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SPECIAL REPORT
ETHICAL JEWELRY
Cause and effect
These four jewelers have made social responsibility a cornerstone of their work
Blue streak Erica Courtney’s 18-karat
gold, diamond and tanzanite earrings
and Tanzanite Aurora necklace with pink
sapphires were the product of her partnership
with the Tanzanite Foundation.
Lori Bonn
Erica Courtney
One of the many things that struck designer Erica
Courtney on her trip to Tanzania last summer was the
local Maasai tradition of wearing red and blue together.
In the bright sunlight, they looked violet, much like the color
of tanzanite, the gemstone discovered there in 1967.
“Of course they have worn these colors long before tanzanite
was discovered, but it’s as if the Maasai were telling us that the
tanzanite was in the earth by the way they dress,” Courtney says. “I thought that was
very poetic in a way, since the tanzanite find has given them so much opportunity:
money, schools, roads, jobs, tourists buying their wares.”
Courtney saw those opportunities first-hand thanks to her collaboration with the
Tanzanite Foundation, the nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection and promotion
of tanzanite. Upon her return to Los Angeles in September, Courtney arranged for 10
percent of the proceeds from the month’s sales at her Robertson Boulevard retail store
to go to the Community Uplift Program, set up by the foundation to help sustain medical
clinics, community centers and educational programs in the area where tanzanite is mined.
“I personally have plans on financially helping two schools and visiting every year to
spend time with them,” Courtney says. “My heart has been absolutely stolen!” ■
A few years ago, jewelry designer Lori Bonn attended a luncheon in
San Francisco to raise money for the indigenous people living in the
Amazon rainforest. At the end of the fundraiser, the hostess made
an announcement: The entire event, she said, had been staged
with a net-zero impact on the planet, thanks to a clever approach to carbon offsetting.
“It was an epiphany for me because, until then, I couldn’t find anything green that
wasn’t also ‘granola,’” Bonn said, recalling the gathering as ultra-sophisticated, in stark
contrast to the “crunchy” aesthetic she had previously associated with green activism. “It
didn’t occur to me that you could be stylish and socially responsible at the same time.”
Although the Oakland, Calif.-based designer had always endeavored to ensure her
jewelry, most of it produced in Bali, was manufactured under progressive
standards, the luncheon proved to be a turning point. She now
promotes her collections, including the Chrysalis line of recycled silver
and speckled chalcedony jewels, under the “Clear Conscience” label,
an umbrella term meant to convey that her jewels “tread lightly on the
planet while respecting every person along the supply chain.” ■
38 l Basel 2009 l COUTURE International Jeweler
All clear Lori Bonn’s Chrysalis collection,
including this Kaleidoscope cuff
bracelet with smoky quartz, citrine and
white quartz and Round Dot ring with
polka dot chalcedony, is designed to be
worn with a “clear conscience.”