Photo by S&P Graphics
“At one time they may be carbuncle stones, then coals, then diamonds, then flint stones, then morning dew, then tears.” -Lope de Varga
I admit it: I watch those terrible shows on VH1 about
exactly how much money celebrities spend on their clothing, houses and jewelry.
They showed Beyonce strutting around with the giant yellow diamond ring she
bought herself, Puff Daddy (P-Diddy? Sean Combs?) with a white, kajillion-carat
behemoth at his pinkie, and who can really keep track of the monster stones
Jennifer Lopez has been proposed to with?
Shameless celebrities of the world, how do you sleep at
night? Haven’t you seen Blood Diamond? Guess not, but someone should let these
guys in on conflict-free jewelry.
Now, I’m a world away from wearing precious stones; I’m not
getting proposed to anytime soon, and my income is more quickly spent on rent
and student loans than fine jewelry. But if you’re going to rock some ice,
might as well promote Fair Trade while doing it.
Though most diamond and fine jewelry retailers are working
for increased transparency in their diamond-mining process, many retailers just
aren’t aware of where the stones come from. When diamonds are considered conflict
or blood diamonds, they originate from countries that use profits from the
diamond trade to fund military or arms trade organizations, keeping these
countries in a constant state of war. Despite the fact that international
organizations have outlawed purchasing stones from specific countries, they’re
easily smuggled over borders and sold to manufacturers.
A conflict-free diamond, however, is carefully monitored
from the mine to the consumer, and is guaranteed have been procured without
violence, human rights abuses, or destroying the environment. The entire
process, from mining to cutting to polishing, is done ethically.
So how do you make sure your diamond studs aren’t supporting war
and poverty in Sierra Leone?
According to the Conflict Free
Diamond Council, the only way is to make sure that it has been traced back
to its source through a certified program.Currently, there are many popular retailers that have
conflict-free, eco-conscious lines, or only sell conflict-free jewelry. Brilliant
Earth only carries diamonds from the Diavik and the Ekati Mines in Canada, and Blue
Nile guarantees that their jewelry is ethically made with certified stones.
DeBeers, who controls 50-60% of the
world’s diamond market, is currently working to eliminate conflict and
non-certified diamonds from their lines.
With so many options to shop ethically, the only thing
left to feel guilty about is your bling’s price tag.
