Fair Trade Jewelry

Introduction:

Susan Kingsley is a co-founder of Ethical Metalsmiths. This article first appeared in the Denver Post on September 9th, 2008. Thanks to Susan for permission to post her piece on fairjewelry.org. ~Marc Choyt, Publisher

As jewelers and metalsmiths, we depend on the mining industry to supply the gold and other precious metals we use in our work.

Not only is jewelry-making our livelihood, we love our craft and care deeply about where the metals and gems we use come from and how they are mined. A gift of jewelry, especially gold, symbolizes, love, affection, and respect. No one wants to buy “dirty gold” or “blood diamonds,” nor do we want to use them.

At the Denver Gold Forum recently, market events and future gold prospects dominate discussion. What isn’t on the agenda, but should be, is acknowledgment of the serious pollution and human rights concerns that plague the industry worldwide and meaningful discussion about how and when the industry will begin to produce gold more responsibly.

More than 80 percent of U.S. gold consumption is for jewelry. Today’s consumers expect the market to give them choices, and increasingly they look for ethically made products, from fair-trade coffee to organic produce and safe plastic.

That’s why 34 leading jewelry retailers, ranging from Tiffany & Co. to Helzberg Diamonds, and hundreds of small-scale jewelers and metalsmiths—including me—have called on the mining industry to produce gold and other metals in more responsible ways.

We have endorsed a set of environmental and social principles, called the “Golden Rules” for more responsible mining. This list includes respecting human rights and workers’ rights, keeping mines out of wildlife habitat and natural reserves, and respecting local communities’ rights when it comes to deciding where to build mines.

These jewelry retailers and metalsmiths together comprise roughly 25 percent of the U.S. jewelry market. We have pledged to buy gold from mines that meet these criteria as soon as it becomes available.

Which it isn’t. While some mining companies assert environmental credentials, there is as of yet, no independent, third-party verification process to objectively evaluate which mines abide by the Golden Rules test and which do not. Without such a process, consumers cannot distinguish between products and won’t know whose claims to believe.

While it’s true that some mining costs have increased - we all feel the pinch of higher fuel costs - the industry is enjoying a major boom. Record profits and sky-high metals prices could give companies the room to guarantee that mines are planned and conducted responsibly. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be the case.

In some places, massive new mines are being forced on local communities that do not want them because of potential harm to critical water supplies and disruption of local economies that depend on healthy fisheries, farmland, or outdoor recreation and tourism.

For example, Anglo American and Northern Dynasty Minerals, are pushing to build a massive gold and copper mine at the headwaters of Bristol Bay, Alaska, home to the world’s most productive wild salmon fishery despite overwhelming opposition from local residents.

Water pollution also continues to be a problem. Denver-based Newmont plans to discharge mine waste into lakes in Canada. Similarly, Freeport McMoran continues to dump toxic waste into the Ajkwa River at the Grasberg Mine in Papua New Guinea.

Some mining companies continue to operate in military conflict zones where human rights abuses have been reported. And here at home, metal mining remains the country’s leading toxic polluter, according to the EPA.

We believe the mining industry can and must do better.

Responsible companies can begin by supporting independently verified standards for responsible mining and backing meaningful reform of the badly outdated 1872 Mining Law that allows water pollution and giveaways of public land and minerals throughout the West.

Metalsmiths, jewelers and consumers are demanding that mining companies leave dirty gold to the dustbin of history. Everyone stands to benefit from cleaner, greener, more responsibly mined gold. What is the mining industry waiting for?

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Below you can read a letter written by the 16th August Union in response to Greenland’s Bureau of Mining and Petroleum’s proposed changes to the mining law.

Before valuable rubies were documented, Inuits and Native Greenladers were able to mine and sell their gemstones freely, supported by the government.

Once valuable rubies were documented, local Greenlanders have been systematically disenfranchised from their own mineral rights. At present, they cannot sell their rubies.

This letter details the onerous behavior of the colonial government toward those Inuits seeking to maintain their rights to mine rubies.

Read The Letter (Adobe Reader - 58.4K)

Inga B. Egede, leader of the 16th August Union, presents the document to a Greenland government official.” (photo courtesy, N. Madsen)

Here is the Letter as Plain Text: [Read more →]

Tags: CSR, Environment, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Green Issues, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency by Marc Choyt
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Introduction:

When I visited England recently, I was impressed to find fair trade literature in churches. Much of this was the work of CAFOD, which stands for The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, a UK based relief agency that works in over sixty countries world wide.

This letter, sent on September 29th, 2008, clearly and concisely outlines CAFOD’s broad concerns over Wal-Mart’s new jewelry line.

This is the fourth of a series of posts on Wal-Mart. See the others in the Wal-Mart category to the right.

Thanks to Sarah Barnett, Policy Researcher for CAFOD, for permission to post.

~Marc Choyt, Publisher

READ THE LETTER (Adobe pdf 859.4K)

Get Adobe Reader

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Introduction:

Steve was instrumental in the Madison Dialogue, an initiative in the jewelry sector which has been critical in creating a frame work for a higher level of ethics. I interviewed him last week and learned that his new position will allow him to have even greater freedom to work toward new solutions from the radical center. He will still be involved in issues in the jewelery sector. The interview will be published in the future.
~Marc Choyt, Publisher

On September 30, Stephen D’Esposito stepped down as President and CEO of Earthworks, a position he has held for ten years. Steve has accepted a new appointment as President of Resolve, where he will launch a new initiative, the Earth-Solutions Center. Earthworks will continue to build on its 20-year track record of protecting communities and the environment by reforming the mining and energy industries through legislative, markets and corporate campaigns.

Under Steve’s leadership, Earthworks, formerly called the Mineral Policy Center, promoted reform of the 1872 Mining Law and assisted communities across the West, and around the world, in dealing with the environmental, economic, and social effects of mining. During this time, Earthworks established the “No Dirty Gold” campaign, expanded its mission to address international issues, and merged with the Oil and Gas Accountability Project. Recently, the organization launched its “No Dirty Energy” campaign to further increase its reach and impact. A special hallmark of Earthworks’ activities during Steve’s tenure was engagement with corporate leaders to advance responsible mining and oil and gas development practices.

“This transition is bittersweet, but Earthworks is a strong and vibrant organization with an important mission,” said Steve D’Esposito. “My move to Resolve and the launch of the Earth-Solutions Center will create an unparalleled opportunity to work with leaders from all sectors, including my colleagues at Earthworks, to help facilitate and shape solutions to natural resource and public health challenges, particularly those in the extractive sector.”

“Steve’s strategic sense, innovative approaches and ability to think outside the box have enabled Earthworks to be an extremely effective organization,” said Karin Sheldon, Board Chair of Earthworks. “We are sorry to lose Steve at Earthworks, but we look forward to continuing to collaborate with him at the Solutions Center.”

The Earthworks board, led by Karin Sheldon, has already begun a search for an Executive Director. In the interim, Earthworks will be managed by Payal Sampat (International Campaign Director) and Kimberlee Dinn (Operations Director), with support from the Earthworks Board of Directors.

Contact:

Payal Sampat, 202-887-1872×210;

Kimberlee Din, 202-887-1872×204

Earthworks is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting communities and the environment from the destructive impacts of mineral development, in the U.S. and worldwide.

Resolve is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the effective use of consensus building in public decision-making .

EARTHWORKS
1612 K ST. N.W. / SUITE 808 / WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
P 202 887 1872
F 202 887 1875
WWW.EARTHWORKSACTION.ORG

Tags: CSR, Environment, Fair Trade, Gold, Green Issues, Madison Dialogue, Mining, Transparency by admin
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Introduction:

Oro Verde is one of the pioneers of the movement to create ethically sourced jewelry. They have developed a certification system for ecologically responsible, artisanal mined gold.

Now their efforts have drawn international attention, as they are a finalist in a global competition sponsored by BBC. Read their press release below, and more importantly, be sure and vote for them at this link: http://www.theworldchallenge.co.uk/html/finalists_08.html

~Marc Choyt, Publisher, Fairjewelry.org

Oro Verde®, a Colombian producer’s programme for artisanal gold mining, has been selected as one of the 12 finalists in World Challenge 2008.

World Challenge is a global competition organized by BBC World News, Newsweek and Shell. It rewards projects and small businesses from around the world that have shown enterprise and innovation at a grass roots level.

Oro Verde®from Choco, Colombia has been selected as a finalist among more than 700 initiatives this year.

Oro Verde® is a unique initiative in the world that developed a bottom-up certification system for environmentally responsible practices for artisanal gold mining as a strategy to protect one of the most biodiverse ecosystems of the planet -the Choco Bioregion in Colombia, and to recognize the social and cultural heritage of the ancestral communities that inhabit the region. We invite you to learn about us at www.greengold-oroverde.org.

Oro Verde® metals are sold in green market niches where customers are willing to pay a premium over the international price used to protect one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots and local livelihoods. Profits are reinvested in local development projects.

Online voting to select the winner project started on October 1st and closes on November 21st at the following site:

http://www.theworldchallenge.co.uk/html/finalists_08.html

The experience of Oro Verde® as a sustainable gold mining programme has contributed to bring change in the industry and people today believe in a different way to become involved with the development of artisanal mining communities. Oro Verde® in Colombia is a great example of what can be done for the 13 million small-scale miners around the world. That is why we would love to receive your votes!

Thank you in advance!

Sandra Hernández G.
Marketing & Commercial Division
Amigos del Choco Foundation - Oro Verde® Program
Tel: + 57 4 3330188
E-mail: cgg at greengold-oroverde.org
Colombia

Tags: Best Practices, CSR, Environment, Fair Trade, Gold, Green Issues, Mining, Spin, Transparency by Marc Choyt
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Introduction:

This article conveys the difficult issues involved in a large retailer like Wal-Mart admirably attempting to gain full custody of their supply chain. The objection that many have toward this initiative are not so much in the sourcing, but the marketing of the product, which this article, it should be noted, spaciously spins favorably by talking about Michael Kowalski, CEO of Tiffany, as someone who “hikes” and is pro-environment. **A photo of the “guilt free” gold is also provided. **

Tiffany is sourcing from some of the same places that Wal-Mart does, but they are wise enough not to market it as earth friendly. These mines are massively destructive to the environment (see previous posts on Wal-Mart)
Wal-Mart’s “Love Earth” Brand Draws Early Fire
Complaints Filed Against Wal-Mart For False Green Jewelry Claims
~ Marc Choyt, Publisher

This is the third of a series of posts on Wal-Mart. See the others in the Wal-Mart category to the right.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/03/news/companies/gunther_gold.fortune/

Tags: CSR, Environment, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Jewelry, Gold, Green Issues, Mining, Spin, Transparency, Wal-Mart 'Love Earth' by Marc Choyt
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This is a story, dated from last January, that was recently sent to me. It shows the growing international interest in no dirty gold.

Key quotes: “The company had met all legal, technical and environmental obligations required during the permitting process and had received a positive recommendation from the CODERST, a government-appointed committee designed to review such projects.”

Sarkozy’s spokesman David Martinon said the president wanted “gold mining compatible with the preservation of Guiana’s rich biodiversity.”

Here’s the link:

Canadian gold firm mulls ‘options’ after France denies permit

Tags: Gold, Mining, Transparency by Marc Choyt
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by Niels Madsen,
Nuuk, Greenland
26 September 2008

Friday, 26 September 2008, was a cold, gray, windy day in Nuuk, the capitol of Greenland. There was already one protest march brewing outside the Parliament. Later that day group would be protesting the nomination of Mr. Per Berthelsen as the new Minister of Finance. Berthelsen had been in and out of all three (3) of Greenland’s major political parties and he was trusted by few. He had become notorious for suppressing blogger’s comments, posting comments about his “old school master” style, and desire to cling to office.

Against the heated background of that political turmoil, another hardy group of Greenlanders arrived at the very same gates of government, this team to demand their rights to ruby and to protest the egregious actions of the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum (BMP) who were desecrating those rights held sacred in custom and guaranteed by law.

With the threat of snow in the air, a crowd of men, women and their children gathered outside the offices of the BMP, marched past the Mayor’s window and made their stand and gave their speeches at the doors of Parliament. At that very moment, the vote on the new Minister of Finance was roaring like a fire inside, important to everyone on the island because the Minister of Finance sits among others on the “Joint Committee” for the Democrat party and must give up his seats if he is gong to be the finance minister for the Siumut party.

The committee is the joint Danish and Greenlandic political delegation that will itemize those important issues requiring resolution before the “self-governing” phase of Greenland’s drive towards independence from colonial Denmark starts, maybe next year.

This devolution is scheduled to deliver Greenland to full independence by July 2009, and the debate over the island’s natural resources, including ruby and diamond, gold and platinum, as well as oil and gas, has become the battleground of liberty, toward full independence some time in the future.

On that cold, windy Friday in Nuuk, the protest group delivered a petition in support of Greenlander’s rights to ruby, that had been signed by 3,500 people, to Mr. Kim Kielsen, the Minister of Mines and Energy. As a mark of the importance of the issue, Kim Kielsen was kind enough to show up, even though he was on sick leave due to a concussion. More actions are planned later.

Tags: Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency by Niels Madsen
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*Key Point*: “The object of the petition is to secure artisan mining rights for Greenlanders, and True North Gems is not in any way, the target of the campaign.”

Statement from the 16th August Union.

I am writing on behalf of the 16th August Union that had to set itself up in order to protect its current rights to earn a living from traditional small scale mining activities.

Firstly it needs to be stated clearly and unequivocally that TNG are not in any way, the target of the The Greenland Ruby Campaign.

Below is the entire transcript that over 3500 Greenlandic Residents have to date signed and another 1000 from the international community have kindly supported. This will clearly demonstrate TNG are not the focus of this campaign.

“16th August Union

Petition

In the summer month of August 2007, five local gemstone collectors on Greenland were forced to abandon their ruby prospecting camp in the field, by the Greenland Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum (BMP) and the Greenland Police, and banned from all collection and trade in all of Greenland.

The authorities denied the five local people permission to continue practicing their historical and tradtional rights of collecting the stones out in nature as their ancestors have done through generations, and centuries.

Since then members of the 16th August Union have had their stones confiscated from them by the BMP and have been effectively criminalized and prevented from earning an honest living through collecting and jewellery activities.

As a union we believe this criminalization, obstruction and breach on our historical and traditional right to collect rocks is an unconstitutional, abuse of power on behalf of the authorities.

We therefore respectfully request that everybody support our petition on behalf of the whole population of Greenland to enshrine our rights in a clear, transparent law that secures the following simple idea.

“The fundamental rights for indigenous and native Greenlanders under Section 32 of the current Constitution to be able to collect, transform, commercialize and export all natural minerals of any sort. Of course except oil gas, radioactive elements and areas with monopoly.”

(The petition is both on the internet and in a physical paper edition, please be aware to only sign one of them)

End Petition

As a foreign mining company operating in Greenland, TNG is a part of the emerging history that will be recorded as The Greenland Ruby, but are not central to the current issues faced by native peoples and Greenlandic people as they fight to assert their constitutional rights and to prevent the erosion of the ancient and traditional way of life.

We welcome Robert Boyd’s support of native rights, and these rights include access to mineral wealth on the Island of Greenland and the right to earn a living from this activity. These rights are enshrined under article 32 of the Mineral code and his support is valued in this matter.

The Bureau for Minerals and Petroleum (BMP) are the body within Greenland acting on behalf of the Greenland Home Rule Government and it is their actions in reference to article 32 of the minerals act that has so inflamed the situation. Their actions in preventing Inuit and Greenlanders from earning an honest living from harvesting rubies and other precious gemstones is what has created the problem.

They are on record as saying Inuit and Greenlanders can have semi precious stones but not the precious ones like Ruby, Sapphire and Diamonds. Naturally this form of economic discrimination is indefensible. No one in the international gemstone community would recognize such distinction.

Below is the full transcript of Section 32 so that we can be clear that there is nothing in the current law that prevents the many traditional small scale miners from making an honest living from such activity.

*Act on Mineral Resources in Greenland.*

*(The mineral resources act)*

Section 32.

/The resident population of Greenland may as hitherto collect and extract mineral resources without this requiring a licence under this Act./

Subsection 2.
/ /
/The right under subsection 1 to collect and extract mineral resources can, however, only be exercised with respect of exclusive licenses for exploitation of mineral resources granted to others under this Act./

Subsection 3.
/ /
/Within the precincts of a municipality the local council may lay down detailed rules on the exercise of the rights under subsection 1 to collect and extract mineral resources”./

End Section 32.

In fact the BMP encouraged the prospecting, exporting and selling of Ruby rough by the residents of Greenland by sponsoring the Greenland Stone club to attend the Tuscon Fair a few years ago.

Currently the 16th August Union are preparing a full response to the proposal’s that have been put forward by the BMP. The Union (not a trade union) have been very diligent in collecting and filing documentation and evidences to support their claims, but as you will be aware, not having the wealth and resources that corporate bodies and governments do, it takes time to make a formal response in a culturally appropriate way to people who do not understand or in some cases even recognize that differences of world view and culture exist.

Therefore, I would kindly request that anyone concerned about this situation visit www.fairjewelry.org and support the 16th August Union petition by following the link at the top of the page. We wish to openly encourage a transparent, intelligent and vigorous debate about this issue as it is an issue of public policy and native rights.

We would ask that issue of personal difference between individuals and companies not be brought into a debate that transcends personal acrimony and is foundational to the many indigenous communities around the world who face similar marginalization from their very land they love and respect.

We all look forward to the day when any of us can buy a stone from a traditional miner in Greenland and thereby bring long term sustainable benefits to all our economies.

Many thanks,

Greg Valerio
(With permission and on behalf of the 16th August Union.)

Tags: Best Practices, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Fair Trade Jewelry, Greenland Rubies, Mining, Rubies, Transparency by Greg Valerio
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Editorial by Marc Choyt, Publisher, Fairjewelry.org

Mining companies have colluded with governments to undermine the rights of indigenous small miners for hundreds of years. Typically, “the law” is used as their shield and excuse. Even in the developed world, mining companies and lobbyists collude with officials to write the laws that support their profit driven objectives.

Andrew Lee Smith, CEO of True North Gems, Inc., (TNG) wants his company to be noted as exemplary in their pursuit of Greenland ruby and, in his interview, he references people in the sector who are highly regarded for their fair trade gem practices.

Yet going along with a law when a law is ambiguous or unethical is no way for a modern company to behave, especially one that believes: “The days of colonialist approach to mining are an anachronism.”

At present, for example, Greenland’s Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum (BMP), violating established Greenlandic law as well as ancient Inuit tradition, has decided that Native Greenlanders can only mine “semi-precious” gems, but this distinction between precious and semiprecious has no legal validity in the international gem trade. True North needs to take a clear, public stance against this lie, which clearly plays into their hands since they are allowed to mine so-called “precious” Greenland rubies.

(With the political assassination of Burmese Rubies in the West, Rubies from Greenland will be eagerly sought out by the lucrative American and European markets)

True North also has made many serious cultural and political errors, particularly for a company that is branding itself as taking the high road. In his interview, Smith seemed not to have any sense of the 16 August Union’s popular support in Greenland and internationally. I also came across repeated accounts of comments made by True North’s employees that were so deeply racist that that no one would go on record for fear of being sued. In the field last summer, TNG’s project manager, according to witnesses, screamed in the faces of native Greenlanders in the 16 August Union: “This is WAR!”

Even now, TNG continues a marketing campaign, timed perfectly with the beginning of the Burmese ruby boycott, in which it is attempting to portray its Greenland ruby as “fair trade” and “conflict free.” To quote National Jeweler, which talks about TNG opening in context to the Burmese ruby ban: “The plan is to offer rubies that are conflict-free and fair trade, in sizes that range from melee up to as much as five carats.”

Teresa Novellino, Executive Editor of National Jeweler, who wrote this article, got this information from the marketing firm TNG hired to tell their side of the story.

The claim to be fair trade and conflict free in context to the Greenland ruby is disingenuous and deceitful. It portrays current events inaccurately and undermines legitimate attempts of others within the jewelry sector including my own, to create real fair trade standards for the jewelry sector.

Yet at this juncture, casting blame is probably a futile exercise. Greenlanders are going to get their rights to mine their Greenland ruby, and the longer the local government delays, the stronger their movement will grow. To some degree, True North has been a catalyst in creating a strong movement in support of independence from Denmark, which is due to take place on June 29st, 2009.

Yet, like Greg Valerio, of Cred Jewellery, I believe that True North is still sitting on the fence—an electric fence, about to get switched on. Their arctic rubies have been labeled as “apartheid rubies” by Niels Madsen, an emerging leader in the local community.

True North now has an opportunity that would set precedent for the rest of the jewelry sector. They should choose to do the right thing. As a jewelry manufacturer myself, I can attest to the fact that the sector as a whole lives in a shroud of massive denial of its atrocities. For example, not one diamond dealer has ever been held accountable for the purchasing of blood diamonds resulting in the death of nearly four million Africans. Dirty gold from untraceable sources continues to be used to make contaminated jewelry on a massive scale.

What is most needed to restore human dignity is truth and reconciliation.

True North Gems can begin by publicly apologizing to the 16 August Union and to all the good people of Greenland. Blandly mouthing “boiler-plate” key words, lifted from marketing studies is just not good enough. Instead, TNG should back Greenland’s artisanal gemstone miners, reaching from mine to market though generous beneficiation grants, local training, and local hiring.

TNG’s success in their Greenland ruby project can be best assured by tying their own fate to that of the artisinal miners, assuring the viability of their economic activity. This cost of this type of investment, creating a win/win scenario, is minute compared to its potential return. .

Just as the days of colonialist approach is over, so too are the days of the ignorant Native without resources.

Like their Native brothers and sisters in the Northwest Territory who have been able to stand up to large scale diamond mining, the Inuit have learned from history and have powerful allies.

There are plenty of rubies in Greenland—enough for everyone. A small dose of corporate humility is a small price to pay for defending TNG’s shareholders who are rightfully concerned about a company and brand that is in danger of being permanently soiled.

Tags: Best Practices, CSR, Diamonds, Environment, Fair Trade, Fair Trade Gems, Green Issues, Greenland Rubies, Jewelry Manufacturing, Madison Dialogue, Mining, Rubies, Spin, Transparency by Marc Choyt
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