When I got married, my wife and I were clear that any engagement or wedding rings had to be ethical. After all, it’s best to at least start out married life conflict-free.
In the early 1990’s civil war broke out in Sierra Leone. Thousands of people died over the next decade and a considerable amount of the money that went into funding armed factions within the country came from the sale of diamonds.
After the war ended, the diamond industry was called upon to acknowledge the role of these rare gems in funding the conflict, leading to the adoption of the term ‘conflict diamond’ or ‘blood diamonds’. In short, conflict diamonds are rough diamonds sold to finance wars against governments. This definition, as laid out in the Kimberley Process specifically restricts the term to mean diamonds that finance rebel movements against recognized governments.
The success of the United Nation’s Kimberley Process
The Kimberley Process is a certification scheme established by the United Nations General Assembly in 2003 with the intention of preventing conflict diamonds from entering the mainstream rough diamond market. This scheme tracks the imports and exports of diamonds from countries worldwide and works with governments, industry, and communities to limit the reach of conflict diamonds into the world market.
If you ask a diamond company or jeweler for source certification, it should be able to tell you which country and which mine your diamond came from. If not, you have no way of knowing if this is a conflict diamond that has sustained violence in:
- Angola
- The Ivory Coast
- The Democratic Republic of Congo
- Liberia
- Zimbabwe
- Elsewhere.
Since being set up in 2003, the Kimberley Process has come to represent most nations involved in the diamond trade. It is thought to have successfully reduced the conflict diamond trade to less than 1% of the global diamond industry. The process has inarguably helped keep money out of the hands of those who would use it to commit human rights atrocities.
Potential loopholes in the Kimberley Process
The Kimberley Process is not perfect. It has some significant loopholes and some countries have declined to join the process at all.
Conflict diamonds continue to enter the supply chain even from countries that did sign up. This is for two main reasons:
- There’s a lack of consistent independent monitoring of the member countries’ national control systems
- Diamond certificates are paper-based and therefore vulnerable to loss, forgery, and tampering.
Some jewelers go beyond the Kimberley Process to source diamonds that are in no way linked to any form of:
- Violence
- Human rights abuses
- Impoverishment of communities
- Environmental destruction
- Unsafe or irresponsible labor practices.
For some, such as MiaDonna, this includes acknowledging that Canadian diamonds and other diamonds certified by the Kimberley Process often have a significant negative impact on the environment, including harming local wildlife, waterways, and indigenous peoples – hardly conflict-free!
The importance of transparent mining laws
- Companies such as Bario Neal take the approach of strictly sourcing diamonds and gemstones from countries with robust mining and extraction laws in place, in their case Namibia, Canada, and Australia.
- The mines in Namibia are certified according to the ISO 14001 standard, for environmental management.
- Australia has laws in place mandating strict adherence by diamond and precious metal mining companies to environmental and labor practices.
- All Canadian diamond mining and production is subject to the strict Canadian Diamond Code of Conduct and the government of the Northwest Territories, designed to protect the Arctic environment, mine workers, and surrounding communities.
- Canadian diamond mines are monitored by independent organizations that are partnerships of the local and federal governments, the mine, and neighboring communities, the majority of which are Aboriginal groups.
- Taking this approach, rather than switching entirely to lab-grown or vintage diamonds, avoids the risk of removing economic opportunities in traditional artisanal mining communities.
- The middle-ground, perhaps, is in buying diamonds from a company such as MiaDonna, which offers financial support to such communities to create alternative economic opportunities.
The future of sustainable diamond certifications
An alternative to the Kimberley Process, namely a Fair Trade diamond certification system, may happen in the future, largely thanks to Brilliant Earth. Beth Gerstein, cofounder of Brilliant Earth, has publicly committed to offering Beyond Conflict Free Diamonds™ that have ethical and environmentally responsible origins.
The company places a strong emphasis on the social impact of mining and donates five percent of net profits to support a brighter future in artisanal, small-scale mining communities.
And there are even some moves to use blockchain technology to better track diamonds through the supply chain.
Alternatives to Conflict Diamonds
The obvious alternative to conflict diamonds is… conflict-free diamonds.
As I mention above, though, questions remain over conflict-free claims. Thankfully, there are other choices, including recycled and lab-grown diamonds.
Recycled diamonds are diamonds that are repurposed from a previous setting or that were bought but never set. Because recycled diamonds require no new mining, they are a more responsible choice all round. These diamonds are typically graded by gemologists, so they can be compared to newly mined diamonds and lab-grown diamonds.
As the name suggests, lab-grown diamonds are created in a laboratory. Scientists figured out how to recreate the conditions that lead to natural diamond development underground.
Lab diamonds have the same physical, chemical, and optical characteristics as natural diamonds, with the advantages of costing less and avoiding concerns over diamond mining.
With a lab-grown diamond you’re likely to get about 30 percent more diamond for the same price as a traditional ‘earth-grown’ gem!
Other things to consider when shopping for a sustainable diamond
In addition to considering a ring made with lab-grown or recycled diamonds, here are a few other things to think about when buying an ethical engagement or wedding ring include:
- Choosing a ring made with recycled or Fairmined certified gold
- Finding a vintage ring from consignment jewelry stores or online auctioneers
- Working with a jeweler to repurpose jewelry you already own
- Choosing a non-traditional ring, such as a wooden ring
What is Fairmined gold? Glad you asked. Fairmined is a certification that guarantees the gold in your ring (or other piece of jewelry) is fully traceable from mine to market and comes from an environmentally and socially responsible mining operation. This typically means artisanal and small-scale mines that support communities. The Fairmined Initiative was created by the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM), a non-profit organization and leader of responsible artisanal and small-scale mining. Fairmined was set up to enable metal mining communities to access fair pay and to encourage environmentally conscious mining practices.
No Dirty Gold is another campaign intended to clean up the gold industry. Gold mining is a highly destructive and polluting practice that can displace communities, contaminate drinking water, and hurt people and planet. No Dirty Gold estimates that producing enough gold for a single wedding ring can generate 20 tons of waste.
This campaign promotes alternatives to gold mining, such as supporting the efficient use, recycling, and repurposing of existing mineral supplies.
Current signatories to No Dirty Gold include:
- James Allen
- Catbird
- Bario Neal.
Our top picks
Curious about how we rate products? Click here to view our methodology, which at its core, is about voting with our dollars to fight climate change.
MiaDonna
Highlights: Going well beyond conflict-free, MiaDonna use exclusively lab-created diamonds and recycled metals and helps to rebuild communities ravaged by mining.
- Exclusively lab-created diamonds and recycled metals
- Certified B Corp since September 2019
- Donates 10% of net profits
- Plants a tree with every order through One Tree Planted
- Green America Seal of Approval for environmental sustainability and social justice
- Carbon neutral shipping
- Includes non-toxic jewelry cleaner for free in a fully recyclable container with all US orders
MiaDonna is based in Portland, Oregon, and offers stunning and sustainable diamond rings and other jewelry. MiaDonna’s ring settings are handcrafted using:
- Recycled solid gold
- 950 pure platinum
- 950 pure palladium.
These come from environmentally friendly refineries.
MiaDonna sees the Kimberley Process as a failure that acts as a band-aid offering false assurance to consumers. It’s stance is that there is “no such thing as a ‘conflict free’ earth mined diamond.” Hence, lab-grown and recycled diamonds.
MiaDonna donates 10% of net profits to fund meaningful projects in diamond mining communities through its foundation, The Greener Diamond (which it also runs with no administrative costs).
As a social enterprise, MiaDonna isn’t beholden to shareholders, board members, mining companies, or corporations. Instead, the company’s goal is to create ethical jewelry that helps improve the quality of life for people in sub-Saharan Africa.
MiaDonna also installed a super efficient water filtration system to recycle the water it uses to create jewelry. Jewelry-making is a water intensive business, so this helps conserve drinking water.
Fair Trade Jewellery Co. (FTJCo.)
Highlights: A fantastic B Corporation, using Fairmined, Fair Trade, nickel-free gold to make beautiful engagement and wedding rings, with a proposal loaner ring program.
- B Corp since 2013
- First North American business to use Fair Trade Certified gold
- Second jeweler in the world to use Fairmined gold
- Has a robust conflict minerals policy
- Supporter of the Just Gold project
- Offers loaner proposal rings!
- Goes beyond the Kimberley Process, seeing its flaws
Fair Trade Jewellery Co. is a Canadian online jeweler that aims to provide genuine options for responsible and ethical jewelry. The company has strong partnerships with the:
- Responsible Jewellery Council
- North American Gem Association
- Competition Bureau of Canada.
I appreciate that FTJCo’s B Corp score is high and steadily increases each year, showing that it isn’t resting on its laurels when it comes to labor rights, environmental initiatives, governance, and community support. Indeed, FTJCo. works with Canadian NGO, IMPACT, to engage in and support responsible sourcing and legal trade in conflict-free ASM gold from conflict-affected regions.
FTJCo. was an early supporter of IMPACT’s Just Gold project to provide a legal, traceable, and conflict-free chain of custody from mine site to exporter—a first for artisanal gold in Democratic Republic of Congo.
FTJCo. offers a ‘house blend’ of 50% Just Gold with 50% recycled gold, along with Fairtrade and Fairmined gold.
I love that the company offers ‘loaner rings’ made of silver and cubic zirconia. That way, you can propose with a beautiful ring, safe in the knowledge that you can return it in exchange for the ring your soon-to-be-spouse wants.
Vrai
Highlights: Beautiful jewelry made using hydropower, recycled gold, and the world’s first certified Carbon Neutral® lab-grown diamonds.
- Exclusively lab-created diamonds from parent company, the Diamond Foundry
- Based in the US
- First certified zero carbon footprint diamonds produced using hydropower
- Direct to consumer jewelry company – quality diamond engagement rings without the markup!
- Understated designs with clean, simple lines
- Every diamond is certified with a unique gemological ID
- All diamonds are backed by a lifetime guarantee
- In-house gold jewelry uses only recycled gold sourced from RJC certified suppliers
- Every ring is made by hand to order
- Orders over $1500 require a signature upon delivery
- Cons list here
Vrai means ‘truth’ in French and ‘gold’ in Spanish, which is a pretty good combination in any language. These diamonds are sustainably created and have Carbon Neutral® certification (from Natural Capital Partners). This covers the diamonds from forging to polishing to shipping. It even accounts for the Diamond Foundry’s employees commuting to and from work!
Vrai’s collection includes pieces with:
- White diamonds
- Black diamonds
- A variety of stone sizes and shapes
- Stacking rings.
Designs tend to be cleaner and simpler than from many other jewelers, making them a great choice if you’re going for something understated where the diamond can really shine.
AUrate New York
Highlights: Founded in 2015, and specializing in minimalist wedding bands and engagement rings made with traceable diamonds and recycled gold. Prices start at just $50!
- Goes beyond the Kimberley Process
- More affordable than many jewelry companies
- Based in NY
- Donates to literacy programs
- 100% nickel-free
- Uses recycled gold
- Uses sustainably sourced pearls
- 30-day refund policy, including for made-to-order pieces
- Free return shipping.
- Cons list here
AUrate’s co-founder and designer, Sophie Kahn, is inspired by NYC, creating rings modeled on the arches of the Brooklyn Bridge, and other jewelry that reflects the vibrancy and architecture of the city she loves.
AUrate was founded by longtime friends Sophie Kahn and Bouchra Ezzahraoui after Kahn got the dreaded ‘green finger’ when wearing a ring that was supposedly pure gold. This appreciation of genuine gold means that every AUrate piece is designed and handmade using ethically sourced and sustainably made 100% recycled gold. This includes:
- 14K gold
- 18k gold
- 14k gold-plated vermeil – coated with 2.5 microns of 14K gold (instead of the industry standard 1.5 microns and 10K gold).
There’s absolutely no nickel in AUrate jewelry.
AUrate uses large pearls harvested from the South Sea with a high-quality AAA-grade, and sources smaller Akoya pearls from Japan. These pearls are sustainably farmed and sensitively harvested to protect marine ecology. Indeed, the company is committed to only using raw materials that are certifiably conflict-free and sustainably sourced.
Catbird
Highlights: Woman-owned and operated, offering designer rings at an affordable price made in NYC with recycled, conflict-free, or lab-grown diamonds and fair trade or recycled gold.
- Beautiful, unique, handmade pieces
- Fair trade and recycled gold
- Conflict-free, recycled, and lab-grown diamonds only
- Affordable starting prices and luxury jewelry too!
- Offers wedding rings in gold and platinum
- Focus on durability
- Unique pieces by designers using vintage diamonds
- All of the jewelry is made in New York
- Tiny store and a Wedding Annex you can visit!
- Woman owned and operated business
- Vertically integrated, for labor and energy benefits
- Certified member of No Dirty Gold
- Sustainably sourced pearls
- Has a 501c3 foundation and donates at least 1% of all sales to non-profits
- Cons list here
Catbird is a Brooklyn-based jewelry company that’s been around since 2004. It creates unique pieces using:
- Recycled brilliant cut diamonds
- Conflict-free rose cut diamonds – sourced from longstanding suppliers that go beyond the Kimberley Process.
Catbird also ensures that cutting facilities are safe and audited by a third-party on an ongoing basis.
Starting at much lower prices than many of the companies on this list (but rising to around $14k!), Catbird is a great choice if you want an ethical, sustainable diamond ring or other jewelry at any price point.
Catbird also helps educate, pointing out that active folks may want to choose a platinum setting instead of a softer 22 carat gold, to better maintain the ring’s shine and reduce the risk of its getting scratched.
Catbird is also an ethical employer (generous benefits and a safe, light-filled, clean working environment, unlike many workshops). Its studio, shipping warehouse, and office are all in the same place, with this vertical integration translating to:
- A lower carbon footprint
- Faster work
- Better quality
- More affordable prices.
The company sources all of its gold chain, wire, findings and castings from vendors committed to minimizing their environmental impact. It also uses a New York City caster using all recycled metals and clean, electric equipment.
The Catbird order form includes a Special Instructions section that encourages you to specify if you’d like minimum packaging.
Trumpet & Horn
Highlights: Eco-friendly and one of a kind, Trumpet & Horn rings are made with recycled metals and repurposed diamonds and are affordable too!
- Antique, vintage, and vintage-style engagement rings and jewelry
- Free US shipping
- Affordable starting prices
- Recycled metals, repurposed jewelry, and antique diamonds
- Little focus on sustainability outside of materials
Trumpet & Horn adheres to the American Gem Trade Association’s Code of Ethics, and supports the Kimberley Process. It specializes in ethically sourced, vintage engagement rings and genuine antique rings (where the ring is over 100 years’ old). Vintage rings are those made within the last 100 years but are at least 20-30 years old.
The company also offers ‘vintage inspired’ rings, which are those that are newly made, not previously owned, but that were designed to look vintage or antique. While some companies make vintage inspired rings using metals and gems of dubious ethical merit, Trumpet & horn only uses antique or vintage cut diamonds and recycled metals to create new settings.
Trumpet & Horn is a specialist at salvaging what can be salvaged from older pieces of jewelry, including watches, brooches, earrings, and so forth. It then repurposes stones and melts down the gold in Los Angeles metals to make new jewelry that maintains that vintage vibe.
Bario Neal
Highlights: One-of-a-kind diamond rings and other jewelry made with recycled and ethically sourced stones and metals by a company that advocates for and financially supports sustainability, environmental responsibility, and marriage equality. Can also re-set heirloom diamonds!
- US jeweler making unique rings
- Recycled diamonds and diamonds sourced from ‘conflict-free’ regions
- Signatory to No Dirty Gold
- Uses Fair Trade gold and 100% reclaimed silver, gold, palladium, and platinum or Fairmined gold
- One of the first jewelers to sign up for Fairmined Assurance label
- Can re-set diamonds for lower cost pieces
- Lots of customization options
- Supports social justice initiatives (marriage equality, sustainability)
- Goes beyond the diamonds’ source – also supporting fairer labor practices in gemstone cutting and polishing
- Works with carefully selected US refineries to produce recycled metals with less environmental impact
- Recycled diamonds larger than .35 carats come with a Gemological Institute of America certificate
- Heirloom diamonds over a quarter carat are appraised for insurance purposes
- Works with raw diamonds and melee diamonds for more affordability
- Founding members of the Ethical Metalsmiths Jewelers Directory and the Ethical Sourcing Consortium
- One-year warranty, covering manufacturing defects
- All jewelry ships in eco-friendly jewelry boxes made with recycled paper in North Carolina
- All packaging materials are made in the USA
- Printed materials are on recycled paper stock
- Offers porcelain jewelry boxes hand cast in Portland, Oregon
- ‘Conflict-free’ is a fraught claim
- Some chains and earring posts and backs aren’t available in 100% recycled or Fairmined metals -BN is working on better sources
Bario Neal is a Philadelphia-based jeweler making one-of-a-kind engagement rings. Unlike most jewelers, Bario Neal can also re-set heirloom diamonds (i.e., family diamonds), so you can create meaningful jewelry at a much lower cost.
Bario Neal’s founders – designers Anna Bario and Page Neal – were disillusioned by the low standards of ethics and value in the jewelry industry. It’s ethos is to promote:
- Ethical sourcing
- Progressive manufacturing
- The right to love and marry whomever and however you choose.
In fact, advocacy for human rights within the jewelry industry is a ‘non-negotiable part of [Bario Neal’s] mission.’
Bario Neal also works with raw diamonds and melee diamonds, which isn’t all that common in the jewelry industry (in part because melee diamonds are hard to source ethically) but gives you more options to keep costs low and create the aesthetic you want. The company only uses recycled or newly mined melee diamonds that are fully traceable, from Australia or Canada.
The same goes for its black diamonds which, again, are not typically ethically sourced because of cost. Bario Neal only works with recycled or ethically sourced black diamonds, from three mines in Brazil, Canada, and Australia. It’s also very transparent about its sources for gemstones, including sapphires, emeralds, jade, opals, and rubies.
Taylor & Hart
Highlights: A more traditional jewelry company, making custom rings to order using ‘conflict-free’ diamonds and the option of fairmined metals.
- Offers fair trade gold and recycled gold and platinum engagement rings upon request
- Diamonds include CanadaMark diamonds and Kimberley Process certified
- Uses KP as a minimum but tries to go beyond that
- Partners with Everledger – an organization trying to transform diamond tracking by using blockchain technology
- Lifetime warranty on manufacturing defects
- 90-day returns, and free and insured shipping
- Packaging is free from branding (so as not to ruin the surprise!)
- Custom design services start from $1500
- Existing inventory starts at around $1000
- Turnaround time of four weeks typically
- Rings fly around a lot in production
- Standard rings use metals without sustainability credentials
- Faux leather presentation box could be more eco-friendly
Every Taylor & Hart ring is made to order, with a typical turnaround time of around four weeks. This involves design work in London, UK, production in China, and setting, polishing, and engraving back in London. Taylor & Hart also manufactures rings for some ‘famous’ brands, whose names they don’t reveal. . Their .
Taylor & Hart’s CEO, Nikolay, grew up in Africa, including in South Africa and Zimbabwe. This has helped inform the company’s decision to try not to purchase Zimbabwean diamonds, which remain problematic even when Kimberley Process compliant. Taylor & Hart uses the Kimberley Process as a benchmark but is more discerning in its sourcing.
James Allen
Highlights: Designer engagement and wedding rings made with Kimberley Process certified conflict-free diamonds – free inscriptions!
- Signatory to No Dirty Gold
- Uses KP certified diamonds
- Huge conflict-free diamond collection (200,000+!)
- Offers a wide range of settings
- 360-degree HD online showroom
- Can re-set your own diamonds
- Free inscriptions
- Accepts engraved rings under its return policy (with a small re-polishing fee)
- Affordable options
- Lifetime warranty (free prong tightening, re-polishing, rhodium plating, and cleaning)
- 100% money back guarantee
- 24/7 customer service
- Will resize your ring once for free in the first year of purchase
- Free return shipping in the US and Canada for the first resize
- Not as sustainably minded as some smaller companies
- Relies mostly on KP
James Allen is a well-known name in the jewelry business and offers designer engagement and wedding rings. It is the largest privately held online diamond retailer worldwide, with a current collection including an astonishing 200,000 conflict-free diamonds.
What really sets James Allen apart is its 360-degree HD online showroom. This allows you to view all ring settings and diamonds in highly magnified form on your device or computer. Thanks to this technology, diamond suppliers flock to James Allen, hence the giant inventory. You can pick your setting and then pick your diamond, then see what the ring will look like.
Noémie
Highlights: Recycled 18K gold and Kimberley Process certified conflict-free diamonds, plus custom design process and a lifetime warranty.
- Uses recycled gold
- KP conflict-free diamonds or lab-grown
- Free overnight shipping and returns for online orders
- Custom design process
- Lifetime warranty
- IGI certification for diamonds
- Boutique and not cheap (prices start at around $3,000)
Noémie uses recycled 18K gold and Kimberley Process certified conflict-free diamonds or lab-grown diamonds to create beautiful jewelry. You can see the resulting rings and other pieces by appointment in the jeweler’s SoHo loft.
Just wondering how the Instagram famous Brilliant Earth ranked on conflict free jewelry based off of your research?
Hi Kirsten,
Good find!
Brilliant Earth look to have a solid sourcing policy that goes beyond the Kimberley Process. They also offer recycled and lab-grown diamonds, which are arguably even better in terms of human and environmental ethics. And they use recycled gold and other precious metals in some of their jewelry, so seem like a great choice for an ethical conflict-free diamond ring. Thanks for bringing them to my attention. I’ll do a deeper dive and likely add them here when time allows.
Thanks,
Leigh