FEATURES
UNSUSTAINABLE CHOICES
Unsustainable choices
David Rhode explores how Jewellery is an area in which many millennials are still
making unsustainable choices, in many cases due to an absence of honest dialogue
around the diamond industry
By David Rhode
M
illennials have developed a
well-earned reputation as a
hyper-conscious
generation,
thinking carefully about what they
consume and how they consume it. Lots of
young people are taking individual action
to improve our planet; travelling more
responsibly, banishing single use plastics
and straws, rejecting meat, and recycling
all that they can. But there’s something
crucial being overlooked, which is having
a devastating impact on the health of our
planet; and that’s the jewellery industry.
Jewellery is an area in which many
millennials are still making unsustainable
choices, in many cases due to an absence
of honest dialogue around the diamond
industry in the mainstream media, which
could help millennials make better
informed purchasing decisions. We’re
inundated with news stories about the
latest celebrity engagements - with the 20
carat diamond ring Alex Rodriguez put
on Jennifer Lopez’s finger the most recent
example - but hear nothing of where these
diamonds came from, and the impact their
production is having on our planet.
The recent ruling that Zimbabwean
diamonds are in fact ‘blood diamonds’
demonstrates that there’s still a great deal
going on under the surface when it comes
to the diamond industry, and that the
industry is still facing a number of issues
which are far from resolved.
Despite the fact that an awareness of
‘blood diamonds’ and their implications has
grown significantly in recent years (largely
thanks to Edward Zwick’s 2006 film of that
name), many consumers are still unaware of
the very real impact irresponsible diamond
20 JEWELLERY FOCUS
April 2019 | jewelleryfocus.co.uk