JCK Events has announced the recipients of the 2013 Industry Fund.
“The Industry Fund has been helping jewellery professionals and organizations achieve their goals for well over a decade and has made a substantial impact on our industry as a whole,” said JCK’s Yancy Weinrich.
“Each recipient over the years has impressed us enormously with their devotion to jewellery and focus on making improvements that matter. We have been honoured to support them.”
The winners include: Jewelers Security Alliance, Jewelers Vigilance Committee, Alliance for Responsible Mining, Jewelers of America, Women’s Jewelry Association, American Gem Society, and Diamond Development Initiative.
Now in its 15th year, the fund awards grants to projects that:
- improve the jewellery industry’s image in the eyes of the consumer; and/or
- aid jewellery trade organizations in addressing serious problems facing the industry; and/or
- assist internal organizations and associations in developing training materials.
The fund has awarded more than $5 million in grants since its inception. Recipients are chosen by the Fund Advisory Committee based on the content and merit of their application.
“News of the JCK Industry Fund’s grant to DDI has just reached me in Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where I have been helping to get one of our projects up and running,” said Dorothée Gizenga, executive director of Ottawa-based Diamond Development Initiative.
“If you could meet the artisanal miners I’ve been with over the past 10 days, you would know what a huge difference small investments can make in the lives of very poor people. News like this is always important, but receiving it here has made it so much more meaningful.”
