I’m a lucky girl… without a diamond ring
Or, why diamond rings are a scam and what to do about it
In 1938, the diamond cartel De Beers began a marketing campaign which convinced the Western society for decades that diamond rings are the only acceptable way to propose. They also came up with ‘diamond is forever’, if you were wondering. It was possibly one of the most successful marketing campaigns of all times (next to Coca Cola creating Santa Claus dressed in red) and had a major impact on the international diamond trade.
I first learnt about the horrors of diamond trade when I saw the movie Blood Diamond (which I only watched because Leo DiCaprio was in it). After that I made an effort to give ‘subtle’ clues to my boyfriend about not wanting a diamond engagement ring. I’m proud to say — I’m a lucky engaged girl, without a diamond ring!
What are conflict diamonds? Is anyone doing anything about it?
In the last century, diamond trade has fuelled and financed wars in numerous African countries — hence the term ‘conflict diamond’, or ‘blood diamond’.
The Kimberley Process, created in 2002, is a joint government, industry and civil society initiative, aimed at stopping the flow of conflict diamonds. To-date, 81 countries have signed up to the agreement to produce diamonds under certain conditions, and to only import rough diamonds that have certification papers to show they came from conflict-free zones. Although the Kimberley Process has reduced the trade of conflict-free diamonds, it has not eliminated it. Stones are still being smuggled from conflict zones into neighbouring countries to be certified, and corrupt governments can produce fraudulent papers.
Furthermore, even conflict-free diamonds can be mined in a non-ethical fashion, mistreating the workers and the environment. Often the stones are polished in sweatshops, using child labour and not paying a fair wage.
Is there such a thing as an ethical diamond?
To be safe that your diamond does not finance violence and war, you want to buy from a jeweller who can guarantee traceability of the product to fair mines and workshops, where only adult workers are employed and they are paid a fair wage. The problem is that many jewellers can’t tell you where their diamonds come from, and most they can tell you is that the stones are Kimberley Process certified.
Unless you know where a diamond came from, you cannot know for certain that it was ethically produced.
Often the safest bet is buying diamonds sourced from Canada rather than Africa. Canadian diamonds are mined under strict national regulations, taking care of human rights and considering the environmental impact of the mine.
Is a man-made diamond forever too?
According to the research in Stanford University, lab-grown diamonds result in five times less carbon dioxide emissions compared to mining in Canada. Extrapolating this out, the researchers claim that replacing the Ekati mine’s annual diamond production with lab-grown diamonds would save the equivalent of around 483m miles’ worth of auto emissions.
Deluxe Diamonds, the first company to open up laboratory-grown diamond operations in the UK assures its customers that ‘growing diamonds’ produces around half the carbon footprint of mining them.
In fact, Deluxe Diamonds claims that environment and ethics underlay the company’s development. “Having lived in Africa and witnessing the destruction inflicted by blood diamonds on innocent people and children’s lives, in addition to the carbon footprint mining leaves on the surrounding areas, I decided to start a jewellery brand which is 100% conflict free and ecologically friendly,” says Deluxe Diamonds founder Johanna O’Brien.
Synthetic diamonds are now chemically identical to mined and have equal qualities (and are sometimes superior), but without the additional environmental and human cost of mining — and they’re cheaper too.
Where to shop for ethical diamonds?
Here are a few shops I found for ethically sourced diamond rings:
If you know of any other ethical jewellery stores please comment below and I’ll add them to the list!
What else can I do?
Besides making conscious shopping choices, you can also support campaigns that work to bring transparency into international trade, such as Global Witness.
And most importantly, think whether diamonds really are a girl’s best friend, and whether you really need a diamond as a proof of undying love.
