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Responsible SOURCING
BEHIND THE BEAUTY
Responsible sourcing is an important part of our business. When you shop with us, you should feel confident and assured you are receiving pieces made with materials that are carefully, transparently, responsibly and ethically obtained. Moreover, we feel that you should know the provenance of the materials behind your jewelry. Let us tell you more about our sourcing.
GOLD
We source our gold from Valcambi, S.A. (Valcambi), a leading refiner of gold based in Switzerland, and Asahi Refining (Asahi), a Japanese refinery with operations in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Chile, and of course, Japan.
RECYCLED AND VIRGIN GOLD
Both Valcambi and Asahi use a mix of recycled gold and virgin gold to make the refined gold products that we use to make Auvere jewelry.
TRANSPARENCY, TRACEABILITY AND CONFLICT-FREE GOLD
Both companies give the highest priority to transparency and conflict-free gold and go beyond the most stringent industry standards of traceability in order to comply with all responsible sourcing frameworks.
Valcambi
Valcambi is also in compliance with requirements regarding transparency, traceability and conflict-free gold, including international regulations and voluntary standards and guidance such as the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas, the LBMA Responsible Guidances on Precious Metals (LBMA Requirements), the Responsible Jewelry Council Code of Practice and Chain of Custody Standards (RJC Requirements), World Gold Council “Conflict-Free Gold Standard” (WGC Requirements) and Dodd-Frank Act Section 1502 (Dodd-Frank).
Asahi
Asahi complies with LBMA Requirements, RJC Requirements, WGC Requirements, Dodd-Frank, and Responsible Minerals Institute requirements regarding transparency, traceability and conflict-free gold. Moreover, Asahi has received accreditations from LBMA, COMEX, International Precious Metals Institute, Responsible Minerals Initiative and RJC.
FAIRMINED AND FAIRTRADE ACCREDITATIONS
Valcambi is a Fairmined Licensed Gold Supplier and is in compliance with Fairtrade standards and requirements.
ONGOING COMPLIANCE
To ensure all of the foregoing standards are respected and upheld, both Valcambi and Asahi conduct extensive due diligence practices to properly identify and select their business partners. Concerning their products (including all gold products), both companies have put into place systems that permit traceability and submit regularly to audits on all of their practices and the practices of their partners.
STERLING SILVER
We obtain our sterling silver from United Precious Metals Refining, Inc. (UPMR) and Legor Group S.P.A. (Legor). UPMR is a leading supplier of deoxidized sterling silver and they are the largest full-service precious metals refinery in the United States. The sterling silver we source from UPMR is composed of 92.7% silver, 5.05% copper and 2.25% zinc and is formulated for increased tarnish resistance and deoxidation. You can find more information about the sterling silver that we source from UPMR to make our silver jewelry here.
Legor, founded in 1979 in Vincenza, Italy is a family operated supplier of 100% recycled precious metals, including sterling silver. The sterling silver we source from Legor is composed of 93% silver, 4% copper and 3% zinc. You can find more information about the silver product that we obtain from Legor to make our silver jewelry here.
RECYCLED SILVER
The silver product made and sold by each of UPMR and Legor are obtained from 100% recycled content.
TRANSPARENCY, TRACEABILITY AND CONFLICT-FREE SILVER
UMPR has implemented several processes to ensure that its supply chain is free of silver that is sourced as result of, or benefits, armed conflict or contributes to human rights abuses. UPMR undergoes frequent independent third party audits to ensure that its documentation, implementation, authentication, and verification processes are accurate and secure. Legor ensures that all precious metals that it sources, uses and sells originate from a controlled supply chain certifies by the Chain of Custody of the Responsible Jewelry Council.
ACCREDITATIONS AND COMPLIANCE
Responsible Jewellery Council
The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) provides guidelines that define the criteria for the ethical, social, human rights, and environmental standards for responsible business practices throughout the jewelry supply chain. Legor joined the RJC in 2011 and obtained its certification of compliance with RJC’s Code of Practices in 2013. UPMR is also a member of the RJC and has held a certification of compliance with RJC’s Code of Practices since 2016.
Responsible Mineral Initiative’s Responsible Minerals Assurance Process Assessment Standard
The Responsible Mineral Initiative (RMI) defines the standard for smelters and refiners that participate in the RMI’s Responsible Minerals Assurance Program (RMAP). Participation in RAMP ensures that UPMR conducts its due diligence in accordance with internationally recognized frameworks. UPMR has been determined to be a Conformant Smelter and has been in compliance with the RAMP standards since 2014.
SCS Global Services
SCS Global Services (SCS) is a third-party certification, verification and validation service. UPMR’s silver has been certified by SCS as having been obtained from 100% recycled sources. UPMR has held this certification since 2012.
DIAMONDS AND COLORED GEMSTONES
DIAMONDS
While most of our jewelry is handcrafted from fine and ultrafine high karat gold and sterling silver, some of our jewelry includes diamonds or colored gemstones in order to add a touch of color or sparkle. Our diamonds are all-natural (not man-made), conflict-free, adhere to the Kimberley Process, and are carefully selected to ensure high quality.
COLORED GEMSTONES
Periodically, we use colored gemstones but only when we have received assurances from our suppliers about the traceability of the stones, and that such stones are conflict-free. There is no Kimberley Process for colored gemstones, but new technology has been developed to help the industry to trace colored gemstones. It is called Provenance Proof Blockchain.
PROVENANCE PROOF BLOCKCHAIN
Gubelin Gem Lab has partnered with a tech company, Everledger, to create something called the Provenance Proof Blockchain. The joint venture created a digital decentralized “ledger” which sets forth the journey of each gem from mine to customer. The venture is attempting to get everyone involved in the gem industry to use the ledger to bring forth more transparency with respect to colored gemstones. We have signed up and have encouraged all of our suppliers to do so as well.
