Fair gold & jewellery
More than 70% of colored gemstones come from small-scale miners, who often live in exploitative and impoverished conditions. Most gold used in the jewellery industry cannot be traced to a known source. Much mining is deeply entangled with environmental destruction, human rights violations and violence in the countries where it takes place. Such unethical treatment of humans and other living beings is reflected in denser frequencies of the jewellery made from these precious metals and gemstones, depriving it of sacred, natural healing qualities.
By choosing jewellers which know their supply chains and reduce harm to human societies and other living beings we propel and further materialise higher, positive frequencies and healthy ways of business. Strategies which support life are not always straightforward. Recycled metals, conflict-free diamonds & fairtrade or fairly mined metals may or may not be what the name implies. However, the ever strengthening ethical gemstone and precious metal movement ensures through radical transparency that mining communities are increasingly valued and benefit from their work.
In many places gemstones can be found abundantly on the Earth’s surface without breaking open the ground. New technologies reduce or entirely eliminate pollution. Below are some examples of jewellers who care and are passionate about their work and its deeper meaning. If sourced and produced in the right way, the beauty of a jewellery piece alone can be healing and carries a life-enhancing effect which can be felt clearly, and the communities which contribute to its making are empowered.
Annemie Magdaleen
Denmark
Handmade responsible jewellery made from recycled metals with lots of passion. Available by minimum donation/ flexible pricing in a true meeting of artist and customer. Planting a tree for every piece of jewellery purchased.
Reflective Jewelry
New Mexico, USA
Gold sourced from small-scale miners through Fairtrade Gold. Ethical gemstones beyond conflict-free diamonds. Transparency. 20% Giving Back Program. Lots of information about jewellery business, true & fake fairtrade. Run own activist company. Only Fairtrade Gold jeweler in USA.
Fair Trade Jewellery Co.
Ontario, Canada
Own AKARA responsible sourcing brand for fairtrade gold, diamonds & gem stones. Going beyond conflict-free diamonds. Supply chain transparency & equal distribution of value. Giving back to community.
Simply Sámi
Sweden & Canada
Anna Lengstrand (half-Sámi) fuses Sámi duodji heritage & contemporary design, celebrating indigenous handcraft, sustainable fashion, self empowerment. Hand-made jewellery in rural British Columbia mountainside studio. Living passion for Sámi art & handcraft & for keeping Sámi traditions & skills alive. Speaking for Sámi people & connecting us with nature. Made from high quality raw materials incl. plant-dyed reindeer hide from northern Sweden & local horsehair.
WWAKE
New York, USA
Jewelry as a connection to the Earth and to everyone who participates in its creation & distribution made from fairtrade gemstones, certified recycled diamonds & gold, fair-mined gold & gemstones – supporting responsible, artisanal, small-scale mining communities across the planet. Transparent supply chains. Replacing toxic substances used by many jewelers with nontoxic, natural ones. Reduced waste, zero waste goal. Decolonizing the jewelry industry. Fair wages & healthy working conditions. Supporting global transition to mercury-free mining.
Eden
Jewelry created by women who recovered from sex slavery. Eden works in 6 of the darkest human trafficking hubs in Asia, collaborating with anti-trafficking police, government agencies & nonprofits. Women receive trauma care, counseling, creative therapy, vocational training & time to recover at their own pace. Each jewelry piece is inspired by the story & handmade by one of the rescued women who earn full-time wages, working part-time. Eden also works in prevention of sex slavery & provides maternity care for women who come to EDEN pregnant or with a young person. The jewelry creates awareness of human trafficking & sexual exploitation.
Betts Metal Sales
UK
Fairtrade, fair-mined & recycled precious metals: jewellery, investments & raw metal, including gold, silver & platinum. Single-mine origin gold. Supply chain transparency. Lot’s of information about fairtrade certifications & standards.
OwnYourCulture
Kenya & pan-Africa
Decolonising fashion through jewellery one ‘traditional’ necklace at a time. Developing local, culturally embedded fashion narratives. Researching origins of traditional fashion. Pan-continental movement, celebrating the art of traditional jewellery in modern contexts. Also jewellery store.
A Beautiful Story
Netherlands, Nepal & India
Fairtrade, social impact jewellery brand which combines modern designs with traditional techniques rooted in centuries-old craftsmanship. Wages based on continuous in-house research of interplay between money & artisan life quality. Focus on human connection & stability. Diverse, dedicated team joined by purpose, communicating clear values. Sharing of stories.
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Artist Hotspot
Ulrike Arnold
Paintings made with earth, sand, rock & meteorite dust
Based in Germany
Find out more via her website:
www.ulrikearnold.com/index.html
