During its formal session at the 2015 CIBJO Congress in Salvador, Brazil, the Pearl Commission discussed the CIBJO Guide for Grading Natural Pearls and Cultured Pearls, which had been submitted by Nick Paspaley of Australia.

Work on the Guide began following a decision at the Moscow Congress in 2014, which called on the Pearl Commission to consider at producing a document that describes a uniform system for pearl grading, said Pearl Commission President Ken Scarratt.

A number of people drove this initiative forward under the leadership of Pearl Commission Vice President Jeanne Lecourt.

Mr. Scarratt said he had received a number of lengthy edit requests for the Guide, which aims to help people understand what the issues that need to be looked at during pearl grading. Various parts of the Guide were reviewed during the Pearl Commission meeting, and it was agreed to continue with the project.

Earlier, it was agreed that the Pearl Commission Blue Book changes at the 2014 Congress be incorporated.

Mr. Scarratt said that a tremendous amount of work harmonising the Pearl Blue Book with the other Blue Books had been undertaken.

It had been decided during the steering committee meetings that preceded the congress that definitions be removed from the Table of Contents of the Pearl and the Coloured Stone Blue Books, and to add the Coral Commission to the list in the Foreword of the books.

It was also proposed for the Pearl Book to remove the concept of a general declaration of treatments and make everything specific.  This would be looked at in the coming year.

There was a discussion on what is a gem, with cultured pearl added to the definition, and whether it this consistent with harmonisation in three other Blue Books. This is because a cultured pearl is not grown without human intervention. It was recommended and accepted that there be no changes.

There was also a discussion over the use of the word “carat” in weighing artificial products, and objections from the floor of the meeting. Thomas Lind proposed that it be stated that  carat is equivalent to 200mg, as a way of resolving the issue. Mr. Lind’s proposal was accepted.

A special session focusing on issues related to Corporate Social Responsibility, which was held during the afternoon of the first day of the 2015 CIBJO Congress in Brazil, focused on issues related to CSR compliance and carbon neutrality in the jewellery industry.

Professor Donald Feaver, of the Branded Trust foundation, which is developing an online CSR compliance system for the jewellery and gemstone industry together with CIBJO, spoke about the new agenda in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) that is emerging.

He said that the jewellery industry has traditionally focused on supply chain issues. But, he added that there is a change taking place, with a connection between the “soft side,” which is sustainability, with the “hard side” which is finance. “Sustainability is moving into the CFO’s office, not the CSR office. CSR is turning from a cost into an investment with return expected,” he explained.

Talking of future trends to help CSR create return on investment, he said that programmes are coming that can capture and measure sustainability, and that there are improvement-driven computer techniques as opposed to performance auditing.

In addition, Dr. Feaver added, there is green energy optimisation linking carbon reduction to carbon trading, and automated social reporting and stock exchange disclosure reporting.

He said that CIBJO has recognised new trends and introduced a jewellery course for professionals with insights into the new CSR agenda. This gives new information, not the old, already-known information, as well as a practical approach for firms to apply it with online lessons and tests.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Kendall, President of CIBJO’s Marketing and Education Commission, spoke of the issue of how environmentally aware the jewellery sector is becoming. CIBJO provides direction with policies and sets an example for the industry.

“It is clear that our industry is going to be challenged over next 10 years and more on this issue. CIBJO can claim to be a carbon neutral organisation. We have led from the front and set an example. We are beginning to move forward,” he stated.

He said that, in the diamond pipeline, significant steps have been taken by companies such as Rio Tinto, Alrosa, De Beers, and Petra Diamonds in reducing emissions. The big retailers are also active, such as Signet, Walmart, Chow Tai Fook, Tiffany & Co and Gucci.

Kendall said that the issue is being driven by consumers, especially those under 35, and women, as they want to trust a brand or business. Most consumers are concerned about the environmental impact and sustainability and want to see a positive approach to those topics.

CIBJO started a jewellery industry carbon measurement initiative, which aims to set an industry standard, last year in Moscow ,with several early adopters, he said, adding that it is hoped to launch climate leadership awards.

This congress is the first-ever significant industry event to be carbon neutral, and it follows CIBJO having achieved carbon neutrality both in 2013 and 2014. Present in Salvador, and explaining the process to the session was Moya McKeown, an environmental consultant with Carbon Expert, which had assisted CIBJO in the process.

Fairtrade activist Greg Valerio pointed out that most of the jewellery industry is comprised of smaller firms not corporates, so they do not have the resources to implement CSR. “However, CIBJO has come far in the last two to three years. There is something significant happening here,” he stated.

Also addressing the session was Hanifa Mezoui, a senior advisor at the United Nations, who complemented the jewellery industry on its efforts to incorporate responsible social and environmental policies into its operation.

Photo Caption: CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri (center), holding the certificates presented by Carbon, attesting to the organisation’s achiving carbon neutrality in 2013 and 2014. He is flanked by Jonathan Kendall, President of CIBJO’s Marketing and Education Commission, and Moya McKeown, an environmental consultant with Carbon Expert.

The 2015 CIBJO annual congress started today in Salvador in the state of Bahia in Brazil. It is the first time that a CIBJO congress has been held in Latin America, and CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri began by paying special tribute to the representatives of Brazil’s federal government and Bahia’s state government, who were present at the gathering.

Dr. Cavalieri told the opening ceremony that although Brazil has always featured prominently as a source of raw materials, the congress would show its skills and ability as a design and production centre, and also as a market.

Paying tribute to the keynote speaker, Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, the High Representative of the Alliance of Civilizations, and Mr. Alberto Padova, the Officer in Charge of the NGO Branch in Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Dr. Cavalieri said CIBJO formally became associated with the UN’s Economic and Social Council in 2006. It has since expanded its mission and that of the international jewellery sector in general, to include a commitment to develop sustainable economic, social and environmental opportunities for all of our industry’s stakeholders, and especially those in developing countries, where the added value we can provide is most critically required.

“Our guiding light over this period were the Millennium Development Goals, and in particular we focused upon the call by the UN, in its Millennium Declaration, to develop strong partnerships with the private sector and with civil society, in pursuit of development and the eradication of poverty,” Dr. Cavalieri said.  “The jewellery industry, we felt, which is so invested in the developing world, has a special role to play. We may deal in a luxury, non-essential product, but in so many places our industry, and the revenue it generates is absolutely essential.”

The CIBJO President spoke of the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises, the reduced levels of financing available to the diamond industry, a cap on production by major mining companies. “There urgently needs to be a serious discussion, involving all sectors of the chain of distribution, about the distribution of debt and profit. The health of our industry depends upon it. CIBJO, where all stages of the chain of distribution are represented, would appear a natural forum for such a discussion.”

Hécliton Santini Henriques, President of the Brazilian jewellery industry trade group, IBGM, the organisation hosting the congress, said that bring the World Jewellery Confederation to Brazil provided a unique opportunity to show how important country is as a producer and consumer of precious stones and metals.

“Brazil is one of the most diversified exporters of a vast range of precious gemstones,” he stated. “We are the 11th largest producer of gold in the world, and the 16th biggest producer of gold jewelry. We are a diversified jewelry maker with innovative designs, and in 2014 we overtook South Korea as the second-biggest producer of gold-plated jewellery behind China.

Rui Costa, Governor of the State of Bahia, thanked CIBJO for choosing Salvador as the venue for its Congress. He also spoke about the importance of sustainable development. “We have a creative people and this can add value and bring jobs to Bahia. Minerals and jewellery can play a crucial role in the development of Bahia. Bahia is a land of opportunity.”

Delivering his keynote address, the UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, said his organisation’s mission is to support initiatives that allow people to prosper peacefully. It was established to develop concrete strategies for a better understanding between East and West.

“We know how wars have been fuelled by precious minerals in Africa. Diamonds instead of being a symbol of love can become a curse. But we also know how much diamonds can contribute to sustainable development,” he stated.

“The jewellery industry has a big role to play in UN goals by creating jobs and diminishing poverty and by cutting down illicit trafficking of stones. The work of CIBJO has been essential in promoting the goals of the United Nations with the Kimberley Process stemming the flow of illegally traded diamonds. You also promote ethical, environmental sustainable development issues.”

Carlos Nogueira Da Costa Jr., Secretary of Geology Mining and Mineral Production, who was standing in for Senator Eduardo Braga, Minister of Mines and Energy of the Republic of Brazil, explained that Brazil as an important player in the production of gems and also gold, which last year totalled $2.4 billion in exports. “We understand that hosting the CIBJO Congress will help us develop guidelines for the jewellery industry,” he said.

Alberto Padova, Officer in Charge, Department of Economic and Social Affairs at the UN, said although there has been great progress globally in reducing poverty and improving health care, there is enormous wealth and technical progress on the one hand and terror and poverty on the other. “There is a critical role for the private sector in promoting responsible business practices,” he stated. “Environmental concern is growing all the time. Consumers also want sustainable products. There is a growing number of civil society organisations promoting UN goals and holding governments to account. GIBJO’s Blue Books are great example of the role industry bodies can play in setting standards.”

Speaking in a video message Matteo Marzotto, the President of Fiera di Vicenza, told the Congress that it was significant that Brazil was first country in Latin America to host a CIBJO Congress.

Referring to Fiera di Vicenza’s agreement to work with CIBJO on its CSR educational programme, within the United Nations’ framework, he said: “We have been working in cooperation with CIBJO for many years. We strongly believe that it is crucial that the industry works according to well-defined standards. Jewellery must be beautiful not just in form but in spirit as well.”

The latter section of the Opening Session featured a set of presentations by Brazilian mining companies and interests.

Marcello Ribeiro presented the Belmont company and its responsible sourcing of emeralds. The mine in Minais Gerais state was discovered in 1978.

Ribeiro said that 12 tons of earth must be moved for the recovery of just three carats of emeralds. The business is highly capital and labour intensive and involves a high degree of risk, he said. He said that the Belmont mine had been the first coloured gemstone mine in the world to introduce optical sorting of stones.

Belmont’s environmental impact mitigation policy brings the firm in compliance with national regulations, he stated, which helps to improve the company image to stakeholders, motivates employees, improves community recognition, improves consumer confidence.

Ribeiro added that the firm invest in human resources and social responsibility in order to develop and motivate its workers by providing fair salaries, investing in education, providing growth opportunities, hiring according to national labour laws and ensuring that there is no child labour.

He said that the firm creates value by ensuring a steady supply to clients, certification of goods, fair trade practices, and conflict-free gems.

Francisco Silveira, ofthe Brazil Geological Service CPRM, Diamond Project, explained that although diamonds were discovered in Brazil in 1725, its current share of global production is just 0.04 percent. However, he suggested the figure was probably higher because a large proportion of mining in Brazil is informal.

Silveira added that investment in exploration in Brazil has remained very low and there is a huge gap between how much is invested in Brazil versus Canada and Africa.

Also addressing the session were Hari Alexandre Brust, President of the CBPM mineral research company, who spoke about mining opportunities in Bahia, and Fábio Borges and José Paulo Donatti of the Lipari mining company, which is set to become the first kimberlite mining operation in Brazil, and should greatly increase the volume of rough diamonds being produced in the country.

The jewelry industry has a major role to play in the sustainable development agenda of the United Nations, said Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, the High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, in his keynote address to the CIBJO Congress, which opened today in Bahia, Salvador.

The full text of his speech follows:

It is a pleasure for me to join you at the annual Congress of CIBJO in this beautiful city of Salvador. I understand that this is the first time that CIBJO holds its annual Congress in Brazil. This choice is quite appropriate in view of the tremendous dynamic economy of Brazil and its importance in sustainable development.

As High-Representative of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, it is my mission to support initiatives that allow people and communities to prosper in a peaceful environment.

Allow me to tell you in a few words what the Alliance of Civilizations is. The Alliance was established by the international community to develop concrete strategies for a better understanding between the Western and Eastern worlds. It is my strong belief that by bringing together these two civilizations, which have coexisted for centuries, we can stem the movement of terrorism and extreme violence that has risen throughout the world since the beginning of this Millennium.

Terrorism arises where there is a lack of dialogue and respect among communities with different ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds. Wars and terrorism also arise when there is a lack of economic opportunities. Respect for cultural and religious diversity and sustainable development are inseparable. One cannot exist without the other.

When people feels desperate, they feel disfranchised from the core of society. This is especially true for the youth, one of the focuses of the Alliance.  We fund projects to advance intercultural and interfaith dialogue between young people. We are a platform for providing educational material about the world’s diverse religions and beliefs. We aim to enhance relations between migrants and host societies. We support an open media that reports facts and information devoid of prejudice.

Without going too far in history, we know how the lack of respect for the indigenous culture and the exploitation of the native populations in an insatiable search for gold, silver and precious stones have plagued South America for centuries. More recently, we know how much illicit traffic of diamonds has fueled brutal civil conflicts in Africa. Uncontrolled mining of diamonds has sparkled violence, exploitation of workers and has contributed to environmental degradation. Diamonds instead of being the symbol of love, joy and the source of stable investments can become a curse when exploited for illegitimate gains.

However, we also know how much diamonds and the jewelry industry can contribute to sustainable development. The jewelry industry fuels job-growth in the various fields that are part of the long production line of jewelry. It is a driving force in both developed and developing countries to support creativity, culture and education.  It is a thinking-tank for the new technologies associated with the extraction of precious stones, the design and manufacture of jewelry.

The jewelry industry has a major role to play in the sustainable development agenda of the United Nations. By fueling the creation of jobs, the jewelry industry can help to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. By providing education opportunities, the jewelry industry increases individual’s human potentials and provides the means for a productive life. By cutting down illegal traffic of precious stones, the industry supports fair trade and transparent financing. By developing strict standards for the extraction of precious stones and metals, the jewelry industry contributes to the protection of the environment.

Jewelry is an essential part of human heritage. Since the dawn of civilization, the jewels have been an expression of human creativity. Before technology allowed artisans to fashion jewels out of precious metals and stones, our ancestors used what nature provided them through bones, plants, stones to develop the art of jewel. Jewelry is also a way for humans to communicate. It showcases wealth, culture and religious affiliation. Jewelry is timeless and as old as humanity. Gifts of jewelry are ways to express affection and to help different cultural groups to bridge their differences.

I know how much the actions of CIBJO and the World Jewelry Confederation have been instrumental in fostering the goals of the United Nations. With the adoption of the Kimberly Process, an international control and certification system, CIBJO through the World Diamond Council was influencial in the creation of the coalition between government, industry and civil society to implement it. Together they supported the creation of a framework to stem the flow of diamonds that are traded illegally and that contribute to bloodshed, human rights abuse and civil wars.

In this respect, I would like to pay special tribute to Mr. Eli Izhakoff, who as the founding president of the World Diamond Council played an absolutely instrumental role in the establishment and implementation of the Kimberley Process, which all but eliminated the incidence of conflict diamonds from the pipeline. He provided an excellent role model for what can be achived when there is open dialogue between government, business and civil society.

In 2006, the United Nations recognized under the leadership of its President, Mr. Gaetano Cavalieri, and the importance of CIBJO and decided that the ability of the United Nations to reach its goals would be enhanced with a formal relationship with the organization.  CIBJO was granted the status of consultative status to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

Since then, CIBJO has reinforced its commitment to the United Nations and has taken on a series of measures for the jewelry industry to be an effective partner in finding solutions to eradicate poverty, hunger and develop responsible business practices. CIBJO constantly reinforces the message that the jewelry industry must follow the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The protection of human rights, labour and environmental issues, business codes of ethics, corporate social investment, corporate sustainability and governance issues are all essential for the growth of the jewelry industry.

Let me also recognise Fiera di Vicenza, its president Matteo Marzotto, and managing director, Corrado Facco, which is working with CIBJO to involve the jewellery industry in the ECOSOC programme. These type of partnerships are absolutely essential in helping build stronger and more sustainable societies.

The protection of the environment remains a key concern for CIBJO. It is clear that mineral extraction if not managed properly can have disastrous impact on the environment. I am pleased to hear that CIBJO is fully committed to the application of norms to minimize the impact of the industry on the environment and to robust and successful environmental management. Energy use and emissions, waste and recycling and use of water are all challenges that CIBJO intends to address.

I am also aware of the commitment of CIBJO to sustainable responsible business. CIBJO ensures the compliance of its members with the spirit of the law, ethical standards and international norms. CSR goes beyond compliance. CIBJO established an education foundation to promote the principles of CSR throughout the greater jewelry industry worldwide. With its educational projects, it engages in actions that further the common social good. It has designed together with the United Nations, a programme to educate members of the diamond, gemstone and jewelry industries, all over the world and in all sectors, from mine to market, about the principles of Corporate Social Responsibility, and how they may implement these principles in their businesses.            

This coming September, world leaders will assemble at the United Nations and adopt a list of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Although the world has evolved in many ways, it still needs to move forward in matters of transparency, anti-corruption, governance and coordination. This is a crucial step in reducing disparities and creating a successful global partnership. As the close to the Milennium Development Goals (MDG) period nears in 2015, we will conclude a tough yet momentous 15 years. The year 2015 brings promises of a new era—one of positive change and continued growth.

Economic development, eradication of poverty and hunger, education are the prerequisites for a world devoid of conflict. CIBJO can be proud to be an esteemed partner of the United Nations in its commitment to a peaceful and prosperous world.

The jewellery sector is testament to the fact that “with knowledge, talent, hard work and perseverance, a community of smaller companies can create an industry that generates close to $170 billion per annum, and provides a living and a hope for a better future for its millions of members and stakeholders,” said CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri, during the opening session of the World Jewellery Confederation’s congress, which opened in Salvador, Brazil, today. But, he added, smaller and medium sized companies are operating under increasingly difficult conditions.

The full text of his speech follows:

It is now my honour to present the President’s Report.  Unsurprisingly, and I say “unsurprisingly” because such has been the case for many years already, it has been an eventful year both for CIBJO and our industry, with numerous challenges and opportunities.

Indeed, there is insufficient time for me to cover all the pertinent topics on our agenda. Consequently, in addition to today’s address, I also have prepared a written report, which you all will receive by email. I encourage you read it.

Today, in my address, I will focus on a number of the subjects and themes contained in the report.

I will begin by paying tribute to representatives of Brazil’s federal government and the State of Bahia, H.E. Senator Eduardo Braga, the Minister of Mines and Energy of the Republic of Brazil, and H.E. Governor Rui Costa, the Chief Executive of the State of Bahia.

It is a privilege to be in your country and your state, and an honour to have you with us today. For many of our members and guests, this visit is an introduction to Brazil and Bahia, and, as one who has already has enjoyed the experience, I can testify that the beauty, hospitality and promise of the country and region can be overwhelming.

Brazil has always featured prominently on our industry’s radar, but mainly as a source of raw materials. This congress will broaden that perspective, showing its skill and ability as a design and production centre, and also a market. It may the first visit for some, but it is unlikely to be their last.

Allow me also to pay tribute to our guests from the United Nations, including H.E. Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, the High Representative of the Alliance of Civilizations. With him is Mr. Alberto Padova, the Officer in Charge of the NGO Branch in Department of Economic and Social Affairs. We also greet an old friend, Dr. Hanifa Mezoui, who was the UN officer who greeted and guided CIBJO into ECOSOC, and who has accompanied us ever since.

Since CIBJO formally became associated with the UN’s Economic and Social Council in 2006, we have expanded our mission, and I believe that of the international jewellery sector in general, to include a commitment to develop sustainable economic, social and environmental opportunities for all of our industry’s stakeholders, and especially those in developing countries, where the added value we can provide is most critically required.

Our guiding light over this period were the Millennium Development Goals, and in particular we focused upon the call by the UN, in its Millennium Declaration, to develop strong partnerships with the private sector and with civil society, in pursuit of development and the eradication of poverty.  The jewellery industry, we felt, which is so invested in the developing world, has a special role to play. We may deal in a luxury, non-essential product, but in so many places our industry, and the revenue it generates is absolutely essential.

When the Millennium Development goals were declared at the turn of the century, the United Nations set a deadline of 15 years for them to be realised. 2015 is upon us, and, as our friends from the United Nations can attest, great progress has been made. But the job is far from over.

Each year ECOSOC declares a theme, which sets the tone for the programmes it runs over the course of the year. This year the theme is “managing the transition from the Millennium Development Goals to the sustainable development goals: what it will take?”

I would propose that, among others things, it will take an approach that we have been promoting for the all the years that we have been associated with ECOSOC, and that is, in the developing world, to provide education, skills and grass-roots opportunities. As it said, one can provide a short-term solution to a starving man by giving him a fish to eat, but, if you teach him how to fish, you have provided a long-term solution as well.

De Beers set a sterling example of this approach, when it moved the nerve-centre of its rough diamond sorting and distribution system from London to Gaborone in Botswana. It was not only a matter of creating jobs in an African country, but also transferring knowledge, skills and experience, the effects of which will resonate throughout the country’s economy for many years to come.

That was what a large corporation can do, but I actually believe that, from the development perspective, the jewellery industry can do so much more, because it is at its core a business made up of small and medium-sized enterprises, or SMEs, almost all of which started from the ground up.

We are testament to the fact that with knowledge, talent, hard work and perseverance, a community of smaller companies can create an industry that generates close to $170 billion per annum, and provides a living and a hope for a better future for its millions of members and stakeholders.

From our experience, one of the things that SMEs do best is they generate more SMEs. The sons and daughters in family-owned companies frequently set up their own companies, where they can express themselves and provide independent livings for their individual families. It is inherently sustainable business enterprise.

It is that sort of grass-roots involvement that can turn lofty Millennium Development Goals into long-term sustainable goals.

But we cannot take the existence of our small and medium-sized enterprises for granted. In the developed markets and production centres, they are a sector coming under increasing pressure, where a range of factors that disadvantage them have combined, making it increasingly difficult to stay in business.

For a long while already, producers of raw materials have favoured dealing with larger companies, making the SMEs reliant on the secondary trade, where prices are higher and supply less steady and plentiful.

But the catchphrase of the past year has been bankability, particularly in the diamond sector.  The lack of liquidity, particularly in important production and wholesale centres like India, have caused the producers to recalibrate policies about who they sell merchandise to.  At the same time, banks have reduced their profile in the industry.

Over the past several weeks, major mining companies have decided to reduce the level at which they cap production, releasing less supply into the chain of distribution. This is despite the fact that, in the consumer markets, demand for our product is growing.

The decision by De Beers to require that its clients maintain a minimum level of personal equity in their business is what most would consider sound business advice. But, once again it limits the manoeuvrability of SMEs in the industry.

The liquidity problem is a direct result of an absurd situation that has developed in our industry over a period of more than 20 years. It is directly related to the fact that the credit burden primarily rests on the mid-section of the jewellery and gemstone pipeline.

Rough producers generally demand to be paid in full upfront or on supply, and retailers have become used to generous terms of credit. It is that mid-section, made up of dealers and manufacturers, where profit margins are lowest, which largely finances our industry. Given recent events, this would seem to be an unsustainable situation.

There urgently needs to be a serious discussion, involving all sectors of the chain of distribution, about the distribution of debt and profit. The health of our industry depends upon it.

CIBJO, where all stages of the chain of distribution are represented, would appear a natural forum for such a discussion.

SMEs are also pressured by the voluntary regulatory procedures, including chain of custody systems, which have raised the bar of entry into the business to levels that some feel they are unable to afford.

In principle we recognise and respect the need for chain of custody protection, and we have worked hard to find solutions that would expand the ability of all ethical participants in the industry to achieve an acceptable degree of compliance.

At the beginning of this year, after years of planning and preparation, we announced that the jewellery industry’s first web-based Corporate Social Responsibility compliance system would soon be launched. It was developed by CIBJO together with Branded Trust Assurance Systems, which also will be responsible for its management.

The agreement with Branded Trust is scheduled to be finalised at the CIBJO Congress in Brazil.

As Don Feaver of Branded Trust will explain in the CSR session this afternoon, the system is geared to providing practical and economic solutions to all companies in the industry seeking to achieve and manage social compliance, develop risk management policies and do social reporting.

Another session that will take place this afternoon will consider the integrity of grading reports.

I believe that we are all aware of disturbing reports about gem labs deliberately over-grading gemstones, allegedly in collusion with customers.

The discussion that resulted was equally disturbing, because it raised the argument that, in the absence of an international accepted and harmonised grading system, no grade can be legally challenged.

It is a situation that challenges our integrity, which in a business such as ours is our most precious asset. We have our work cut for us over the coming three days in Brazil.

May we all have a successful congress.

The volume of detail provided in the CIBJO Blue Books was at the centre of the discussions held by the Coloured StoneCommission meeting.

The meeting was chaired by the Commission Vice President Charles Abouchar, since the Commission President Nilam Alawdeen was unable to attend the meeting for personal reasons.

Speaking to the meeting, Mr. Abouchar reported that changes to the Coloured StoneCommission Blue Book had been looked at, and adjustments were made made to bring it into line with other Blue Books.

Sector A President Roland Naftule explained that the Sector A commissions often run into difficulties relating to changes to the Blue Books. “They are extremely complicated and detailed and require a lot of work,” he explained. “Changes that are requested might cause a change somewhere else in the document. I will suggest to the CIBJO Board that any request for changes made 15 days or less before the Congress should not be allowed because there is no time for the books to be modified. Only if there are major mistakes should they be addressed in the pre-congress meetings.”

Sector A Vice President Thomas Lind said an overview of the charts, which would simplify understanding of the Blue Books, was provided at the 2014 congress. “This would be a tool for a much better overview of the contents to give jewellers and others easy access to the information in them. After the last congress, I prepared a basic chart showing the basic terms relating to gemstones. We would include in the future the clauses and their numbers so people can more easily see them in the Blue Books. We will provide a further update at the next congress.”

Mr. Naftule said the Blue Books now run 60 to 100 pages and provide a lot of detail. “To a layperson the details are too much but to a professional they are not. If we don’t have well laid out rules then we run into confusion. The rules are useful but not to everyone. A decision needs to be made if we need a simplified or more complicated book. We have talked about a simplified version for the last four years. Most countries do not use English as their main language so it is translated into local languages and it is difficult to translate them with all the details, so a condensed document makes sense.”

Menahem Sevdermish, who runs the EGL lab and school in Israel mainly for gemstones, said his lab has been quite easily implementing CIBJO’s rules for many years. “. Even for me, an expert gemmologist, the Blue Books are far too complicated. So a shortened version could be a solution. The books are perfectly correct in what they say but they are complicated.”

“The U.S rules about gemstones trading is very complex,” said Cecilia Gardner, President of the CIBJO Ethics Commission and CEO of the Jewelers Vigilance Committee in the United States “The FTC decided 15 years ago to write a plain English version which explains in simple language what the laws require from any particular part of the trade to stay in compliance with the law. A shortened version should focus on: ‘Here is what you need to do in your business practices to be in compliance with the law’.”

There was also a discussion on disclosure of treatments. Mr. Naftule explained that according to CIBJO rules most treatments fell into a general disclosure category which are generally acceptable to the trade, for example the heat treatment of corundum and the colourless oiling of emeralds which represents a very large portion of these species. But then there are other treatments, such as irradiation, which are less acceptable. However, as long as they are properly disclosed, then that is acceptable.”

It had been proposed and approved for review to eliminate the general disclosure practice, and instead require and that everything comes under a specific disclosure which should be verbally disclosed to the consumer at the time of sale and disclosed in writing on commercial documents. The Coloured Stone Commission has been asked to review this issue and recommend how to deal with full disclosure.

Photo Caption: CIBJO Sector A President Roland Naftule addressing the Coloured Stone Commission, as Vice President of the commission, Charles Abouchar, look on.