Is Buying Jewelry Ethical?
We try to be mindful of what we put on our bodies: clothes, makeup, skincare, but what about jewelry? Many of us wear jewelry every day, especially wedding rings. But is our jewelry sustainable? What impact is it creating?
Let’s start with gemstones. The process to mine gemstones runs the risk of causing pollution, erosion, and destruction of the environment. Even worse, many places overwork and underpay their employees, some are even forced to work against their will, and they can be subjected to extremely dangerous conditions that could cost them their lives. The profits generated from these mines are then used to finance corrupt governments. Have you heard of blood diamonds? These are diamonds mined in areas rife with conflict and the money they make from their diamonds is used to fuel these wars. The price of diamonds is purposefully inflated as well, which means even more money is being funneled into these horrid practices.
Unethical Practices
Let’s start with gemstones. The process to mine gemstones runs the risk of causing pollution, erosion, and destruction of the environment. Even worse, many places overwork and underpay their employees, some are even forced to work against their will, and they can be subjected to extremely dangerous conditions that could cost them their lives. The profits generated from these mines are then used to finance corrupt governments. Have you heard of blood diamonds? These are diamonds mined in areas rife with conflict and the money they make from their diamonds is used to fuel these wars. The price of diamonds is purposefully inflated as well, which means even more money is being funneled into these horrid practices.
Now not all mining operations follow these unethical practices, but as consumers, we only see the end product and are detached from the process it takes to create these pieces. So for us, it can be extremely difficult to trace the origins of our gemstones, which makes it hard to know what types of practices were used to mine these stones.
So, what can we as consumers do about it? Luckily we have a few options.
Ethical Jewelry Options
Lab-Grown Gemstones
Lab-grown gemstones are a great alternative to start with. They are exactly the same in their chemical and physical structure compared to their mined counterparts, but they have fewer imperfections, are potentially cheaper, don’t require dangerous labor, and instead of taking hundreds of years to form the gemstone it only takes months. They also have a much lower impact on the environment. Compared to mined diamonds, synthetic diamonds use 86% less water, 50% less energy, and produce 95% fewer carbon emissions.
Ethically Certified Jewelers
Another way to ensure your gemstones are ethically sourced is to buy from jewelers who are supplied by the American Gem Trade Association. The AGTA has developed the industry’s strictest and most comprehensive Code of Ethics and Fair Business Practices, which means that you can be sure your gemstones are mined using ethical practices.
Metals
Now let’s look at the metals that make up your jewelry. Metals are mined similarly to how gemstones are which means that the process raises similar issues. Just like gemstones, these metals are mined from the earth and can cause erosion, soil and water pollution, and environmental destruction. Forced labor and dangerous working conditions are also present in the metals mining industry.
Luckily, there are 3 different places to get your metals from to ensure that they are ethically sourced.
Fairtrade ensures human rights, environmental protection, and health and safety requirements are upheld and maintained in their mines.
Similarly, getting metals from Fairmined certified mines assures that metals have been mined through safe, environmentally and socially responsible practices.
The final way to get ethical metal jewelry is to use recycled metal. Using metal that has already been dug up from the earth ensures that there is no risk to the environment that further mining could cause, and is arguably the most environmentally-friendly way to source your metals.
Buying Ethical Jewelry
So when it comes to picking out ethical jewelry, be on the lookout for how they source their gemstones and metals, and what steps they take in the jewelry making process to ensure their environmental impact is minimal. How does their packaging look? If they don’t have an emphasis on using recyclable, environmentally friendly packaging then odds are they don’t have an emphasis on making their whole process environmentally friendly either. Don’t be afraid to contact a jeweler to ask them about what their process is like. They should be fairly transparent about the process and all of the steps they are taking to reduce their environmental impact and how they ensure their materials are ethically sourced. If their answers are rather vague, then they are probably not what you are looking for.
If you’re looking for a company to start with then check out my friends over at Metalicious! They only use ethically sourced gemstones and recycled metal in their jewelry. They specialize in eco-friendly engagement rings but have a ton of options for every jewelry lover!
What are your favorite eco-friendly jewelers? Leave their name down in the comments!
