Whole Life Valentine's Day Gift Guide - Your Purchasec Say no to Dirty Gold and the Destruction of Patagonia, Chile

Bestowing your beloved with conflict diamonds and dirty gold is hardly the best way to say “I love you.” Some jewelers are beginning to take notice:

Green Karat: recognizes the damage inflicted on the environment from destructive gold and diamond mining practices, which is why they only use man-made and recycled diamonds and recycled precious metals. Their myKarat program encourages consumers to recycle broken and unused jewelry for store credit. The Vinea ring ($825) is 100 percent post consumer recycled 18k white or yellow gold, available in two widths. greenkarat.com

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Brilliant Earth: To the one you love AND to responsible social and environmental values with a ring from San Francisco-based Brilliant Earth. This Platinum Seacrest ring ($1,050 without center stone; $6,500 with center stone) is certified conflict-free, hailing from Canadian mines that promote fair labor practices and environmental sustainability. Five percent of Brilliant Earth’s profits benefit African communities harmed by the diamond mining industry. brilliantearth.com
Kirsten Muenster: Jeweler Kirsten Muenster strives to create “wearable landscapes” by integrating the Japanese aesthetic of wabi sabi (the observation and appreciation of the natural cycle of life) with found objects, ethically sourced stones and repurposed vintage materials. This necklace is fashioned from recycled sterling silver, druzy quartz, a vintage glass button and fossilized dinosaur bone. Due to the one-of-a-kind nature of Muenster’s designs, prices are available only upon request. kirstenmuenster.com

Rust-Belt: Established jewelry designers Page Neal and Anna Bario joined forces to create Rust-Belt, a line devoted to repurposed materials and eco-conscious practices. Their Sisal Blue ($192) is a vintage enameled chain with a sterling silver clasp packaged in a repurposed glass bottle. Neal and Bario hope to educate others about the issues surrounding the jewelry industry on their blog at rust-belt.org.

Monique Péan uses 100 percent recycled gold and ancient fossilized ivory for her luxury Bering collection. Ten percent of her proceeds go to the Alaska Native Arts Foundation to raise awareness of Alaska native art and culture and the environmental issues they face. These Fjord Ivory Diamond Earrings are conflict-free with sustainably-harvested (ie. found) walrus ivory. Price available upon request. moniquepean.com

The Palma Collection is artisan-crafted from nontoxic, sustainable “vegetable ivory,” which comes from the nut of a rare South American palm, harvested only after it naturally falls from the tree. This Hosono ($36) necklace features vibrant vegetable dyed tagua nut slices strung on a faux suede cotton strap. palmacollection.com
Gwendolyn Davis is “interested in fashion as a vehicle for a more ethical world.” Her Verde Rocks line is a collection of “nouveau vintage” bracelets, necklaces and other goodies created from recycled and organic materials. The Glass Nugget Cuff ($89) is vintage brass adorned with a mosaic of recycled glass pieces. gwen-davis.com


Moonrise Jewelry: Much of Virginia-based Moonrise Jewelry’s wares are handmade by local artists using fairly traded, ethically sourced gemstones or renewable, recycled or reclaimed materials. These Tupelo Earrings ($68) are fair trade citrine and 24K gold vermeil. moonrisejewelry.com
Water is a Human Right: With “water wars” on the not-so-distant horizon, eco designer Linda Loudermilk thinks it’s about time people start paying attention. Her Water is a Human Right collection donates a generous portion of purchase proceeds to the YEW Foundation to support organizations with clean water initiatives. She’s constructed this faucet necklace ($79) from reclaimed silver in hopes of raising money and awareness. lindaloudermilk.com

Tarma Designs offer an alternative to gold and silver mining with their Active Collection, featuring artistic expressions of outdoor activities forged in recycled stainless steel. This Spiral Pendant ($25) was inspired by an Anasazi petroglyph signifying water. tarmadesigns.com

Here is the full article.

Anglo American PLC & Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd incite jeweler boycott for Pebble Gold Mine in Alaska

Five of the nation's leading jewelers have sworn off gold that could someday come from the Pebble Mine, a huge deposit near the world's most productive wild sockeye salmon stream.

The jewelers, including Tiffany & Co., Ben Bridge Jeweler and Helzberg Diamonds, pledged Tuesday not to knowingly sell jewelry made from gold that might be extracted from the proposed mine near the Bristol Bay watershed in southwest Alaska.

'We are committed to sourcing our gold and other materials in ways that ensure the protection of natural resources such as the Bristol Bay watershed,' the pledge says. 'We would not want the jewelry we sell to our customers to jeopardize this important natural resource.'

The other two companies making the pledge to support permanent protection of the watershed from large-scale mining are Fortunoff and Leber Jewelers. The five retailers together sold about $2.2 billion in jewelry in 2006.

Northern Dynasty Mines Inc., an American subsidiary of Canadian company Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., is developing the prospect in partnership with Anglo American PLC, a London-based mining company.

Northern Dynasty spokesman Sean Magee said he was surprised that none of the companies contacted Northern Dynasty before signing the pledge. He said Northern Dynasty would be contacting the retailers this week to describe Pebble Mine and the approach to the project.

'We have made a commitment to employ the very highest standards at Pebble,' Magee said.
(The "high standards" of the Canadian Mining Industry speak for themselves: Canadian Mining Industry Run Amok )

The pledge was made in conjunction with a report by the No Dirty Gold campaign led by Oxfam America and Earthworks, an advocacy group.

Pebble Mine is estimated to be the second largest ore deposit of its type in the world. Production could begin in 2015.

Here is the full article from Forbes.

Top Jewelry Retailers Oppose Alaskan Gold Mine - “There are places where mining does not represent the best use of resources”, says Tiffany CEO

Retailers to hold mine to higher gold standards

[February 12, 2008] Environmentalists want you to buy organic roses, and human rights groups tout conflict-free diamonds.

Now, just in time for Valentine's Day, jewelry retailers are stepping up a campaign that aims to discourage the mining and sale of "dirty gold."

A group of prominent jewelers including Tiffany & Co., Helzberg Diamonds and Fortunoff will announce today that it opposes the massive gold and copper Pebble Mine planned for Alaska's Bristol Bay watershed, site of the world's largest sockeye salmon run.

The jewelers' “Bristol Bay Protection Pledge" marks a new front in the “No Dirty Gold” initiative waged by environmental and human rights groups against destructive mining practices.

It is the first time that retailers, which have hitherto limited themselves to supporting general rules for mining, have joined in a campaign to halt a specific mine.

An estimated 80% of the gold used in the U.S. is for jewelry. And gold mines -- typically huge open pit operations where tiny veins of metal are ground from millions of tons of rock -- produce an average of 76 tons of waste per ounce of gold.

The resulting air and water pollution have made metals mining the leading contributor of toxic emissions in the U.S., according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

"There are places where mining does not represent the best use of resources," Michael Kowalski, Tiffany's chairman and chief executive, said in an e-mail. "In Bristol Bay, we support . . . the salmon fishery as the best bet for sustainable, long-term benefit. For Tiffany & Co., and we believe for many of our fellow retail jewelers, this means we will look to other places to source gold."

Sean McGee, a spokesman for the Pebble Mine, said the jewelers had not contacted the mine's developers, a partnership of Vancouver, Canada-based Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. and London-based Anglo American.

"There is a lot of common ground between the Dirty Gold camp and the approach we are taking," he said. "We support high environmental standards for mining. If the fisheries can't be protected, we won't advance the project."

The campaign to clean up gold mines echoes the opposition to so-called blood diamonds, sold to finance conflicts in developing nations.

In the last few years, jewelers, working with nonprofit groups and the mining industry, set up a system to ensure diamonds as "conflict-free." Now the "ethical jewelry" movement is preparing to expand with a certification program for gold and silver.

"It's what's happening in the marketplace," said Stephen D'Esposito, president of Earthworks, a Washington-based advocacy group for mining reform. "Jewelers are highly sensitive to consumer concerns about the impact of the products they buy. It is a trend you see with food, coffee, wood, even sneakers."

At the moment, retailers cannot tell where their gold has been mined. But in the coming year, D'Esposito said, jewelers will take the first steps to establish a chain of custody from mine to store.

A set of standards is under negotiation between mining companies, jewelry retailers and environmental and human rights groups.

So far, 28 companies, including eight of the 10 largest jewelry retailers in the U.S. have endorsed the "No Dirty Gold" campaign's "Golden Rules." The measures seek to ensure that gold is mined without threatening fragile ecosystems,that waste is not dumped into waterways and that workers' rights are protected.

Signatories include Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Sterling Jewelers Inc., which markets Kay Jewelers and Jared the Galleria brands.

Earthworks wants all 28 companies that signed the Golden Rules pledge -- and others -- to also sign the Bristol Bay pledge. So far, only five have done so (besides Tiffany, Helzberg and Fortunoff, they are Ben Bridge Jeweler and Leber Jeweler Inc.).

Wal-Mart, the nation's biggest jewelry retailer, is reviewing the measure.

"We are committed to sourcing gold and other metals produced under the highest social, human rights and environmental standards,"spokeswoman Linda Blakley said.

Worldwide shortages and skyrocketing prices for gold and copper are fueling the push for Pebble Mine, which holds an estimated $300 billion in gold, copper and molybdenum. Northern Dynasty executives say the mine will bring well-paying jobs to an impoverished area of rural Alaska.

If the mine, which lies on the edge of two national parks, gains the necessary permits from the state of Alaska, it would involve excavating as much as 12 billion tons of earth which, after extracting the ore, would fill 10 square miles of impoundments. Two dams would be built to hold the waste.

"These lands were selected by the state of Alaska for their mineral potential, an important part of the rural economy," McGee said.

But Dan Consenstein, head of the Renewable Resources Coalition, an Alaska-based group that opposes the project, said pollution from the mine would destroy the fishery, a globally significant resource and economic backbone of the area.

A coalition of native villages, sports fishing lodges and environmental groups has filed a ballot initiative to stop the mine, but the mining companies are battling it in court.

Here is the full article from the Los Angeles Times.

Reflective Images Publishes 'The Ethical Jewelry Handbook'

Martin Rapaport on Fair Trade Diamonds & Jewelery

Santa Fe, New Mexico: Reflective Images, a designer jewelry firm, announces the free Ebook for the jewelry trade entitled: THE ETHICAL JEWELRY HANDBOOK (A Resource Guide for the jewelry sector wishing to adopt exceptional standards and radical transparency: Fair, Responsible, Ecological System.)

The book provides articles and information for those in the jewelry sector wishing to be more ecologically and socially responsible in their business practices. It is also a handbook which explains how any company can implement the FRE System, which offers customers a detailed insight into the supply chain, from the mine to the showroom, for all components of every finished piece of jewelry the company sells.

The term FRE, empowers customers to make decisions based on a product’s: F= Fair labor; R= Social Responsibility and E=Ecological impact. It’s an "open source" model, said Marc Choyt, president of Reflective Images and author of the work.

"If the Fair Labeling Organizations (FLO) are analogous to a closed operating system, such as Microsoft, our FRE system is analogous to Linux. Any jewelry company can make it their own,” said Choyt.

Reflective Images (http://www.celticjewelry.com) developed the FRE system because, in the current market, terminology such as "fair trade jewelry" and "eco jewelry" are practically meaningless. Choyt, who is working on a Madison Dialog committee to develop international third party fair trade standards for jewelry manufacturing, knows that this processes take years. He has implemented the FRE system on his website. His second commercial website, http://www.artisanweddingrings.com will also have the FRE system up soon.

“This book is the start of a project hopefully supported by the larger community in the ethical jewelry sector. Anyone who has information, articles, or supply sources can contact me. They will be included and listed as a contributor to future versions of the book,” said Choyt.

Choyt writes about ethical jewelry issues at www.fairjewelry.org, the most important source in the sector for those seeking to learn the politics, sourcing and production of ethical jewelry. His seminal article on the ethical jewelry sector was recently published in Modern Jeweler.

Reflective Images, was established in 1995. It sells jewelry through its website, from its store and to approximately 75 jewelry stores around the country. In 2006, it was named one of Santa Fe, New Mexico's most visionary businesses.

Here is the full article.

Ask Hard Questions Before Buying Gold

What is the real price of gold? In an age when we are becoming aware of global warming and global destruction of natural resources, we need to be aware that gold mining is one of the dirtiest industries in the world.

The production of a single gold wedding ring generates 20 tons of mine waste. Gold mining bears the scars of conflict, destruction and human rights abuse. In places as diverse as Guatemala, Ghana, Peru and Indonesia, local communities and indigenous peoples have encountered intimidation, abuse and even violent suppression when voicing opposition to mining projects.

Gold mining is a dirty industry. It can displace communities, contaminate drinking water, hurt workers and destroy pristine environments.

Open-pit gold mines essentially obliterate the landscape, opening vast craters, flattening or even inverting mountaintops. Cyanide is used by large mining operations to separate gold from ore and pollutes the landscape. A rice-grain of cyanide can be fatal to humans.

Metal mining employs just 0.09 of the work force, but consumes as much as 10 percent of world energy. Metal mining is the No. 1 toxic polluter in the United States, responsible for 89 percent of arsenic releases, 85 percent of mercury releases and 84 percent of lead releases in 2004.

Most gold is used to make jewelry. Jewelers should ensure they are not selling gold produced at the expense of people's lives and our environment. Consumer demand will help lead to an alternative to dirty gold. Ask jewelers when you buy gold if they have taken the first steps toward more responsible sourcing of gold by declaring their support for the Golden Rules, which represent social, environmental and human rights criteria for more responsible gold production. We, as consumers, should support these retailers.

Here is the full article.

Ethical Jewellery as Good as Gold

"Customers don't realise that one wedding ring weighs 10 grams and causes three tonnes of toxic waste," says Greg Valerio, whose company aims to follow fair trade coffee with ethical gold jewellery.

A silver-haired anti-poverty and human rights campaigner, he is at the forefront of a fast-growing global market for gold and platinum jewellery which seeks to soothe consumers' consciences and protect miners from danger and exploitation.

His jewellery shop in the southern English city of Chichester has formed a partnership with miners in a cooperative in Choco, an underdeveloped region in northeast Colombia, called the Green Gold ("Oro Verde") project.

Together they are working with the Fairtrade Foundation – which backs farmers and workers from poor countries to develop their communities through fairer terms of trade. They aim to extend Fairtrade's successful labelling to gold.

"Green gold" jewellery is a niche in a fast-growing wider market for ethical goods, ranging from day-to-day foodstuffs like tea, coffee and chocolate to designer fashions and travel.

Analysts say global sales of ethical gold jewellery are probably less than one per cent of the total $56 billion gold jewellery market based on figures from London-based consultancy GFMS – and the Fairtrade label is a year or so away.

Although the ethical product is priced at a premium and gold is at record highs, the market has been ballooning. Among a plethora of online offers are companies including one called greenKarat that argues industrial mining methods damage the land and endanger ecosystems, so recycled gold would be better for society.

British fashion designer Katharine Hamnett includes a link to Valerio's outlet, called Cred, on her Web site. He said ethics were a strong selling point in the jewellery trade: a woman would not want to receive a gift that was tarnished by exploitation.

Nor do some men want to give them. A customer of Valerio's store, Stephen McIlhenny, 27-year-old deputy manager of an outdoor activities centre in Devon, said he ordered a bespoke white gold engagement ring with a round diamond in November for 800 pounds ($1,600).

"I wanted my engagement ring to have put labor and materials to good use rather than wrecking things," he said by telephone. "I wanted my fiancee to know that the gift was very special and did not put people through hardship."

PAY PREMIUM

The "Oro Verde" miners receive an income premium of roughly 10 per cent over their peers in Colombia for their work, said Valerio, who has dual British and Canadian nationality and also helped found the independent, global Association for Responsible Mining (ARM).

With donors including the charity Oxfam, the ARM aims to expand the Green Gold initiative to develop a framework for responsible artisanal and small-scale mining and meet growing consumer demand for sustainable jewellery and minerals.

Mine owners in many parts of the world regularly flout safety regulations to meet demand that seems insatiable – gold has been in a bull market for seven years and on Tuesday prices were probing fresh all-time highs above $880 an ounce.

In South Africa, the world's top platinum producer, more than 200 workers were killed in 2007, prompting a nationwide strike over safety that hit output. The National Union of Mineworkers has threatened more action as it urges the government to prosecute mining companies for the deaths.

The Fairtrade Foundation, which coordinates Fairtrade labelling in 20 countries including Britain, is working with the ARM to explore how to develop the concept of ethical gold.


"If we get a positive board decision to proceed with Fairtrade labeled gold, then depending on the outcome of the pilot studies to date, it would be likely that the first certified gold will be available during 2009," said Fairtrade Foundation policy and producer relations officer Chris Davis.

"It is a partnership that seeks to bring our knowledge of Fairtrade standards and practice together with ARM's knowledge of artisanal small-scale mining," said Davis, who has visited the Choco cooperative, as well as mines in Bolivia and Peru.

"BLOOD DIAMOND" BOOST

Valerio started his store in 2004 and says it is one of the first jewelers in the world to sell ethical gold and platinum jewellery.

"We were helped by 'Blood Diamond'," he said, referring both to the Leonardo DiCaprio movie and to international efforts to stem the flow of conflict diamonds – rough diamonds used by rebel groups to finance wars, featured in that film.

The Kimberley Process, a joint government, industry and civil society initiative introduced in 2003, sought to help curb decades of devastating conflicts in countries such as Angola, Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone.

Since Cred started marketing ethical gold and platinum jewellery, its sales have grown fast, with online orders flowing in from around the world, notably the United States, Valerio said.

"Bearing in mind that our certified gold sales at the end of 2004 were zero pounds, we have just posted over 200,000 ($400,000) (in sales) at the end of 2007," he added.

Cred's wedding or engagement rings typically cost about 10 per cent more than average prices but are about 15 per cent below the top luxury brands such as Tiffany.

A bespoke Cred 18-carat gold wedding ring might cost from 195 to 800 pounds ($390 to $1,600) depending on its size and design – the cheapest engagement ring one could expect to buy in a standard British store would cost about 80 pounds ($160).

"I think the idea of 'fair trade' jewellery will spread," said Cred customer McIlhenny. "Whenever I talk to my friends about my fiancee's 'fair trade' ring, they all really like the idea."

Here is the full article.

Tiffany & Co. Jewelry chairman and chief executive leads the way against Montana gold mine

NO DIRTY GOLD: Tiffany & Co. leads the way with Washington Post advertisement campaign against Montana gold mine.

Dirty gold? Jewelers urge miners to clean up

Excerpted:

SPOKANE, Wash. - Those gleaming necklaces, rings and watches in the jewelry case may cost a lot more than you think, environmentalists say.

In a new public relations campaign, environmentalists are scolding jewelers for the damage caused by mining for gold, silver and other precious metals, and are putting pressure on jewelry retailers to reject minerals from big polluters.

One gold ring, conservationists say, generates 20 tons of mine waste. This year, they passed out Valentine’s Day cards reading, “Don’t tarnish your love with dirty gold” in front of jewelry stores in New York, Boston and Washington, D.C.

The campaign caught the attention of Tiffany Co., which took out a recent ad in The Washington Post that said a proposed mine under the Cabinet Mountains wilderness of Montana is a poor way to fill its jewelry cabinets on Fifth Avenue.

“Given the impact of mining for gold, silver and platinum, they are a company who cared about how they were viewed and what their customers think,” said Steve D’Esposito, president of Earthworks, the environmental group leading the campaign.

The ad, signed by Tiffany chairman and chief executive Michael Kowalski, surprised leaders in the mining industry.

“I was stunned that a person of Mr. Kowalski’s stature and obvious business acumen would write a letter like that,” said Laura Skaer, head of the Northwest Mining Association in Spokane.

Jewelers push for 'Responsible Mining'

The jewelry industry has already started the process of guaranteeing that its raw materials came only from socially and environmentally friendly mining companies, according to Jewelers of America, an industry group.

For several years, the group has been pushing a policy of supporting “responsible mining of minerals and metals,” said Fred Michmershuizen, director of marketing for the New York-based group.

Jewelers of America played a leading role in reducing the sale of so-called blood diamonds that help fund wars in Angola, Sierra Leone, Congo and Liberia. Last year, 45 countries signed on to an agreement requiring every diamond to be accompanied by a certificate of origin.

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Now Earthworks and a similar group, Oxfam America, have turned their sights on what they call the dirtiest industry in the United States — gold mining.

The U.S. gold jewelry market is worth about $16 billion annually, but mining is the top toxic polluter in the United States, responsible for 96 percent of arsenic emissions and 76 percent of lead emissions, according to a report the groups released in February.

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Critics also should consider that the alternative to mining for precious metals in the United States is mining in undeveloped countries that lack environmental protections, Rey said. He added: “I don’t think that’s what Tiffany wants.”

Here is the full article.