Ethically Sourced Gemstones

Ethically Sourced Gemstones
Aappatuttog Ridge in Greenland, the site of True North Gems "ethical" ruby mine, was ground zero for Inuit ruby miner activists. Once gem grade rubies were "discovered," the colonial government took away Intuits constitutional right to gather rubies on their ancestral land which they had been doing for hundreds of years.

Whether we consider a gemstone ethical hinges around a wide range of labor and environmental issues. Fundamental to all assessment is traceability and transparency from the mine, through the cutting facility, to the market.

Ethically Sourced Gemstones: Whether we consider a gemstone ethically sourced depends upon labor, environment, traceability and transparency.

Ethical Gemstones
Over seventy percent of gemstones are from small-scale miners and suppliers are very secretive. The critical issues are traceability and transparency, from mine to market.
Gemstone Facts
Unlike diamonds and gold, colored gemstones do not generally finance wars, and their mining is less toxic than mining precious metals.
Ethical Sapphires
The sapphires are cut in Sri Lanka by a local facility that has excellent working conditions and pays above the going rate; in order to attract, keep and nurture highly skilled cutters.
Aquamarines
Our aquamarines come from the Tumbuka tribe miners in Zambia, through an extraordinary arrangement that is extremely rare between traders and miners in Africa.
Ethical Rubies
Our rubies are sourced from companies that have operations in Tanzania and Malawi. On site, they work within their own fair trade protocol, offering excellent benefits for the community.
Emeralds
Our emeralds are sourced from small-scale mines in Zambia and Afghanistan. They range in color from watery-green to deep emerald green, and are cut at a facility in Israel.
Garnets, Tourmaline and Tanzanite
We offer a limited range of faceted garnet, tourmaline and tanzanite from The Tanzanian Woman's Mining Association, which exists to support the woman miners entrepreneurial efforts.