Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) is adding coloured gemstones to it scope of certification.
Currently, RJC’s chain of custody initiatives only apply to diamonds, gold, and platinum group metals. The move comes following discussion and collaboration with current members, external stakeholders, and the coloured gemstone sector over the past five years.
“We’ve had an enthusiastic response from our valued membership, industry, and external parties about going ahead with this initiative,” says Charles Chaussepied, chair of RJC’s board of directors.
RJC says it will add coloured gemstones during the next revision to the code of practices, which will take place through the 2017 research and development phase.
Under the management of Anne-Marie Fleury, RJC’s standards and impacts director, a multi-stakeholder task force has been created to undertake this work immediately.
News of the addition came at Baselworld. “It made perfect sense to announce this key initiative at the Baselworld fair,” says Andrew Bone, RJC’s executive director. “RJC enjoys a strong supporter status with the fair.”
