Fair Jewellery Action

by Greg Valerio

Co-funded by Both Ends (Netherlands) and The CRED Foundation’s Fair Jewellery Action Programme (UK), The Golden Opportunity explores some of the historical relationships between large scale mining and small scale mining in public policy. Steve Tibbet, the author argues that the macro economic policy narrative that has been so vociferously implemented on behalf of Large Scale mining companies in the name of the prospering developing countries’ social and environmental well being, is misplaced and has not yet delivered on the promises made to developing nations by multi lateral agencies like the World Bank.
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Tags: Announcements, CSR, Editorial, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Fair Trade Jewelry, Gold, Green Wash, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Social Initiatives, Spin, Transparency, Trends by Greg Valerio
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Press Release

16^th August Union Declaration of Intent

The 16^th August Union demands that all Greenlanders have rights to a fair share of Greenland Ruby.

Specific Demands:

1. Restoration of the rights in Article 32
2. Restoration of the rights in the “One Handful” rule
3. Cease and desist all legal harassment of ruby miners
4. Due process for ruby miners permits and licenses
5. New ASM law written by neutral international party
6. Guaranteed rights to free and fair trade
7. Guaranteed rights to international participation

Situation Briefing
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Tags: Announcements, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency, Trends by Niels Madsen
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Press Release

Inuit Small Scale Miners Unite With International Community of Ethical Jewelers and call for a boycott of the “Artic-Apartheid” Ruby

Nuuk, Greenland (PRWEB) March 5, 2010 — Niels Madsen, a small scale mining activist and one of the founders of the 16th August Union, a Greenlandic association of small scale miners, has issued a call to the international community to block the Greenland Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum’s (BMP) continuing attempt to disenfranchise Greenlanders from their mineral resources.

(Niels Madsen)

The BMP has recently revoked communal ownership of the land and its resources, which were formerly guaranteed under Article 32 of the Greenlandic Constitution. On March 8th, Greenland’s Manager of the BMP, Jorn Skov Nielsen will present in Toronto to the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada with the clear aim of offering Greenland’s vast mineral wealth to large scale mining companies.

“Any company that collaborates with the BMP is not only in violation of the UN Declaration of Indigenous Rights,” said Madsen, “they are also supporting what has clearly become an apartheid system.”

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Tags: Announcements, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency by Niels Madsen
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Introduction:

We now return to Greenland, to learn of the latest event from Niels Madsen, who continues to struggle to maintain right to collect rubies.

(Niels Madsen)

After the home rule government came into power last June 21st, there was some optimism that small scale mining might be supported in Greenland. Fair trade jewelry activist and staff writer, Greg Valerio, attended early meetings between the 16th August Union and Greenland’s Bureau of Mining and Petroleum (BMP) reported the change with some optimism, and a “spirit of good faith.” Now, as Madsen states, Greenland will have to continue to struggle to maintain even minimal rights, stating:

“The way I see it, the self rule government is taking ALL rights from the indigenous population.”

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Tags: Editorial, Ethics, Fair Trade Gems, Greenland Rubies, Interviews, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency by Marc Choyt
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Introduction:

We now return back to Greenland, where the Inuits represented by the 16th August Union, continue in their negotiations with the Bureau of Mining and Petroleum (BMP). Despite the advent of the new home rule government, and the optimism presented in early posts, The BMP continue to deny Inuit small scale mining their right as indigenous people, under Article 32 of their Constitution. Until the discovery of valuable ruby by the Canadian mining company, True North Gems (TNG), Inuit were able to freely collect and sell stones from their ancestral land, which is communally owned.
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Tags: Announcements, Editorial, Ethics, Fair Trade Gems, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Transparency by Greg Valerio
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Introduction: Greg Valerio, a prominent activist in the fair trade jewelry movement, has officially resigned from his company. Freed from the business he founded, he intends to focus on the fair trade jewelry issues exclusively. See his resignation letter below. Greg is also a staff writer for fairjewelry.org.

~ Marc Choyt, Publisher

I am writing to announce that as of the 30th September I will no longer be a Director of CRED, the fair trade jewellery company that I founded in 1996. I have had a fantastic 13 years pioneering in the for-profit sector of the fair trade market in jewellery and against all odds as a company CRED has proved that physical traceability in the jewellery sector is possible, if not without its considerable challenges.

As the fair trade jewellery concept and movement has grown and developed particularly over the last 5 years I have been privileged enough to work with some amazing small scale mining communities from the mountains of Bolivia, jungles of Colombia and polar regions of Greenland. All of these communities, against the odds, have battled and in the case of my friends in Greenland continue to battle against the odds to prove that fair trade certifiable and traceable metals and stones is and are possible. The dignity of our collective work is captured in the concept of fair trade for the small scale miners who will directly benefit from it and the consumers who will wear our products with pride.

Yet there is still much to do. Therefore, I have taken the decision to remove myself from the commercial sector so I can dedicate myself, alongside my friends in the Alliance for Responsible Mining and the Fairtrade Movement to campaign and speak for the transformation of the jewellery sector through traceable fair trade certified metals and gemstones. Fair trade is owned by everyone and no one company can own it, whether in the gold, diamond or gemstone market. In short, I am going back to my roots of campaigning and advocating for human rights, indigenous rights and environmental justice.

I leave CRED in a strong state with an excellent jewellery offer, a new and rapidly growing ethical and fair trade bullion business, an excellent dynamic team and an exciting future and my prayers are for their success. They are the world’s finest fair trade fine jewellers and I am very proud of what we have achieved together.

Long may the winds of change blow strong.

Greg Valerio

Please support the small-scale miners of Greenland in their fight for the re-legalisation of small scale mining in Greenland (recently banned under Danish law) and their desire to sell ruby to the international community by signing the online petition at www.freegreenlandruby.com

Tags: Announcements, Environment, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Jewelry, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Transparency by Greg Valerio
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Publisher’s Note:

Rubyfair, a mining project involving fair trade rubies from Tanzania has been operating for about a year now, supplying jewelers primarily in the UK. My company, Reflective Images, has just recently become the sales agent for US jewelers and consumers interested in these stones. Those interested in these rubies can contact me directly
~ Marc Choyt, Publisher

The Ruby Fair Story

(A Typical Untreated RubyFair Gem)

Rubyfair (www.rubyfair.com) was founded in 2008 by the international photo journalist Gary Roberts and Pete Brown. Gary and Pete were friends at Leads University in the UK, where they met while studying zoology. Together, they joined Tanzanian friend, Vedasto Kujwalire, to form a partnership.
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Tags: Announcements, Ethical Jewelry, Fair Trade, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Social Initiatives, Transparency, Wal-Mart 'Love Earth' by admin
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GIA Publishes Abstract Of The Greenland Ruby

As part of our ongoing coverage of Greenland ruby and related issues, here’s a Pdf link for a technical article from the GIA in Bangkok on the Greenland Ruby.

Ruby and Pink Sapphire from Aappaluttoq, Greenland; Status of On-Going Research, GIA Lab, Bankok

Greenland Ruby in a locket by Reflective Images

Greenland Ruby in a ring by Reflective Images

Tags: Announcements, Greenland Rubies, Rad Transparency, Rubies, Trends by Marc Choyt
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Ethically sourced gems involve developing an entirely new approach to the supply chain that, in principal, is similar to the slow food, organics movement. Just as people want the link between farm to table, those developing a fair trade gemstone product are looking for the mine to market custody chain.

Though some gemstones, particularly diamonds, are sourced from large, established mines, most other gemstones come from between fifteen and twenty million small scale miners who support over one hundred million people, world wide.
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Tags: CSR, Environment, Ethical Jewelry, Ethics, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Mining, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Transparency, Trends by Marc Choyt
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In this, the third of the three posts, Greg describes the astonishing experience of discovering ruby in Greenland.

~ Marc Choyt, publisher

Part of the allure of Greenland’s majestic mountain scenery is its vast richness and beauty. I cannot begin to describe the sense of sheer exhilaration I felt climbing Ruby mountain above the Greenlandic sea.

Ruby Mountain stretches up to breathtaking snow capped heights and plunges down into the depths of crystal clear waters that are fueled by 50,000-year old glaciers. The fjord sculpts the island. Sea trout, seal and whale swim in playgrounds of refracting azure blue.
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Tags: Editorial, Ethical Jewelry, Fair Trade Gems, Greenland Rubies, Rad Transparency, Responsible Mining, Rubies, Transparency by Greg Valerio
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