When Diamonds Fight Back
Diamonds have long been considered a girl’s best friend but it’s time for a reality check. Aside from the fact that having an inanimate best friend is just wrong, your diamond fetish is financing rebel armies.
If you’re not familiar with the term Blood Diamond, you will absolutely not like reading this – but you should.
The term typically refers to a diamond mined in a war zone and sold to finance an insurgency or a warlord’s activity, usually in Africa. According to the Global Policy Forum, conflict diamonds date back to the early 1900s when European entrepreneurs gained control of diamond mines by instigating wars between African tribes. Over a hundred years later, conflict diamonds are still affecting the lives of people throughout Africa.
As we become more conscious of what we wear, what we eat and how we lessen our carbon footprint, it would seem only normal for us to look at something like the diamond on our finger and ask ourselves: “How did this get to me?”
The answer is not from Great Grandma Flo or your mother who just updated hers to an ever-larger stone, but where the diamond was mined and how. An old diamond is hard to trace, but these days you can do the research on a company you’re interested in buying from to make a conscious decision or, better yet, settle for a substitute.
Created in a lab, this synthetic diamond by Carat offers the vavoom without war.
This beautiful Moonstone engagement ring by Maine’s Turtle Love Committee has just as much beauty as a diamond without the weight of funding brutal attacks.
Turtle Love Committee’s Monhegan Moonstone Engagement Ring
While a Moonstone will certainly set you apart, you might still want a traditional diamond like this one from Diamantine, also created in a lab and not extracted in a war-torn territory where people are paid in cups of rice.
While many consider diamonds symbols of love, it’s good to consider the big picture and, yes, even karma.
Main image courtesy History.com
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8 Comments
December 8th, 2009 at 6:22 am
In addition, diamond mining (like most types of mining) takes a big toll on the local environment. Diamond mining is water intensive, but water’s scarce in many areas where diamonds are found. Also, by digging up the landscape, miners change runoff patterns, increase erosion, and flood waterways with sediments that choke out the aquatic life.
On the other hand, making synthetic minerals takes an enormous amount of energy to exert enough pressure and heat to take graphite to diamonds. If someone really has to have a diamond and is trying to mind their environmental P’s and Q’s, perhaps an estate diamond is the way to go? It’s already been mined, it’s not going to require much more energy than shipping it to your house, and it’s might even have a cool story behind it.
December 8th, 2009 at 8:14 pm
My engagement ring belonged to my grandmother (my husband struck a deal with my mother who had inherited it. Kinda like a dowry…:) ). I love the fact that it has a past with my grandparents…and a future. I hope to give it to my daughter.
And yes, I also like the fact that any damage from its mining was done…so I wasn’t supporting a new market. There’s nothing romantic about diamond mining.
December 9th, 2009 at 7:01 am
What is the reasoning behind, I WANT IT, MUST HAVE IT, THE SIGN OF LOVE and many more pundits?
Could it be status, insecurity, a commitment, probably. But I think mostly it is the ultimate sigh of love and appreciation. I know we could as human beings and concerned with people and the planet could do better than that. Maybe, what we need are THINKING CAPS wired with a conscience and a heart.
December 9th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Hello,
When diamonds fight back…
Why does an engagement ring have to be a diamond? I believe it is so only due to DeBeers excellent advertising campaigns.
I do not usually make comments, but I wanted to share something which may add to the choice of an estate diamond. This is not an intellectual response, but here goes. I understand that you can take jewelry and place it in a zip lock and then in the freezer. It is said that the prior energy is then removed. For what it is worth, I know that would be a concern of mine when purchasing any estate diamond or jewelry.
Kudos to Elly. We all need thinking caps with a conscience and heart!
December 9th, 2009 at 8:50 am
I love fabulously beautiful items as this!!
December 11th, 2009 at 10:05 am
It may be worth pointing out that the jewelry shown by Carat and Diamantine are not synthetic diamonds. They are diamond simulants (fake), and while still pretty and made in a lab, are not in fact diamond. The only two companies that can grow real synthetic white diamonds are D.NEA and Apollo, and are only available in very limited quantities.
While I can’t comment on power use in CVD technology, HPHT technology only uses a modest amount of electricity. The heat and pressure is created in a very small volume (about a cubic centimeter), and only uses about the same amount of energy as a large home appliance (air conditioner or refrigerator).
December 15th, 2009 at 7:21 pm
There is no way I would ever buy a diamond if it didn’t have an ethical source. I like Pure Life Diamonds… and Brilliant Earth. Pure Life Diamonds is much better priced though.
January 23rd, 2010 at 4:41 pm
Beautiful earrings!!
Glad to know that they are eco friendly. I love that more and more products are becoming eco friendly. Let’s save our planet!
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