Back home, I used to live fairly close to a neighborhood coffee shop, and I would visit there maybe once or twice a month whenever exams and papers were due. The company declared that several of its brews were made with fair trade coffee beans. Although it did not mean much to me at the time (since I wasn't writing a paper on social responsibility), during the past few years, companies have begun showing a genuine interest in taking steps to improve the level of social responsibility in their business practices.
Businesses conduct fair trade agreements for the following reasons:
- to build commerce and access to otherwise marginalized producers
- to decrease and eliminate "middlemen," ensuring that the producers attain better control of profit
- to provide higher wages and enhance regional quality of life
- to promote sustainable initiatives for long-term commerce
- to identify and perpetuate environmentally safe techniques and practices
- to reduce chances of opportunism and exploitation
- to advocate and extend fair trade principles
Does jewelry have fair trade requirements as well?
Absolutely! As with cocoa, coffee, and crafts, jewelers can buy gemstones and metals from retailers that promise to uphold fair trade practices. Fair trade jewelry is designed to minimize negative environmental impact in mining and production, promote sustainable practices, distribute wide opportunities of partnership, and to practice zero-tolerance regarding labor exploitation and community displacement.
Which organizations represent fair trade in the jewelry industry?
Krikawa Jewelry Designs is proud to be a member of the following fair trade organizations.
No Dirty Gold
The more you know, the less gold glows.
No Dirty Gold extended from its parent nonprofit Earthworks in 2004. According to the organizations's About Us page, uncontrolled gold mining continues to be one of the dirtiest industries, with the production of one gold ring resulting in 20 tons of industrial waste. Referred thereafter as "dirty gold," irresponsible mining practices lead to displaced communities forcibly removed from homelands, waterways contaminated by industrial pollution, decimated landscapes and natural habitats, and numerous worker abuses and human rights violations in mining the ore. Users are encouraged to read the full report -- Dirty Metals: Mining Communities and the Environment -- which details dirty gold activity occurring worldwide.
1% for the Planet
Keep Earth in business.
One Percent teams up responsible jewelers all over the world who pledge to donate one percent of their sales to environmental organizations. Founders Yvon Chouinard and Craig Mathews blended successful business savvy and environmental commitments to start forming One Percent in 2001. Memberships accrued the very next year. To date, the site has grown to over 1,200 business alliances. And to do our part for the cause, Krikawa Jewelry Designs sent a gift of $8,438 this past February.
The site also hosts a vast network of environmental organizations to which businesses can initiate direct contact.
Responsible Jewellery Council
Reinforcing confidence in the diamond and gold supply chain.
Some of the biggest suppliers in the world including Cartier, De Beers, and Tiffany & Company joined forces in 2005 to support the Responsible Jewellery Council. RJD's mission statement reads, "To advance responsible ethical, social and environmental practices, which respect human rights, throughout the diamond and gold jewellery supply chain, from mine to retail." As of June 2009, the Council enjoys a membership of 130 organizations.
The Council advocates a high level anti-trust labor platform and certification standard. The standard allows retailers and independents to verify that their gems and metals have been acquired through ethical standards. The Council includes a PDF document of their Codes and Practices available here.
At the end of the day...
Social responsibility is important for the jewelry industry to embrace because, in our business of procuring valuable metals, gems, and stones, we recognize the threat of exploitation and environmental damage and are committed to halting it in its course. When we work together to cooperate with compliance standards and restrict our dealings to those who share that philosophy, we send a powerful message to the more scrupulous parties out there. The message reiterates that just as hard as we work to produce and distribute fine jewelry, there are individuals and communities out there who do the hard labor to keep us going. We need not free-ride on their backs to build a profit and we urge others to remain sensitive to the issue.
Know that each piece of Krikawa jewelry is built with top-notch construction, careful selection, and a clear conscience.
Please visit our socially responsible partners.
Clear conscience and conflict-free.
Columbia Gem House
Hoover and Strong
Polar Bear Diamonds
Diamond Empowerment Fund
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