As we know, gold metal is extracted from mines in different ways and it is a very difficult and even dangerous work in some cases; But it is very important to pay attention to the method by which it is extracted. In this article, we want to examine the best method of gold extraction, that is, ethical gold and all the concepts related to it.
What is moral gold?
In general, ethical business means preventing violations of human rights and environmental laws. Ethical gold is no exception to this rule; But if we want to define it precisely:
1. It is gold that is extracted from industrial and small-scale mines.
2. When mining, it does not have a negative impact on the health of the miners and the environment where it is mined.
3. Buyers of ethical jewelry know where these pieces come from and how they are made.
What are the benefits of ethical gold mining?
- In ethical gold mining, land destruction is minimized;
- When mining, working conditions are safe and workers are paid a fair wage to do their job to the best of their ability;
- is an official and legal activity;
- It is more environmentally friendly;
- The activity of children in this industry is prohibited;
- Men and women can work equally.
How can we distinguish ethical gold from other gold?
In general, this seems even more difficult than identifying a diamond; But we have three methods for correct diagnosis, which include the following:
1. Ensuring the recognition of the Association of the Supervision of the Jewelry Industry
This association (in developed countries) strives to do this difficult task by conducting organized activities to ensure that mines and workers follow the promulgated guidelines. Paying attention to human rights, implementing ethical, social and environmental methods are among the important rules in this forum.
2. Use of recycled gold
If the first method doesn’t seem like enough for sure, we can go a step further with recycled gold. Recycled gold is gold that was originally melted down as a piece of gold and used to turn it into a new piece of jewelry. The type of gold does not need to be mined and destroyed and that is why it is popular. Most brands that mine ethical gold also use recycled gold.
3. Buy jewelry from brands that mine ethical and sustainable gold
The Jewelry Industry Watch Association announces the list of brands it cooperates with every year. By buying from these brands, you can make sure that your jewelry is ethical and recycled. Brands that extract ethical gold include:
1. Missoma brand
This brand considers sustainable and ethical extraction of gold as its main responsibility in jewelry making and is enthusiastic and committed to building a better future in this direction. And in this regard, it has achieved many things so far.
2. Monica Vinader brand
This brand uses 100% recycled gold and sterling silver in its products, which reduces the brand’s emissions by 2.3%.
3. Zoe Morton brand
The aim of the founder of this brand is to challenge the jewelry industry and make jewelry that people are proud to wear. This brand also cooperates with the Ecology Center to offset the carbon percentage of its factories. It also plants a tree for every order it receives!
4. Vashi brand
Washi monitors any impact the production process has on the environment. For example, carbon footprint control and the use of recovered metals is an important part of the jewelry making process in this brand. Vashi combines its creativity and innovation with social and environmental responsibility.
5. Kimai brand
This brand has a unique method in the process of making its jewelry. For example, it makes its jewelry from lab-grown diamonds and recycled 18-carat gold. The structure of laboratory diamonds is similar to mined diamonds without the environmental and ethical consequences. Alchemy style is truly an innovative style in the jewelry industry.
6. Roxanne First brand
Roxan First is also one of the brands that makes all its necessary parts from metals that have been responsibly and responsibly extracted.
7. Atteya brand
This brand makes its jewelry inspired by ancient and mythological culture. Like the other brands mentioned, it uses recycled precious metals and ethical gemstones. It also donates five percent of its profits to social and environmental charities.
8. Francesca Dot brand
The founders of this brand are very interested in the planet and they do their best in the production process so that the environment suffers the least amount of damage. Francesca Dot uses 18k gold and recycled 925k silver, which is approved by the Jewelry Industry Control Association. The product collections of this brand are inspired by the symbols of nature, flowers and the symbol of birth months. This brand also uses recyclable materials in the packaging of its products.
9. Milly Grace brand
The brand places great importance on quality and only works with suppliers who have an ethical reputation. In general, this cooperation forms a circular economy. Also, the packaging of this brand has an FCS certificate.
tip: FCS certificate is a certificate that shows that the produced product has not harmed the environment.
10. Alice Gwyneth brand
The brand only makes jewelry to order to ensure that its creations are not stockpiled or wasted. It also specializes in sustainable and ethical design and makes its jewelry from the finest ethical gemstones, sterling silver and recycled gold.
11. Shyla brand
Inspired by vintage jewelry designs, the Sheila brand creates etched hydroglass earrings and gemstone rings with recycled metals and materials. The brand also collaborates with several charities.
12. Voice International brand
The artisans of this brand make their jewelry from ethical silver and bronze. Their packaging is also produced from recycled paper.
13. Rhimani brand
The main goal of the Rimani brand is to protect the environment and wildlife. This brand does everything they can to keep animals alive, so all their metals and raw materials are sustainable and ethical.
14. Astley Clarke brand
The brand makes its jewelry only with precious metals, precious, semi-precious stones and natural diamonds that adhere to the Kimberley process. Stelly Clark is responsible and committed to the environment and pays fair wages to its employees in addition to safe working conditions.
tip: The Kimberley Process is an international certification scheme for the rough diamond trade. Rough diamonds are ethically produced.
15. Renne brand
This brand has recently put the use of 100% recycled gold and silver on its agenda and is trying to attract customers who are aware of the environment.
16. Matilde brand
Mathilde is known for making classic and vintage jewelry that has remained popular over the years. Therefore, the jewelry of this brand is suitable for all generations. In terms of sustainable and ethical activity, they use only recycled 14 carat gold and laboratory diamonds to create their own ideas. Their packaging is also produced with biodegradable raw materials.
17. Dower & Hall brand
Since its inception, this brand has been working with recycled materials and making its jewelry in such a way that, while being classic, it can be used for years. What’s more interesting about the brand’s operation is that the staff team uses recycled gold and silver to reduce water consumption and carbon dioxide emissions during consumption.
18. Bar brand
Bar brand as a brand is bound to use 100% recycled silver and bronze. Also, in turn, it has reduced both the amount of waste and the amount of carbon dioxide in the process of making its products.
19. Lark & Berry brand
This brand fully uses innovative technologies to make jewelry. For example, they grow all the raw materials they need in the laboratory. Using cultured diamonds that are produced with enough water and different climates is one of the important rules of the brand in the manufacturing process.
20. Kastur brand
The founder of this brand is Rajavi Vera. He has more than eight years of experience working directly with international humanitarian programs around the world. It also collaborates with brands that directly monitor environmental protection issues and consciously implement it in their jewelry making process.
21. Rachel Jackson brand
The brand signs a contract with workshops that are regulated by the Association for the Supervision of the Jewelery Industry. Also, from the beginning of 2023, only recycled gold and silver will be used in making jewelry.
22. Edge Of Amber brand
The brand is committed to making jewelry that doesn’t harm the planet or people. It also only works with factories that have labor contracts with the International Labor Organization and guarantee the importance of social and environmental standards.
23. Stellar 79 brand
Founded by two sisters, this brand believes in empowering women and embracing individuality. Also, each piece of jewelry is made with the best quality by following strict ethical guidelines.
24. Auvere brand
The brand was founded by a couple and focuses mostly on producing everyday jewelry. Jewelry that a person will feel comfortable and confident after wearing. All creations of Awareh brand are obtained with precision, transparency, responsibility and ethics. Also, the gold that this brand extracts is legitimate and authentic according to trade laws and adheres to the Kimberley process. Brand gems are also traceable.
tip: Traceability means that the customer can follow all the steps of extraction and ethical production by observing the necessary permits and ensure the ethicality of the piece he intends to buy.
25. Wolf & Gypsy brand
The main sources of the brand’s jewelry are recycled gold and sterling silver. The raw materials for jewelry packaging are environmentally friendly. As a brand, it is very important for Wolf and Gypsy to reduce the harmful effects on the environment and ensure the safety of children and the planet.
26. Soko brand
The brand has a fair working practice and its artisans are paid five times more than the average figure. The method of this brand is based on sustainable production and its designers are inspired by old architectures and designs to make jewelry.
27. Raven Lily brand
In addition to producing jewelry, this brand’s expertise is creating positive social and environmental effects. They use ethical gemstones and semi-precious stones, often raw, and support more than 500 artisans around the world (especially those who are less represented than other artisans). Also, this brand is led by women and seventy percent of its artisans are also women.
27. AUrate brand
This brand is a good choice for buying a wedding ring. The brand’s jewelry is made from 100% recycled gold and sustainable pearls. Also, they do not throw away excess materials and recycle them again. The Ivorite brand also supports the people of local communities.
28. Brilliant Earth brand
The brand never makes its jewelry from freshly mined diamonds and 93% of precious metals are recycled.
29. Catbird brand
Catbird started as a retail store and later became a brand name. The brand’s jewelry and accessories are very delicate and source their decorative pearls from third-hand Chinese pearl farms. The brand also has a post-retirement plan for its employees.
30. Mejuri brand
This brand uses 14 carat gold because it wants its jewelry to be as durable as possible. Also, brand jewelry is third hand.
What are the differences between ethical and immoral gold?
Immoral gold or dirty gold refers to gold that is obtained by workers in dangerous and inhumane conditions. Because gold mining is done illegally by people who do it to save themselves from poverty. Therefore, the traditional jewelry industry is always associated with slavery, pollution, war and exploitation, and unethical practices are not considered due to the complexity of the extraction process. We examine some of the conditions of unethical gold mining:
Employment of children
Unfortunately, there is evidence that one million children work in gold mines, and because they are exposed to toxic chemicals, their physical health is compromised in the very first years of life. Apart from this, they are also abused in the mining environment. They may even become victims of trafficking.
Exploitation of vulnerable people
The exploiters do not pay the mine workers a fair wage. They always work more than their physical ability and since they are exposed to chemicals, their health is endangered and because they are not able to take care of their problems, unfortunately they lose their lives.
Displacement of communities
When mining workers extract gold on a larger scale and traditionally, the surrounding areas are under the control of the mining companies and the residents are forced to leave their places of residence. In most cases, out of necessity, they work in the same mines and find themselves in unhealthy conditions.
It is also necessary to remember that people are not the only ones affected by unethical gold mining. Rather, the greatest damage is done to the environment and the planet. Basically, based on the harm that unethical gold mining causes on the planet and the environment, human societies will also be harmed over time. Deforestation, use of mercury and cyanide, ecosystem destruction, soil degradation and water pollution are among the most important harmful factors of unethical gold mining, and we will briefly review the first two cases.
Deforestation
Gold mining is usually done in remote areas due to the difficult and sometimes dangerous procedures. Unfortunately, in some countries, for various reasons, they choose rainforests for this purpose, which is a kind of abuse of nature. Because to extract gold, they destroy a large part of the forest to prepare a new area for the desired purpose. Deforestation is one of the important factors of global warming and causes the loss of diversity of plant and animal species and changes in climate conditions, and is ultimately a threat to the planet.
For example, according to the research conducted on the forests of Indonesia, more than 10.5 million hectares of rainforests have been deforested for gold mining and left without any restoration or reconstruction. This amount is equivalent to 2.7 million football fields, and normally, when a certain amount of gold metal is extracted with unethical methods, irreparable effects are left on the forest and the environment.
Use of mercury and cyanide
Although mercury and cyanide are also used in the extraction of ethical gold; But in this method, there is direct monitoring of the amount of use of these materials. For example, miners can use more than 17 times mercury to extract gold only on a smaller scale, which is an ethical method; But if the number of times is higher, the mining method will no longer be ethical. This is because mercury is a very toxic element for the environment and humans, and it must be cleaned from the said environment after the extraction process is over, so that it does not pollute the nature and the environment.
With these interpretations, the Black Smith Institute recently tested three rivers in Borneo, Indonesia, and found that mercury levels in the water were up to 140 times higher than the EPA’s safety standard.
Note 1: The Black Smith Institute is an independent environmental advocacy organization in the United States.
Note 2: EPA is the acronym for the US Environmental Protection Agency, which operates independently of the US federal government.
What is the difference between ethical gold and sustainable gold?
Although these two concepts are often used interchangeably, they also have differences. About the ethical jewelry we talked about. Sustainable jewelry focuses more on the environmental impact of mining a piece of jewelry than on the negative impact on the planet. While ethical jewelry focuses more on the impact of the mining process on people, the traceability of jewelry, and safe conditions for workers.
last word
In this article, we tried to examine ethical gold and all its related dimensions. If you also have information about this, be sure to share it with us in the comments section. Thank you for your cooperation.
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