RJC Debates Corporate Social Responsibility At Conference

(IDEX Online News) – The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) has held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) and inaugural Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) conference in London.

The conference attracted representatives from over 100 companies from across the jewelry and watch supply chains and was open to all interested stakeholders, the RJC said.

The RJC announced the election of Charles Chaussepied, Piaget, as RJC’s Vice Chairman, succeeding Chikashi Miyamoto of Rosy Blue. Mark Jenkins, of Signet Jewelers Ltd., was re-elected as Honorary Secretary.

RJC’s Membership elected Jackie Morsel (Dali Diamond), Charles Chaussepied (Piaget), Simon Rainer (British Jewellers’ Association), Bev Hori (Gemological Institute of America), Boaz Lev (Gem Lab Services), Stella Layton (The Birmingham Assay Office), Philippe Neu (Charles Perroud SAS), Wilfried Hoerner (Argor-Heraeus), Daniela Colaiacovo (Eurocantera) and Luis Moran (Minera Yanaquihua) to its Board of Directors.  

The CSR conference was divided into three sessions. The first panel on Future Imperatives saw Rein Nieland of the EU DG Trade, Anoop Mehta of the Bharat Diamond Bourse and Professor Marylyn Carrigan of the Coventry University Business School, discuss the future of the industry and the drivers for building a more responsible supply chain from their different standpoints.

The second panel on Human Rights and Responsible Supply Chains featured Adam Greene of ILO, Philip Hunter of Verité, Estelle Levin of Estelle Levin Ltd and Claus Teilmann Petersen of Pandora who addressed the issues of identifying and managing human rights risks across the supply chain.

The third panel, Creating Value, took views from Feriel Zerouki, De Beers Group; David Bouffard, Signet Jewelers Ltd; and Jennifer Horning, Solidaridad. The speakers touched upon the value of RJC Certification across the supply chain and the importance for the jewelry industry to engage on sustainability issues, creating value for businesses and the consumer.

“It was a pleasure to hear industry experts passionately deliver thoughts and ideas on topical supply chain issues while shoring up the value of RJC Certification," said Interim CEO Catherine Sproule. "RJC will continue this dialogue and engagement with the industry at the JCK Las Vegas show at its session on 30 May.”

The conference concluded with RJC Chairman James Courage’s announcement that the 2015 AGM will be held at the Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB).