AUGUST 25, 2015

With the submission of a report that carefully details the carbon footprint of this year’s CIBJO Congress, which took place in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil, May 4-6, 2015, and the purchase by CIBJO of offsetting carbon credits, the annual gathering of the World Jewellery Confederation is to officially become the first-ever major event in the industry to qualify as carbon neutral.

Carbon-Expert, an environmental consulting organisation that for two years has worked together with CIBJO to ensure that its daily operations are carbon neutral, submitted the completed carbon footprint report earlier this month. This is the first time that an industry event has been rendered carbon neutral, and the goal is that it will be used as a template for future events organized by CIBJO, and in general become a model that can be applied elsewhere in the jewellery sector.

Complying with ISO 14064, which specifies how to quantify and report greenhouse gas  (GHG) emissions and removals, and applying ISO 20121, which offers guidance and best practice for controlling the environmental impact of events, Carbon-Expert carefully measured the carbon footprint of the 2015 CIBJO Congress, accounting for carbon gas emission generated at the congress venue itself, and also by congress participants in their preparation and traveling to and from the event.

In total, about 600 tons of greenhouse gas emissions were associated with the congress, and CIBJO will now purchase carbon credits in order to offset them, and so render the event carbon neutral.

“By making this congress Carbon Neutral, CIBJO is sending a clear message to the industry that all events should wherever possible be carbon neutral, thus minimizing their environmental impact, in order to drive the industry forward and secure the long term future of everyone’s business,” wrote Moya McKeown, an environmental consultant at Carbon-Expert, in the report’s introduction.

“The activities of CIBJO’s Secretariat and administration were certified as carbon neutral both in 2013 and 2014, and we are now expanding the programme to include other activities,” said CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri. “Obviously, our carbon footprint represents just a small percentage of that of the entire jewellery sector, but we hope that we serve as a role model for others, who like us are a committed to our industry operating in an environmentally responsible manner. The feedback so far has been most positive.

 “CIBJO has worked towards achieving carbon neutrality for itself since 2013 and, having achieved that goal by the end of 2014, the next step was to focus on the congress,” said Jonathan Kendall, President of CIBJO’s Education and Marketing Commission, who has stood at the vanguard of the organisation’s environmental  campaign. “Now we have achieved carbon neutrality for the Congress held in Brazil in May of this year, our next goal is to encourage and support our members and non-members in the industry to realise the importance of achieving a good environmental record.”

“A number of trade organisations and companies are now working with CIBJO to achieve their own carbon neutral status and we will continue to focus on developing this programme over the coming years,” Mr Kendall added. “It is clear the ‘millennia consumer’ is highly aware of the environment, and as the jewellery industry is so dependent on continuing to attract new customers, the industry must meet this challenge head on.”

The complete carbon foot print report for the 2015 CIBJO Congress can be downloaded from the CIBJO website by CLICKING HERE.

JULY 27, 2015

CIBJO has welcomed the publication of ISO International Standard 18323, entitled “Jewellery — Consumer confidence in the diamond industry,” which specifies a set of permitted descriptors for the diamond industry that are designed to be understood by consumers. The new ruling by the International Standards Organisation explicitly defines a diamond as having been “created by nature” and further notes that “the denomination ‘diamond’ without further specification always implies ‘natural diamond.’”

The new ISO International Standard mirrors the definitions outlined in CIBJO’s Diamond Blue Book, which are aligned with those of the International Diamond Council (IDC). The Diamond Blue Book, the IDC Rules, and also the PAS 1048 documents, relating to terminology and classification of grading polished diamonds that were developed by CIBJO with the support of the German Standards Institute (DIN), were cited as the primary sources in the ISO International Standard’s bibliography.

The new standard defines nomenclature that must be used, and also nomenclature that cannot be used, in the buying and selling of diamonds, treated diamonds and synthetic diamonds. In particular, it outlines how to describe synthetic diamonds in a clear and accurate manner. It does not specifically address the grading of diamonds.

The new ISO International Standard defines a synthetic diamond as “an artificial product that has essentially the same chemical composition, crystal structure and physical (including optical) properties as a diamond.” The only permissible terms that may be used to describe it are “synthetic diamond,” “laboratory-grown diamond” or “laboratory-created diamond,” and no abbreviations can be used.

ISO International Standard 18323 unambiguously bars the use of adjectives such as “cultured” and “cultivated,” as well as “real,” “genuine,” “precious” and “gem” to describe any synthetic diamond. The use of such words can be considered deceptive. Furthermore it states, brand names and manufacturers’ names combined with the word “diamond” are insufficient means of disclosure when applied to synthetic diamonds.

The new standard describes a treated diamond as a “diamond having undergone any human intervention other than cutting, polishing, cleaning and setting, to permanently or non-permanently change its appearance.” It states that any diamond having been subject to a treatment shall be disclosed as a “treated diamond,” and/or include a specific reference to the particular treatment. The description must be immediately apparent and unambiguous, and no abbreviations may be used. The new standard furthermore emphasises that the terms “natural treated diamond” or “treated natural diamond” must not be used because they can be misleading. Any special care requirements that should be considered because of a particular treatment must be disclosed.

The process to obtain the new ISO standard began seven years ago in Europe, with CIBJO serving as the lead organisation in a coalition that also included De Beers, Rio Tinto, BHP and the International Diamond Council. Two years ago, it was decided to develop an ISO standard together with a European one, in accordance with the Vienna Agreement, which coordinates work between ISO and CEN, the European Committee for Standardisation. A European or CEN standard that matches ISO International Standard 18323 will be published in several months’ time, although in any case the international standard supersedes the regional one.

The Chairman of the Technical Committee that oversaw the formulation of ISO International Standard 18323 is Harry Levy, who also serves as Vice President of CIBJO’s Diamond Commission.

“This a development of the utmost importance, not only for us in the industry, but first and foremost for jewellery consumers, who are now better protected through international conventions than they previously were,” said Gaetano Cavalieri, CIBJO President. “We are particularly proud, because the ISO standard essentially codifies our Diamond Blue Book rules.”

“A number of individuals need to be commended for what has been years of effort and commitment,” Dr. Cavalieri added. “In addition to Harry Levy, who once again made an invaluable contribution to our industry, thanks are due to Jean-Marc Liberherr, Andy Bone, Stephane Fischler, Tom Nutt, Gerard Grospiron and Dieter Hahn. I would also like to pay special tribute to Rudi Biehler. They all deserve our gratitude.”

MAY 14, 2015

“Socially responsibility is a way of life. It should never be considered a strategic alternative, which a business may select to increase revenue or to provide itself with a competitive advantage,” said CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri, speaking yesterday in Milan to students in the MBA Global Business and Sustainability program at ALTIS – Postgraduate Business & Society, the business school of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, the largest private university in Europe and the largest Catholic University in the world.

In a wide-ranging presentation, Dr. Cavalieri described to the students, who hail from countries around the globe, the development of CSR strategies in the jewellery business, and the specific obligations to society that should be assumed by a luxury product sector.

“We deal in what commonly are considered luxury items,” he stated. “In other words fine jewellery is non-essential, unlike food, energy or pharmaceutical products. Consequently, in the big scheme of things, there is a tendency to view our industry as having limited significance.  But that is not the case. On a global scale the number of individuals directly and indirectly employed by the greater jewellery industry runs into millions, and there are entire countries whose economic wellbeing is dependent upon the products we produce and sell.”

With the increasing public interest in CSR, and with the private sector’s responsibility toward the greater society becoming a fixture in many business school programmes, Dr. Cavalieri has been invited to lecture before numerous academic forums about the specific programmes introduced in the jewellery trade. Among the universities at which he has lectured are the Polytechnic University of Milan and Sciences Po, the Paris Institute of Political Studies.