yet live in abject poverty,” said Martin Rapaport, Chairman of the Rapaport Group.

The Rapaport Fair Trade Jewelry Conference
Monday, June 1, 2009 – 1:00 – 4:30 pm
Venetian Hotel – Level 3 – San Polo Ballroom

To Register:
email conference@rapaport.com or telephone +1-702-893-9400.

Participants are advised to reserve space for the Rapaport Breakfast as it fills up early.

For additional information:
Sherri Hendricks, sherri@rapaport.com +1-702-893-9400

Lauren Friedman, lauren@rapaport.com +1-347-756-4273

Rapaport Booths at the JCK Show: upstairs-3080, downstairs-46007

Tags: Announcements, Diamonds, Ethical Jewelry, Fair Trade Jewelry, Rapaport, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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A natural diamond represents a highly symbolic expression of love and commitment. Yet many people are concerned about the history of the diamond trade, and its ties to regional conflicts. People want their diamond not only to be ‘conflict free,’ but also to be worthy of its symbolic value.

Yet complex sourcing issues in the diamond sector fuel misleading terminology in the market place that makes it difficult to know what one is supporting in one’s purchase. For those who are also motivated by ethical concerns, it is best not to get too caught up in the internet marketing of ‘conflict free’ diamonds.

Every diamond sold claims to be ‘conflict free’ and Kimberley Certified, regardless of whether it was sourced ethically or from a mine that has poor human rights and environmental standards.
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Tags: Best Practices, CSR, Diamonds, Editorial, Environment, Ethics, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Social Initiatives, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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This is a revised, considerably shorter version of an earlier story that I wrote last year that traces the history of the Inuit movement to retain their rights to mine their local rubies in Greenland.

This piece was previously published in the Epoch Times

To the Inuit in Greenland, a place where the sun may only rise for a few hours a day, the ruby held the divine flame that never goes out.

Niels Madsen knew where the crystal sparkled out of the earth like red stars in the dark arctic night. This particular location, a peninsula of land between two deep arctic blue lakes, called to him.
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Tags: Diamonds, Editorial, Environment, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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by Meghan Connolly Haupt

Introduction:

“There is no such thing as perfectly clean diamonds – that is to say, having no social or environmental impact.”

Meghan has become a regular contributor to fairjewelry.org. This excellent article is a follow up on the piece I wrote on Kimberley Certification earlier in March.

~ Marc Choyt, Publisher, fairjewelry.org
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Tags: CSR, Diamonds, Editorial, Environment, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade Gems, Fair Trade Jewelry, Green Issues, Green Wash, Manufacturing, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Spin, Transparency, Trends by Meghan Connolly Haupt
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Would you feel good about a wedding ring if it was created by maltreated labor or with materials that trashed the environment? Does your expression of love just extend to your intimate ones; or beyond them to the greater human family? When you purchase jewelry, you have an opportunity to exert your economic power to change the world for the better.

With the recent tragedies of blood diamonds and the ongoing issues of dirty gold, it is easy to conclude that many in the jewelry industry lag far behind other business sectors in terms of environmental and corporate responsibility.
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Tags: Best Practices, CSR, Diamonds, Editorial, Ethical Jewelry, Fair Trade Jewelry, Gold, Green Issues, Mining, Rad Transparency, Social Initiatives, Spin, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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