Over the past few years, the Canadian diamond industry and jewelers have branded themselves as the guilt and conflict free choice for the progressive consumer. This interview with Tracey Williams, a trustee for The Canadian National Parks and Wilderness Society, provides a first hand account on the effect of diamond strip mining in the tundra on Natives and the fragile wild life of the Canadian North West.

MC: For many months now, I’ve been trying to get a first hand understanding of what is taking place in the Canadian diamond sector.

TW: For you as a jeweler, this is a question of gradients. You have to have a source of gemstones that you can use and that can be consistently supplied, a quality product that you can feel good about.

MC: I interviewed a wildlife biologist, Kim Poole last May. He told me that the mines are very well managed.

TW: When Kim says that Canadian diamond mines are heavily regulated and heavily looked after, I think that overall, the regulatory process in Canada is as about intelligent on most points as it gets. But one thing to keep in mind: it all depends upon what is enforced and enforceable. You have all these things written down and that is only as good as the ability to uphold what is put down in principal.

In the Northwest Territories, the Canadian government and the aboriginal people have made some mistakes in dealing with the companies. But aboriginal people have put themselves in a position of authority. They are continually coming back with political clout to assure certain agreements have been signed. So far, diamond mining companies have been adhering more or less with these.

MC: More or less… You’re implying then that enforcement is, perhaps, inconsistent?

TW: There are impact and benefit agreements, these are socio-economic agreements, that include training and work quotas that have to be met. They might come in once or twice a year and take pictures to make you think that they are actually there every day, making sure that the environmental standards are being strictly enforced. They are putting much more into marketing the image of uprightness than the actuality.

But when you compare and contrast, there are people far and away in much worse situations, such as the Navajo. The courts in Canada are strongly aligned with First Nation rights and treaty. That is one thing that is going in favor for First Nations people in Canada. The Territories are an interesting anomaly to North America. They have learned from the context in other places.

MC: What is your involvement with these communities?

TW: I work with elders and community researchers on land issues, traditional land use, mapping and collecting oral history for various projects in all kinds of ways. My work is to assist community people to exercise the will of the People, the elders.

MC: Are these groups more or less aligned in their views?

TW: Every community is different in the territories but there is a universal trait. They are all very passionate about their connection to the land they walk on. It is obvious, and still practiced. That there is nothing more true. I have witnessed it, seen it.

I know young leaders, and worked with up and coming leaders. The elders had their own hard decisions to make. Their biggest conflicts were around questions like, do I take the payment that the government is offering me and send my kids to residential school or do I keep them here within their culture and language? What can I offer them in terms of future if they cannot walk the two cultures? Younger leaders today essentially have similar struggles, but they have more outside influence of contemporary North American cultural persuasion and influence to contend with.

What the companies do when they come into an area is to find those people who will be allied with their points of view of how economic development is going to proceed. Then they separate them from people who see the need for other uses less tangible to immediate economic gain on the land. The companies try their best to fragment the communities.

In the best case scenario, the chief and councils are strong enough to organize their community to make a stand for reasonable economic development with their interests represented.

MC: How are the communities impacted by the diamond mines?

TW: The mines here are not directly adjacent to daily community life, yet the environmental impacts to their traditional lands, in their watersheds are felt; people still use and eat food harvested from the land.

Concern over environmental degradation of their land causes considerable real stress to all members of the community. They work at the mines. They try to maintain consistent family life with one parent usually on a schedule of two weeks on, two weeks off. This is difficult. But they also see the fact that these forces of development and mining are huge and they have to get the most out of mining companies as they possibly can.

In some cases, what they are getting now is too little, particularly with BHP – the Ekati Mine. This was the first diamond mine in the North West Territories and in Canada. It broke up the community because some people may say the Impact Benefit Agreement (IBA) is just a form of bribery. The corporation or multinational is now expected to negotiate an IBA with the impacted communities.

IBA’s are basically socio-economic agreements between the company and the aboriginal governments whose traditional territory is under mineral exploration or development. The fact the IBA’s exist now is seen as real progress, but the first IBAs were signed before people understood the real money coming out of the mines. Again, IBA’s are only as good as they are negotiated and enforced by the First Nations or aboriginal group(s) signing onto them.

MC: What about the environmental impact of these first mines?

TW: The real issue here is contamination; these diamond mines are on the tundra, impairing water quality and all that survive on the water indefinitely on into the future. The tundra is very fragile, permafrost. Putting a town in the middle of tundra which is dependent on diesel generators, you can only imagine how much fuel is required to be shipped in, not to mention every single repair, supplies, food for 300 people in a moonscape situation in winter. It is crazy, what they have managed to create in a tundra landscape.

It’s all about the ice road trucker, driving across the tundra. When you have a strip mine you have all kinds of impacts; roads and infrastructure, waste water, spills of oil and gas, the dust from trucks driving up from the pits 24 hours a day, and the oxidizing waste rock piles… what they do to the water and acidification of the water, to the aquatic life, is monumental. With diamond mining, you don’t have the more-well known toxic chemical separation processes, but you are using high amounts of energy using generators, and there is water contamination.

These are universal traits to strip mining the world over. Unless you are panning in alluvial deposits for the gems, you are looking at crazy underground mines or strip mining. On the tundra, the impact of the footprint of one diamond mine on ecological habitat is enormous.

Plus, these mines are often located in the center of the world’s ribbon of northern boreal forest. The Caribou herds, in great number, are incredible feats of nature. The shear numbers of mammals moving together in a great pattern from boreal forest to the tundra to the shores of the Arctic Ocean every year is astonishing. These mines are in the midst of those migration patterns.

MC: What other issues are there?

TW: One of the boons to the mining industry here in the Territories is the amount of water available. No one else is using it. No other players. Enforcement is dicey. You are out there on your own. You can do pretty much what you want. If something spills and there is an accident, who knows?

That said, there are pretty good environmental controls and independent boards to oversee scientific data that include aboriginal traditional knowledge and scientific experts to uphold standards.

But acid mine drainage (ADM) is a real issue, affecting PH levels, and thus all life in the water. Although water quality monitoring is taken seriously, all the various quantities are measured. If something falls out of acceptable limits, there are levels of alarm that can be raised. There is a tremendous amount of uncertainty around predicting ADM rates.

Yet, acid generation may not start up at a mine site for decades and persist for literally hundreds of years. Certain polymers in the processed kimberlite (the rock formation diamonds in the rough are found) have also been proven toxic to life in the water column, the aquatic food chain.

At least in Canada, we have independent boards respected by mining and aboriginal groups in technical panels to review regular environmental monitoring reports made by industrial environmental teams. That being said, the impact of the mine site footprint can’t be under estimated to the tundra environment. BHP and the Diavik Diamond mines found that biological technicians were reporting there was just an incredible enticement that the mines posed to animals.

MC: Enticements?

TW: The wolverine population (the home range of a wolverine is very very large, several hundred square kilometers on the tundra.) There must have been 12 or 13 wolverines attracted to the site one season that I was reviewing documents from mines on the subject. They have an incredibly large territory.

For that many wolverines to be attracted by the mine by the foraging opportunities, into one area, for scavenging around the footprint of the mine site, is a huge impact to their behavior and habitat. That happens year after year. The actual mine site poses a gigantic impact to the tundra ecology and to wolverines in particular.

MC: Are there other examples?

TW: Concerning the mine as a huge scavenging opportunity for other animals, foxes and bears are trapped in varying numbers as well at mine sites. The caribou herds, and in particular the Bathurst Herd and Beverly Herd migration patterns and herd size have definitely been impacted.

A researcher affiliated with the Lutsel K’e Dene First Nation, elders and hunters actually helped to conduct one of the latest surveys of the Bathurst Herd. It was very labor intensive, a tremendous amount of flight time over incredible distances, and involved a lot of data crunching. You can only do a certain percentage of their territory. Herd numbers currently are at an all time low.

Very costly and difficult to complete — often due to weather — aerial surveys are practically the best tool to assess their health and overall population as a herd. The Beverly barren land caribou herd size recently surveyed in the fall of 2008 reported numbers shockingly low.

Changes in herd size fluctuate and herds will shift in distribution, but there is real concern around the fact that human activity could speed up decline in the population size of these herds. The mines are right in the middle of their migration patterns. I believe that mines partially are playing a part and probably a significant part in the reduction of the survey numbers.

MC: Yet when people purchase a Canadian diamond, they are buying it often because they feel it is a conflict free, ethical diamond that isn’t negatively impacting the environment.

TW: You can only hold the view that Canadian diamonds are the conflict free choice if conflict is defined purely as war, and class politics as played out by the motion picture ‘Blood Diamond’.

This is a process of education. People are manipulating the system to assure themselves a slice of the market. It may take some jostling to uncover, and get the lenses focused right to bring out the fuller picture so that the consumer better understands their choices.

So conflict free doesn’t take into consideration the contamination and pollution of air, water and land, often in some of the most pristine places held sacred to indigenous peoples the globe over nor the damage to watersheds and the complexity of ‘fixing’ the ecological damage left in its wake. Persistent problems left after the short life of the mine is over, of strip mining or deep underground mining, will be left for our children to endure. The impact to quality of ecological life is serious.

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, a designer jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com selling conflict free diamonds and unique wedding rings at: http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. Marc authors http://www.fairjewelry.org, a website covering fair trade gem and jewelry issues.

For most jewelers today, simply providing accurate information and a fair price for a diamond, wedding ring or engagement ring constitutes ethics. Yet today, in what some call the emerging ethical jewelry space, jewelers who are change agents view an ethical wedding ring or ethical engagement ring through an entirely different set of criteria. Ethics, to them, means traceable through the supply chain from mine to market. Throughout the process, the environment and producer communities are treated responsibly.

Yet even in the context of mine to market sourcing, subjectivity still rules. Most people in the jewelry sector would consider a diamond sourced from a De Beers mine as totally ethical. DeBeers has implemented some of the best practices for a large scale diamond company that are possible. Yet for others, particularly customers who might call themselves “progressives,” the historical context of that company makes their diamonds an unethical choice.

The same issue is true in regard to the environmental impact of Canadian diamonds, which are branded as the “conflict free” option, given the history of diamonds in Africa. Some would say purchasing Canadian is ethical while others say that it is better to source from Africa, which needs the diamond business.

Perfection should not be the enemy of the good. We live in a world with more grays than blacks and whites. Yet the common basis of this new view of ethics in the jewelry sector is transparency and accountability through the supply chain. Since ethics are highly subjective, transparency allows customers to determine what is ethical for him or her self.

The Current Market

Within the jewelery sector, the importance of sourcing responsibly has gained traction, particularly in those segments of the supply chain which have been impacted by Blood Diamonds and Dirty Gold. Consumers are more aware. Market demand is there, but it is still a niche. Only those who have a solid e-commerce platform or live in an area with a certain demographic have been able to take advantage of this new ethical jewelry view.

In the US, mainstream independent jewelers have been slow to notice this movement toward greater ethics, even though it has been featured widely in trade magazines. Jewelers are looking for hot trends that can make them money, not socially responsible initiatives. Many are concerned that if they segment off a part of their product offering as ethical, a customer may ask, what about the other goods in this case? Is this an ethical engagement ring and ethical wedding ring made with recycled metals or not?

In the US, about 15 to 20% of the people purchase organic foods and buy from companies such as Patagonia. These “cultural creatives” shop their values. Many would never walk into a mainstream jewelery store, but they would consider purchasing from a company that has a progressive, green stance.

Within the current market, probably bridal jewelry has the most potential given the immense emotional significance of wedding rings. Ethical wedding rings and ethical engagement rings also can be marketed as boutique items with high end gemstones. Mine to market gemstones and precious metals often demand a premium in price.

Implications

Whether the jewelry supply chain can ever be considered 100% ethical is a question of where one stands. It is a question of gradients. Will their ever be ethical oil? How about ethical steel? Yet our society depends upon a wide range of resources that we consume without much attention to their true costs. Jewelry depends upon extraction of minerals that are highly commoditized.

Up until quite recently, the marketing of jewelry has focused on the emotional and romantic while ignoring sourcing issues. This view is really quite out of date with our current times, where any responsible person realizes that we are all part of one global community that is interdependent. Many other industries are focusing on ethical issues simply because they realize that to not do so leaves them vulnerable to attack.

Some may argue that jewelry is different from other commodities because it is not a necessity. However, human beings have been adorning themselves for eighty thousand years. Jewelry is a fundamental repository of culture and art.

We are perhaps analogous to what fair trade coffee was in the seventies, though I think that the movement forward is going to be much quicker. Some day, I believe, it will be completely the norm for people, particularly those in the EU and North American market, to purchase jewelry that is ethically sourced.

If jewelry is going to ever move toward more transparent, mine to market sourcing, it will be market driven. Public education is a critical part of this entire process because this whole movement will not gain momentum until the market drives it forward.

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, a designer jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com selling conflict free diamonds and unique wedding rings at: http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. Marc authors http://www.fairjewelry.org, a website covering fair trade gem and jewelry issues.

What does the phrase “sacred geometry” mean? And what does it have to do with rings? For as long as recorded history, humankind has sought to distill the apparent order of the natural world and the cosmos into patterns, shapes, figures, and designs. The awe-inspiring combination of both beauty and simplicity of these symbolic forms makes them well-suited to use in rings and other jewelry.

Rings themselves have had symbolic significance for thousands of years. These symbols have reinforced and preserved spiritual and religious connections in a variety of ways, including as public signs of ceremonial commitments such as engagement or marriage, reminders of key aspects of spiritual beliefs, and as shamanic totems enhanced by the incorporation of power-bearing images. Everything about a ring has resonance with symbolic traditions, from its circular shape, to the materials used in its creation, the inlaid gems or stones chosen, and the engraved symbols on its surface.

One of the central features of sacred geometry is that the shapes, symbols, and patterns are created by the repetition of simple mathematical rules. Despite the mathematical simplicity of the resulting curves, the designer of a ring can create designs of astonishing beauty and power that often appear quite complex.

What follows is a brief catalogue of some of the curving symbols and patterns involved in the creation of rings and the sacred geometry of those patterns.

The Circle:

The circle, the basic shape of the vast majority of rings, is itself a central design in sacred geometry. The open circle symbolizes wholeness, completion, stillness within motion, and a unifying order of cycles that repeat in time. Circles are a pure distillation of both the shapes of the planets and their cyclical course through the sky. Universally used as a symbol for the sun, the circle has therefore represented clarity, awareness, completion with renewal, and the integrated self. The circular “palette” of the surface of a ring has provided artists with a perfect opportunity to design patterns that flow dynamically. Change within permanence is a fitting symbol indeed for engagement and marriage.

The Lemniscate:

An ancient symbol for infinity, a lemniscate is basically a “figure 8″ oriented horizontally. Its introduction into European culture and mathematics began with its formal description by Jacob Bernoulli in 1694, but it occurs as a basic shape in ancient Tibetan art, and several other cultures. The shape suggests the joining of two halves, and in fact in ancient cultures the symbol was sometimes shown as the touching of two perfect circles. The shape contains its own reflection, and this symmetry is a central feature of some of the curves of sacred geometry.

Arcs and Waves:

Flowing symbols as embodied by arcs and waves reoccur frequently in sacred symbolism. Repeated arcs that are portions of circles often form edge designs, while waves with their peaks and troughs move singly or intertwine, creating a feeling of the flow of energy in harmonious balance. Arcs and waves, mathematically, are closely related to the circle. A waveform, however, as distinct from closed curves like the lemniscate or circle, moves forward as it completes its regular cycle. Waves of sound and light are forms of matter imbued with energy, and as such symbolize life, the music of the spheres, and the driving force behind the order of creation. Waveforms and arcs suggest water, and by connection, the entire realm of symbolic associations with water, such as the moon and tides, birth, the dream world, the Goddess, and the fertility and creativity of life. Celtic knots, as used in the design of Celtic wedding and engagement rings, make beautiful use of these organic waveforms.

Spirals:

These coiling shapes capture a sense of the ordered evolution of experience that originates from a center but unfolds dynamically. Spiral forms are related to perfect circles and waves, in that they are generated from a center, as circles are, but they arc regularly. Sacred labyrinths and paths of creation, in the form of spirals, have been represented on rings since prehistoric times, in cultures ranging from Indo-European to Hopi. Spiral curves occur frequently in nature, from the regular spacing of spine clusters on cacti to the structure of seashells.

The enormous variety of sacred geometry as incorporated in the design of rings provides endless fascination. In wedding and engagement rings, the goal is to represent the sacred order and dynamic creativity of lifelong partnership. Symbolic rings are constant reminders that protect and inspire, while offering great beauty and lifelong meaning.

Peter Breslin writes articles about Celtic Crosses, Rings, Wedding Ring symbology for http://www.celticjewelry.com and http://www.artisanweddingrings.com.

“We will have rings and things and fine array; And kiss me, Kate, we will be married o’Sunday.”

~ The Taming of the Shrew, Act 2, Scene 1

In all cultures, traditions of engagement, betrothal, and other forms of the commitment to marry at a later date extend back thousands of years. Whether in an arranged marriage or a marriage of choice, the engagement provided time for the communities’ reaction and council. Engagement also offered the families of the bride and groom, as well as the larger community, opportunities to voice concerns or objections, or, more positively, prepare and plan for the wedding. Successful engagements provided a solid spiritual, financial, social, and family foundation for the married couple.

Historians do not have a clear idea of when the engagement ring became a standard gift to symbolize the promise to wed. The tradition of the future husband giving his intended an engagement ring may have begun in ancient Rome. It is certain that the exchange of rings in the marriage ceremony predates the giving of an engagement ring, and that the customs related to engagement itself also existed long before the engagement ring became the most prevalent custom.

Traditionally, the seriousness of marriage was marked by the level of material exchange of household wealth. The bride’s family was expected to provide a dowry, which often represented a significant portion of her family’s assets. The groom’s family, in exchange, usually paid a somewhat lesser bride price. The engagement ring may be a custom that is distantly related to this payment of a bride price, similar to the custom of the bride’s family paying for the expenses of the wedding — derived from the expectation of providing a dowry.

Historical records in Europe show that future grooms from wealthy aristocracy, royalty, and the ruling classes gave engagement rings to their beloveds beginning in the mid-15th century. This coincides with the rise of the traditions of Courtly Love, with the wealthy and privileged classes more free to romanticize marriage, and extend it beyond its practical economic, political, and social purposes.

People have, of course, been falling in love at least for as long as recorded history, but it has only been fairly recently that these feelings of attraction have formed the basis for courtship, engagement, and marriage. Traditionally, in communities that had a definite class structure, marriages were arranged to preserve the status quo, a practice continues even today in non-Western cultures. The engagement ring as a gift of love roughly coincides with the advent of marriages of choice. This may be due to the fact that the giving of an engagement ring at the moment of the marriage proposal more emphatically signified the choice of the betrothed, and made the event both more romantic and more private.

Many different types of engagement rings were given as symbols of binding promise, including rings made of every metal from gold to iron, set with no gems at all, or emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and of course diamonds. In a variety of pre-Christian religions, simple wreath of interwoven rushes, or a small ring woven from the hair of the betrothed, were used to represent a future commitment. The practice of marking a deep and binding promise through the giving of precious jewelry is ancient.

The prevalence of the tradition of the diamond engagement ring dates to the 1800’s in Europe and America. Diamonds were at first exceedingly rare, and their hardness, brilliance, and value lent an extravagant air to the act of proposal. As the 1800’s unfolded, more diamond veins were discovered and the gem became more widely accessible. Smaller diamonds became relatively affordable even among less wealthy members of society. The diamond industry grew, and clever marketing such as the “Diamonds are Forever” ad campaign of the DeBeers company, resulted in the diamond being the standard gem for engagement rings. The near-indestructibility of diamonds, combined with their crystalline purity and light-reflecting dazzle, makes them the perfect stone to symbolize the serious commitment to marry.

Engagement rings in general now are offered in a huge variety of styles, with or without diamonds. Diamond settings are still the most common, with the price of rings ranging from millions of dollars to a few hundred. In many cases, a diamond engagement ring is the third most expensive purchase made in a person’s lifetime, but it is also an easy matter to obtain a beautiful, durable, and meaningful ring at an affordable price.

Peter Breslin writes articles about Celtic Crosses, Rings, Wedding Ring symbology for http://www.celticjewelry.com and http://www.artisanweddingrings.com.

Would you knowingly wear a wedding ring or a pair of earrings created by mistreated labor or made with metal that was mined without regard to the environment?

Would you buy a diamond mined in Sierra Leon knowing that, according to the New York Times, even Kimberly Certified “conflict free” diamonds from there perpetuate cycles of poverty, hunger and suffering? Can you even trust jewelry outsourced to places such as China?

Though we buy jewelry to mark special occasions or commitments, jewelry, to many independent jewelers, is just a commodity. The business is mainly concerned about the bottom line. Please know that if you’re not asking your jeweler the ten questions in this article you may well be supporting practices that are at best morally unacceptable.

Knowledge is power and so are your dollars. Believe me, as a manufacturer and retailer, I know jewelry companies pay attention to their customers’ questions and concerns. Certainly many in the jewelry industry who I count as my friends want to be socially and environmentally responsible, but they don’t believe the market is there. Help me prove them wrong!

With your support, we can create a grass roots movement that will change the way business is done.

1. Do you have any fair trade jewelry products?

This is an obvious place to start the conversation, but it’s important and their manner of responding to you will tell you a great deal about their overall commitment to your peace of mind.

Do they seek to change the subject quickly? Or do they answer with a proud “yes”?

At present, Fair Trade jewelry manufacturing is just in its initial phases in the mainstream jewelry industry. Third party fair trade certification is not available for any jewelry products and there are some companies that make valiant attempts to adhere to basic principles of fair and equitable exchange. These include companies that are manufacturing in the US and a few that are manufacturing internationally.

Fair trade refers primarily to imported items, but for us it extends to the profit sharing, benefits and salaries we extend to our employees.

2. Who made this piece of jewelry?

Try to drill down with this question and ask about components, such as the metal, gem and even chain, all of which can come from different places. The answer, “I do not know,” can be perfectly legitimate because this information is not commonly known by all sales people. At that point, you might ask for the answer to be researched.

The jewelry business, like many other businesses, purchases outsourced materials from places such as China, Thailand, India and Indonesia. A few American designers still have small shops, and it is not unusual to have a bench worker with a CADCAM in an independent jewelry store. Though technically not fair trade, jewelry from an American manufacturer is more likely to be able to be traced to its sources.

3. Where did the gold and silver from the jewelry come from?

It is possible to purchase domestic gold and silver from a major refining company that recycle metal, as we do for in house fabrication. It just might cost a little bit more.

Outsourced pieces can come from any source, even dirty gold. Even a company, such as my own, that tries to work only with gold from recycled sources cannot be assured in all cases where the metal comes from simply because it takes so many components to creates one piece of jewelry.

Ideally you will be able to get this level of disclosure from your vendor.

4. Where were the gemstones mined?

Your jeweler may not be able to offer up an immediate answer, but he or she should be able to with time, find the answer to this question. Even in my small company, we have hundreds of gemstones and they come from just about every continent. In the majority of cases, I can at least research what country a gem came from and get an idea of how responsible its origins are.

5. How does the mining at this site impact the environment?

A jeweler might have difficulty with answering this question, yet you may learn something which influences your decision. Particularly with the more boutique gems, a jeweler might have a direct relationship with a mine source, which results in particular gems which can be sold at a premium.

If the gem is mined in Canada or some part of the US, you can be more certain that it follows certain environmental standards. Right now, there are few gemstones that are mined internationally on a Fair Trade basis. We will be listing those on our site soon.

6. Do you know the labor conditions at this specific mine?

As in question five, this question is perhaps easiest to answer in the larger, more expensive stones which at times can be traced to a source. In many cases, a jeweler is dealing with a secondary source in a gemstone purchase, buying from someone who has no direct contact with the mine itself.

7. Can you tell me about where the piece was cut and the labor standards they practice in the gem factory?

After gems are mined, they go to a cutting factory. There are thousands of small, artisan cutting factories. Conditions vary from place to place. Some gem dealers, however, cut their own stones and it might be possible for a jeweler to actually know what the conditions of the factory are.

8. Do you have a fair trade gemstone available as an alternative?

One can get some gemstones on a fair trade basis. This is particularly true for rubies, emeralds, sapphires and many other precious gemstones. Unfortunately, the less expense the gemstone is, the more difficult it is to actually obtain one that is Fair Trade produced.

9. How sure are you that this diamond is one hundred percent conflict free?

No jeweler in the US in his right mind would knowingly purchase a conflict diamond. Yet Amnesty International still reports conflict diamonds are being sold. Canadian diamonds are an option, and there is a movement to produce Fair Trade diamonds, but ultimately where you buy your diamond becomes a matter of how much you trust the seller. The only way to be a hundred percent sure that a diamond is conflict free is to buy a Canadian diamond.

10. What do you (retailer or manufacturer) do in your business to support environmental sustainability?

There are a number of things that a jeweler can do to support environmental sustainability, from recycling to using chemicals which are less toxic to the environment, all of which will save money. To see how aware your jeweler is of these issues is good information to know as it’s an indicator of their overall conscientiousness towards sustainable and responsible business practices. See my article on this subject also in this blog.

In Conclusion:

It’s up to all of us, (precious gem and metal suppliers, jewelry manufacturers, retailers and customers) to promote trade that is fair and equitable to everyone involved. Knowledge is power and asking these questions gives you the power to spend your money in a way that will change the world.

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, a designer jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com selling conflict free diamonds and unique wedding rings at: http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. Marc authors http://www.fairjewelry.org, a website covering fair trade gem and jewelry issues.

If you are in the market for a natural diamond that is ethically sourced, it may be confusing when confronted by a wide variety of websites and claims. Though a diamond may be certified “conflict free” under the Kimberley Certification Process (KPC), the regulatory process has become so weak that KPC has become meaningless. Even today, diamonds are leaking out of Zimbabwe are certified as “Conflict Free” by the Kimberley Process. They may even be finding their way into your local jewelry store.

What are the best options for a truly ethical diamond that is worthy of your commitment to your betrothed? Here are some tips that you need to know about in order to spend your dollars in such a way as to support the fair and ethical production of diamonds.

Canadian Diamonds

Canada is often marketed as the best place to find “conflict free” diamonds. Canada’s four large diamond mines are among the most regulated in the world and there is generally little difference between them.

Almost all diamonds are gathered in central polishing locations where they are mixed up regardless of their sourcing. Canadian diamonds have a tiny Canada that gives you assurance that the gems were actually mined in Canada. Cutting takes place in third party certified facilities. The companies that run the mines know that their brand image depends upon the assurance of a seamless mine to market pipeline.

What those who push Canadian diamonds as the perfect choice do not talk about is the infrastructure required to transport millions of gallons of petrol to run the machinery and generators in the arctic tundra, creating disruption to the environment. Those who consider themselves environmentalists need to understand that the diamond mining in Canada is part of a larger trend that is drastically impacting North America’s last Serengeti.

Another conflict associated with these mines occurred within First Nation communities, who had rights to the land where the diamond mines were located. The pro-development Natives had conflict with those people who had more traditional values. The mines were a wedge issue, massively impacting small villages. Both these types of conflict are generally entirely glossed over by those who see Canadian diamonds as the ethical choice.

Nevertheless, a Canadian diamond is one of the best choices for those seeking an ethically soured diamond.

Namibian Diamonds

Many countries in Africa heavily depend upon the diamond trade to survive. Yet only in a few instances can you find situations where there is significant downstream benefit and training for workers. One of the places where this is happening is Namibia.

Namibia is a Southern African country with about fifty percent of the land mass of Alaska. Much of the country is desert and unsuitable for agriculture. Thus, for revenues extractive industries are critical. Namibia is a politically stable country.

Previously diamonds from Namibia were taken to other countries to cut and polish. But now it is possible to purchase diamonds that are not only mined in Namibia, but cut as well. The economically empowering polishing operations, which represent great skill transfer and support local economy, create well paying jobs. Workers in the diamond industry earn twice the average national salary.

Beneficiation as illustrated in Namibia represents a best practice within the diamond sector. Those who are seeking ethically mined diamonds for engagement rings should consider a diamond mined and polished in Namibia.

Created Diamond

If you feel that the talismanic quality of converting coal to diamond under the earth is not important, consider industrially grown diamonds, marketed as a “created diamond.” Created diamonds have the exact same composition of natural diamond. They are considerably less expensive than natural diamonds.

Like all industrial processes, created diamonds impact the environment to some degree, but they represent a good option for some people.

Final Thoughts

Diamonds are a commodity and ideally we can our purchasing power to benefit producer communities while minimizing environmental impact. In the quest for an ethical diamond, perfection should not be the enemy of the good. Canada’s careful mining practices and the efforts in Namibia, represent some of the best of what the diamond sector has to offer.

Consider buying a diamond with the acknowledgment that everything in life has a cost. If you believe that our very living means we incur a debt to existence, perhaps what the diamond represents is a dedication to giving something back in the form of a strong courageous love that blossoms outward, giving us strength to be in service to the great mystery that connects us all.

The most critical thing to remember when purchasing a diamond is, can the diamond be traced it back from mine, through the cutting, to market. Ask your jeweler. If your jeweler cannot tell you the answer honestly, you may well be purchasing a conflict diamond.

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, a designer jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com selling conflict free diamonds and unique wedding rings at: http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. Marc authors http://www.fairjewelry.org, a website covering fair trade gem and jewelry issues.

A Brief History Of The Celtic Cross

Emerging in roughly the 5th Century, the Celtic cross is an enduring symbol marking both cultural identity and religious faith. Adopted by Protestants and Catholics alike as a symbol of Christ-consciousness, the Celtic cross also has broad significance as a marker of cultural identity and heritage. Though legends abound concerning its origins, no factual historical record is available to place the Celtic cross in a specific time, location, or as originating from a particular craftsman.

The obscure origins of the Celtic cross match the universality of the symbol. Like other symbols that express something essential and cosmic about our human experience, it emerged mysteriously. What is known is that the Celtic cross has been the dominant religious and cultural symbol in the islands around Britain for centuries, capturing something unique to Celtic – influenced Christianity and culture.

There are two immediate distinctions in which the Celtic cross differs from the Latin cross. The first is the inclusion of knot work motifs. Knots are composed of geometric shapes which have deep symbolic significance. Flowing, elegant knot work is suggestive of plants and rivers.

In the broadest sense, the knots themselves represent how all actions are interconnected in a great web of life. Archaeologists and art historians have long puzzled over the meaning of Celtic knot work, attempting to find a translation system so that various designs could be understood as having explicit meaning. The consensus among many academics now is that, if the designs ever did stand for something, that meaning has been lost.

The second distinction is the inclusion of the circle, centered on the intersection of the vertical and horizontal arms of the Latin Cross. Indeed, one of the most ancient and universal symbols in the history of the human race is a cross of equal arms inscribed in a circle. This figure, called a Solar Cross or Wheel Cross, is found in Paleolithic rock art around the world, and is clearly prehistoric. The Solar Cross is a symbol for the Sun, time and movement. The solstices and equinoxes mark the four parts of the solar year and the four directions.

Inevitably, when Romans brought the Christian symbol of the Latin Cross to the British Isles, the Celtic symbol for the Sun and the knot work motifs were fused with the new religion. The circle itself is one of the most visible blueprints in the universe, representing, among many thing, equality, boundaries and relationship to the whole. This fusion can be viewed as a redemption of pagan sun worship through the agency of Christianity, or an amplification of Christianity through the incorporation of pre- Christian symbols and beliefs.

The Latin Cross itself, with its vertical arm longer by roughly 1/3 than its horizontal arm, has both explicit and symbolic meaning. Explicitly, of course, the Latin Cross is a reminder of the crucifixion of Jesus, the sacrifice which for Christians marks the turning point of history. It also commemorates the event of the resurrection, the promise of eternal life made possible by the crucifixion.

More esoterically, the Latin Cross symbolizes the whole of Jesus’ life, from incarnation to resurrection, as the union of the divine fused with vulnerable humanity. This is seen in the intersection of the vertical aspect, that which connects heaven and earth, and the horizontal aspect, the linearity of time’s passage and the physical plane. Symbols with a strong vertical element suggest states of changeless being, and symbols with a horizontal aspect suggest the unfolding of time and the necessities of space.

The cross unifies the two fundamental states of being and becoming, although their intersection at right angles suggests ongoing tensions. The stress on the vertical direction perhaps displays the Christian emphasis on the ascent to heaven, in a direction away from earth and the profane. Yet the adoption of the Latin Cross as a symbol for Christianity also roughly corresponds to the ideal of human intelligence as the pinnacle of creation.

The Celtic cross places the ancient sun-symbol and intricate knot work elegantly around this point of intersection, as if to bring wholeness and a sense of resolution to the starkness of the Latin Cross. The divinity of the cosmos is included by this simple circle, and the idea of a unification of opposites in balance is conveyed. Sometimes seen as a halo, sometimes as the timelessness of eternal life, sometimes as an exaltation of ancient pagan symbolism, this circle and knot work adds mystery and beauty to a universal, numinous symbol.

Peter Breslin writes about Celtic crosses, Irish crosses, Celtic symbolism and Celtic Wedding Ring symbology for http://www.celticjewelry.com and http;//www.artisanweddingrings.com.

Diamonds are mined by either medium or large scale companies that employ relatively few people, or by numerous small scale miners around the world who live marginal existences. One of the most difficult accomplishments in the diamond supply chain is create stronger local economies in the diamond mining areas through what is known as beneficiation, which in the diamond sector represents a best practice

One of the nations where this has happened is Namibia, a country about half the size of Alaska, in Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean. It is mostly desert and its population just over two million depend upon its extractive industries, particularly because it has very little farmland.

In the past, all diamonds taken from Namibia were cut in other parts of the world. Now, it is possible to purchase a diamond mined and cut in this economically and politically stable African country with an organized diamond polishing industry. These are branded as Kalahari Diamonds.

The cutting and polishing of the Kalahari diamond is a ground breaking initiative that allows more money and well paying jobs to strengthen their local economy. The polishing facility where we source our diamonds supports over 100 workers. It represents a functional example of skill transfer, job creation and economic empowerment. In general, workers in the diamond industry earn twice the national salary average which is profound in a country with a relatively small population.

In the past, diamond companies have been reluctant to create these types of projects because they require huge new investments in training and infrastructure. The initiative has been developed by a company which purchases unpolished diamonds from a mine owned by DeBeers located in Namibia. The environmental responsibility of the mine is third party verified by SGS whose verification is further reviewed by URS.

The company involved in this project, Finesse, is very forward thinking and dedicated to creating a better situation in Africa. Because the diamonds are mined responsibly, they are more expensive. Their polishing operations are costly as well, especially compared to selling diamonds polished in sweatshops in India or China. Yet in the end, the Kalahari Namibian diamonds are completely competitive in the marketplace.

Third party certified fair trade diamonds do not yet exist. Diamond mining has its impact and with so much attention placed on conflict diamonds from Africa, many people wanting a “conflict free” diamond choose Canada. That is a mistake. Many countries in Africa needs diamond business in order to provide even basic services to their citizens. Among all projects in Africa, the Kalahari diamond stands out.

The selection of Kalahari diamonds tends to be smaller and range toward pieces over one half caret. But we recommend diamonds from this project above all other choices. It is an excellent project that deserves market support.

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, a designer jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com selling conflict free diamonds and unique wedding rings at: http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. Marc authors http://www.fairjewelry.org, a website covering fair trade gem and jewelry issues.

When considering ethical sourcing in the jewelry sector, there is one issue from which we can measure intent: it is all about traceability, traceability, traceability. The Responsible Jewelry Council is composed from many of the largest players in the jewelry sector and they are putting forth standards which have not won endorsement by civil society groups.

Michael Rae, CEO of the Responsible Jewelry Council (RJC), admitted in a public interview that RJC will not certify the supply chain of its members. Dirty gold from Peru or conflict gold from the Congo can find its way into an RJC member’s wedding ring. Though RJC will certify individual members, their effort fails on the most essential issue, their publicly stated raison d’être.

You cannot legitimately claim to be an organization composed of members who are dedicated to, “Reinforcing confidence in the diamond and gold supply chain” without every member of that organization knowing the details of their sourcing.

It is not just Peru that is of concern, but any gold that cannot be traced to a specific location; and misery diamonds labeled as “conflict free” under the weak Kimberley Certification Process as recently documented by Ian Smillie; and the manufacturing conditions in Chinese jewelry factories; as well as a host of other ugly niche issues related to jewelry sourcing and production.

Nearly everyone in the jewelry sector wants the RJC to be effective, but their approach to ethical sourcing seems to be to create a quasi-cartel. It serves mainly the “big boys club”, who are large enough to lock up their own supply chain. Inevitably, in the smoky back rooms, RJC members will be shoe-horned in to purchasing from other members.

Rae admits that RJC borrowed some elements from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) as a means to create a legitimate platform, but his efforts at mimicry fall very short. Unlike the RJC, the FSC is not just composed of large forestry companies, but rather is grounded in a broad multi-sector stakeholder system, as well as public consultation.

If RJC is to be taken seriously as a standards setting initiative outside of their own self serving house of mirrors, this “non-profit” group needs to adopt these basic steps:

Standards and leadership need to involve a wide variety of cross sector and multi-sector stakeholders working together, including the public; and a panel to represent the views of small scale artisan miners (a fatal flaw of the Kimberley Certification Process.) Otherwise, they will not be able to police themselves objectively when a member, for example, comes up against a group of Bushman who don’t want the mine in their back yard.

Members should be required to be 100% transparent with all their sourcing and manufacturing, documenting the conditions of their product with a completely traceable supply chain, from mine to market. This is a big project that will take time, but it is the only way to legitimately deal with ethical sourcing issues.

Until these changes are made, those who are seeking real change can use RJC’s Ancien Règime’s limitations as a “Blue Ocean” marketing opportunity. That an RJC member can sell dirty gold or diamonds of misery and still claim to be reinforcing confidence in the supply chain illustrates that the organization’s agenda is not about reform.

We can all be thankful for Rae’s candidness and Valerio’s sharp questions which let us definitively say that, “The emperor has no clothes.”

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, a designer jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com selling conflict free diamonds and unique wedding rings at: http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. Marc authors http://www.fairjewelry.org, a website covering fair trade gem and jewelry issues.