Archive for June, 2009
Questions Concerning Greenland Rubies
Friday, June 12th, 2009With many western countries now banning ruby imports from Myanmar due to serious social injustices, the search is on for the next best high-quality source of rubies. Greenland is a rich source of the prized red gems, and a Canadian enterprise called True North Gems is in the process of opening a large-scale mining operation [...]
Conflict Diamond Expert, Ian Smillie, Walks Away from the Kimberley Process
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009In the midst of frustration, Ian Smillie, one of the leading conflict diamond experts and key architect of the Kimberley Process, declared his resignation to the Kimberley Process members this past month, declaring the process ineffective. In an eloquently written letter, Smillie states: “when regulators fail to regulate, the systems they were designed to protect [...]
Sign Too Precious to Wear’s Coral Pledge
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009Coral is a precious natural resource on which much of the earth’s life depends. Unfortunately, it is also being killed and eroded at an alarming rate, posing a threat to all manner of marine life. Corals are suffering from over-fishing, gas exploration, invasive species, pollution, climate change and consumer demand for home décor items [...]