Bijouterie et activiste Greg Valerio s'apprête à prendre Fairtrade or au niveau supérieur

16 Avril 2013

Expert Fairtrade bijoutier Greg Valerio a été nommé pour aider à conduire les travaux de Fairtrade International sur l'or, following a decision to simplify the labelling process and help grow the market. Greg partage une vision de pionnier de meilleures conditions pour mineurs artisanaux et à petite échelle (ASM) through Fairtrade and was closely involved in the process leading to Fairtrade International and the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) jointly launching the world’s first independent certification scheme for gold in 2011, closely followed by highly successful launches in other global markets.

 

Fairtrade certification for gold has brought about significant empowerment of miner’s organisations, la sensibilisation aux questions dans le secteur de l'ASM et fournir aux entreprises une source de traçabilité de l'or extrait de façon responsable et du commerce équitable.

 

In the first year of trading alone, people living in the isolated Peruvian community of Santa Filomena have reaped the benefits of being Fairtrade certified. Thanks to the Fairtrade Premium generated by Sotrami, the community has been able to invest in improved healthcare, primary school facilities and new computers for the senior school. They also opened a not-for-profit convenience store which means the 500-strong community can buy food at reasonable prices.

 

Greg is passionate about the potential held by the jewellery industry to transform the lives of small-scale miners through market traceability and transparency.

 

“Jewellery is an iconic luxury purchase, yet the way it is normally sourced is the opposite extreme. This needs to change.

 

“For me the challenge is to make it culturally unacceptable to sell an item of jewellery that is not independently certified as socially and environmentally responsible.

 

“I am delighted to join a team which remains focused on continuing to improve working conditions, environmental standards and terms of trade for ASM mining organizations and providing a growing sustainable source of responsibly mined gold for jewellers, jewellery manufacturers and ethical investment houses,” Greg Valerio says.

 

Founder of Bijoux CRED, co-founder of Juste Bijoux action and author of ‘Towards an Ethical Jewellery Business’, Greg has an extensive background in human rights and environmental advocacy in the sector. En 1991 âge 24 voyages suivants en Tanzanie et en Ethiopie, he started CRED, a development education network on the south coast of England.

 

En 1996 Greg started CRED Jewellery, the pioneering fine jewellery company. En 2004 he brought fully certified green gold wedding rings to the UK in partnership with disadvantaged ASM programme Oro Verde.

Greg is a regular columnist for The National Association of Goldsmiths Jewellery Magazine, écrivain, orateur public sur l'éthique dans les bijoux et consulte un certain nombre de groupes en Afrique désireux d'utiliser la richesse de leurs minéraux pour apporter la paix et la prospérité de leurs communautés.

 

Il a lancé et fait actuellement partie du Jewellers Association britannique et l'Association nationale des Orfèvres éthique groupe de travail. Il agit en tant que conseiller à la Diamond Development Initiative. Greg est maintenant blogging à Juste Bijoux action (FJA) and is working with FJA on promoting fair jewellery to the consumer, aux côtés de travail en Afrique sur le projet d'or Fairtrade Destinations.

 

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Notes aux rédacteurs

 

The Fairtrade Foundation is an independent certification body which licenses the use of the FAIRTRADE Mark on products which meet international Fairtrade standards. This independent consumer label appears on products to show that disadvantaged producers are getting a better deal from trade. Aujourd'hui, plus que 1.24 million people – farmers and workers – across more than 60 developing countries benefit from the international Fairtrade system.

Sur 4,500 products have been licensed to carry the FAIRTRADE Mark including coffee, tea, herbal teas, chocolate, cocoa, sugar, bananas, grapes, pineapples, mangoes, avocados, apples, pears, plums, grapefruit, lemons, oranges, satsumas, clementines, mandarins, lychees, coconuts, dried fruit, juices, smoothies, biscuits, cakes & snacks, honey, jams & preserves, chutney & sauces, rice, quinoa, herbs & spices, seeds, nuts & nut oil, wines, beers, rum, confectionary, muesli, cereal bars, yoghurt, ice-cream, flowers, sports balls, sugar body scrub and cotton products including clothing, homeware, cloth toys, cotton wool, olive oil, or, silver and platinum.

Estimated retail sales of Fairtrade products in 2012 reached £1.57 billion, une 19% increase on sales of £1.32 bn in 2011.

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