APRIL 20, 2016

WJCEF (World Jewellery Confederation Education Foundation), the educational arm of CIBJO, has announced the launch of a six-lesson course on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for jewellery, diamond, coloured gemstone, pearls, coral and precious metal professionals, in association with Branded Trust Education of Australia.

The online course, called “CSR for the Jewellery Professional” was developed by a team of world-recognized experts specifically for the jewellery, gemstone and precious metals industries, along its entire supply chain. Graduates who successfully complete its requirements will receive a Level 1 Certificate of Accreditation, issued by WJCEF.

“Our goal in developing the course is to enable all members of the industry, at the mining, manufacturing, wholesale and retail levels, from management through to sales staff, to obtain a practical understanding of CSR and sustainability, as it applies to the jewellery business today,” explained Gaetano Cavalieri, the CIBJO and WJCEF President.  “To an ever-increasing degree, a jewellery company is expected to ensure that its staff is CSR-educated and proficient. This course is designed to make that possible.”

Students of the course will access each of the six lessons via a dedicated website, where subject-matter experts will instruct them on a range of key topics. Every lesson includes a video lecture, downloadable readings that at the end of the course can be compiled into a book on CSR, and links to other relevant readings and websites.

At the conclusion of each lesson a student will be given a test to gauge his or her understanding of key terms and concepts, and at the end of the course students will be required to submit an essay. A total assessment score of greater than 60 percent will be required before a student will be awarded the WJCEF Certificate of Recognition.

The six lessons are:

• “Practical Definitions of CSR,” presented by Professor Michael Segun, Director of CSR Studies at the University of Central Queensland, Australia.
• “Major CSR Issues Affecting the Jewellery Industry,” presented by Professor Benedict Sheehy, Professor of Law at the University of Canberra, Australia, and a widely published expert in corporate governance and CSR.
• “The Business Case for CSR,” presented by Marcel Kreis, former Chairman and Managing Director, Private Banking, Credit Suisse Asia-Pacific, current Chairman of the Myer Family Company and CEO and Managing Director of Branded Trust Assurance Systems.
• “Tools and Approaches for Implementing CSR,” presented by Mr. Miguel Popopa Guerrero, and environmental and sustainability engineer, recently with the Mexican Chamber of Industry and now with Branded Trust.
• “Making ‘Green’ Claims and Consumer Protection Law,” by Dr. Donald Feaver, former law professor and now the Chief Technology Officer of Branded Trust Assurance Systems, who is an expert in international and transnational regulatory systems.
• “Professional CSR Accreditation,” presented by Ms. Maria Stradlund, a sustainability consultant from Stockholm, Sweden.

Initially the six-lesson course is being offered only in English. The cost per student is U.S. $300.

For more information and to register for the six-lesson “CSR for the Jewellery Professional” course, go to: http://cibjo-csr.btassurance.com/.

MARCH 24, 2016

CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation, has launched a new main website. Located on the web at www.cibjo.org, it represents a technological upgrade from its predecessor, providing users with more information about the organization and the  jewellery sector, as well as improved functionality.

The launch of the website is the first stage of a three-part upgrade of CIBJO’s online presence, which will be rolled out over the coming few weeks. It will be followed by the inauguration of a members-only module, called “MY CIBJO,” which will provide online services for members of the organisation and its various professional committees, called commissions, and then by the release of a CIBJO app for mobile phones and tablet computers.

“For CIBJO, the website is our primary medium for presenting our organisation and the work that we that we do on behalf of the jewellery and gemstone sectors, as well as for achieving connectivity between our member organisations, office holders and constituents,” explained Gaetano Cavalieri, the CIBJO President. “We have had an online presence for more than a decade and have expanded and evolved it as the technology has improved. But we now felt it was time for a fundamental overhaul, involving more than just an oil change, but rather a replacement of the both the engine and the operating system.”

The newly launched website is designed so that it can be grown organically, adding an ever-increasing amount of information about CIBJO and the the issues facing the international jewellery and gemstone sector. It also will serve as a platform upon which CIBJO is able to deliver its tools and services for the industry, including its Blue Books of industry standards and nomenclature for the diamond, coloured gemstone, pearl, coral and precious metals sectors, and also gemmological laboratories.  For non-CIBJO members, certain of these are available at a nominal fee, payable via the website.

MARCH 2, 2016

The implementation of environmentally sound practices in both the coral harvesting and pearl farming sectors came under the spotlight today at the Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Jewellery Show, with the discussion focusing not only the means to protect the fragile marine ecosystem, but also the need to present the members of the industry as responsible corporate citizens.

The seminar was sponsored by CIBJO, in conjunction with the Italian Trade Commission. As world leaders in the design and manufacture of both pearl and coral jewellery, Italians have stood at the forefront in the research and development of environmentally responsible pearl farming and coral harvesting methods.

“The long-term viability of both the pearl and coral sectors in the jewellery industry is dependent on the development and implementation of responsible practices, which both protect and facilitate the renewal of a bio-diverse marine environment, promoting higher quality and more sustainable resources,” said CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri. “Our efforts in this respect are part of a comprehensive program to promote sustainable environmental policies in the sector, which also includes the CIBJO Jewellery Industry Greenhouse Gas Measurement Initiative promoting carbon footprint and offsetting, through the purchase of carbon credits.”

Greeting participants in the seminar was Paola Guida, the Italian Trade Commissioner in Hong Kong, who noted that the event underscored the Italian jewellery industry’s commitment to ethical and sustainable environmental practices.

In addition to Dr Cavalieri and Ms. Guida, the panel of speakers at the seminar included:

• Enzo Liverino, President of the CIBJO Coral Commission, who provided an overview of corporate social responsibility and sustainable marine practices in the coral industry.
• Laurent Cartier, Project Manager at the Swiss Gemmological Institute SSEF, who provided an overview of corporate social responsibility and sustainable marine practices in the pearl industry.
• Russell Hanigan, from the Paspaley Pearling Company, who described pearl farming practices off the north-western coast of Australia.
• Jacques Christophe Branellec, Vice President of the CIBJO Pearl Commission and Executive Vice President of Jewelmer Joaillerie, who described environmental aspects of pearl farming in the Philippines.
• George Lu, Vice President of the CIBJO Coral Commission, who described environmental aspects of coral harvesting in the South Asia Seas.
• Tommaso Mazza, President of the Association for the Manufacture of Coral, Cameos and Jewellery (Assocoral) in Italy, who looked at the legal aspects of coral harvesting in the Mediterranean region.
• Dr. Cristina Del Mare, an ethnologist, orientalist and jewellery industry historian, who provided an historical perspective of coral harvesting in the Mediterranean.

Seminar participants (from left): Tommaso Mazza, President of Assocoral; George Lu, Vice President of the CIBJO Coral Commission; Aurelio Cavalieri; Dr. Cristina Del Mare; Enzo Liverino, President of the CIBJO Coral Commission; Paola Guida, Italian Trade Commissioner in Hong Kong; Dr. Gaetano Cavalieri,  CIBJO President; Russell Hanigan, Paspaley Pearling Company; Laurent Cartier, Project Manager at the Swiss Gemmological Institute SSEF; and Jacques Christophe Branellec, Vice President of the CIBJO Pearl Commission.

In his presentation, Mr Liverino highlighted the ratification in 2015 of CIBJO’s Coral Blue Book, which is the latest addition to the organisation’s sets of industry standards and nomenclature, joining Blue Books dedicated to diamonds, coloured gemstones, pearls, precious metals and gemmological laboratories.

The ultimate aim of the Blue Book of Coral is to protect consumers’ confidence in the coral industry through careful and documented definitions, clauses and rules, Mr Liverino said. “The stability in any jewellery market depends up on the use of the proper nomenclature and the declaration of all known facts, to ensure a fully informed purchase or sale throughout the distribution pipeline, all the way to the final consumer,” he stated.

JANUARY 24, 2016

Corporate Social Responsibility strategy in the gemstone and jewellery sectors came under focus at a well-attended seminar conducted during the VICENZAORO January trade show, in Vicenza, Italy, on January 24. The seminar was part of CIBJO’s and Fiera di Vicenza’s joint programme to promote CSR education in the jewellery sector, and also was supported by Gemfields PLC, the world’s largest coloured gemstone mining company.

The basic premise of the seminar is that, in the current business environment, CSR no longer is a practice that one chooses to follow or not. It has become a required component of every company and organization in the industry, which individually must be able to describe its approach, and if possible quantify it. There was a special focus on the coloured gemstone sector, with three of the speakers associated with that industry.

The panel of speakers at the seminar included:

• Dr Gaetano Cavalieri, President of CIBJO, who spoke of CSR as an essential business strategy in the jewellery sector.
• Corrado Facco, Managing Director of Fiera di Vicenza and President of CIBJO’s International Trade Fair Commission, who provided a concise introduction of Corporate Social Responsibility in the jewellery sector.
• Eduardo Escobedo, Executive Director of the Responsible Ecosystems Sourcing Platform (RESP), who discussed sustainability and responsible environmental strategies in the coloured gemstone sector.
• Ian Harebottle, CEO of GemFields PLC, who presented his company as a case study for implementing CSR principles in the coloured gemstone sector.
• Dr Donald Feaver, Chief Technical Officer of Branded Trust Assurance Systems, who outlined supply chain and CSR compliance strategies.
• Paolo Cesari, President of Assogemme, the Italian Association Precious Gemstones and Related Material, who described his organisation’s programme to create and introduce a supply chain compliance system for the Italian coloured gemstone sector.

The moderator of the seminar was Steven Benson, CIBJO’s Director of Communications.

“To present your company as a firm with a social conscience not presents it in a positive light, but also communicates to consumers that, when they buy jewellery, they are making a positive contribution to society,” said Mr. Facco, during his introduction. “In the modern business environment it is not enough to just behave correctly, you have to be seen to be behaving correctly.”

“Through Corporate Social Responsibility we can safeguard the long-term health of our industry”” Dr. Cavalieri said in his address. “By showing our commitment to our stakeholders, demonstrating that they too will be provided with fair and equitable opportunities to benefit from the jewellery enterprise, they will be incentivised to invest and reinvest in their future and that of the entire industry.

Download the presentations delivered at the CSR seminar:

• Dr Gaetano Cavalieri (CIBJO): CSR as an essential business strategy in the jewellery sector. [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION][DOWNLOAD NOTES]

• Corrado Facco (Fiera di Vicenza): Introduction to Corporate Social Responsibility in the jewellery sector. [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION][DOWNLOAD NOTES]

• Eduardo Escobedo (RESP): Sustainability and responsible environmental strategies in the coloured gemstone sector. [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION]

• Ian Harebottle (Gemfields): Gemfields as a case study for implementing CSR principles in the coloured gemstone sector. [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION]

• Dr Donald Feaver (Branded Trust): Supply chain and CSR compliance strategies. [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION]

• Paolo Cesari ( Assogemme): The programme to create and introduce a supply chain compliance system for the Italian coloured gemstone sector. [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION] *In Italian

• Steven Benson (Moderator): Introduction to seminar and speakers [DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION][DOWNLOAD NOTES]