Every piece of jewellery purchased is a contribution to the economic wellbeing and social advancement of people living in underdeveloped areas, said CIBJO President Dr. Gaetano Cavalieri, speaking yesterday at the 15th Rendez-Vous Gemmologiques de Paris in the French capital.

He added that if this understanding could be instilled in public consciousness, “then the significance of buying and receiving jewellery is elevated - from one of purely personal value to one with societal value as well."

The gathering, which was hosted by the Association Française de Gemmologie, and moderated by its President, Didier Giard, selected this year to review gemstone mines and mining districts around the world, considering the ethics of sustainable development of mining territories and their populations.

Speaking at the opening session, Dr Cavalieri stated that though jewellery is a luxury product and non-essential to those who purchase it, the jewellery and gemstone sectors are industries that are essential to the economic and social development of economies and communities around the world. "The jewellery business and the revenue it generates are critical to the economic fortunes of many countries around the world, and especially those where diamonds, gemstones and precious metals are mined," he elaborated.

He stressed that the industry helps create sustainable economic opportunities in those countries, “which in turn promote and support positive social development."

This is in contrast to the inaccurate picture that certain synthetic diamond producers are propagating, he added. He termed as “problematic” a statement by Leonardo DiCaprio posted on the website of a prominent synthetics producer which says that by buying a man-made diamond, one will be "reducing the human and environmental toll of the diamond industry by sustainably culturing diamonds without the destructive use of mining,"

At the conclave, Dr Cavalieri also participated in a panel discussion about traceability, ethics, and the sustainable development of mines and mining districts. The other panelists were Charles Chaussepied, a Piaget director and the former Chairman of the Responsible Jewellery Council; Bertrand Pancher, a Member of the French Parliament; Jack Cunningham, Group Sustainability Manager at Gemfields; and Hélène Poulit-Duquesne, CEO of Boucheron.

Pic caption: Dr Cavalieri (2nd from r) speaking at the conclave