The World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) and the International Grown Diamond Association (IGDA) have agreed to work together in protecting the confidence of consumers in lab-grown diamonds (LGD) in both jewellery products and the jewellery industry, through the transparent development of standards, operating principles and terminology.
Gaetano Cavalieri, President of CIBJO, and Joanna Park-Tonks, President of IGDA signed a Memorandum of Understanding on June 25, 2023 at the National Association of Jewellers (NAJ) summit in UK.
As part of the agreement, IGDA will become a member of CIBJO’s Laboratory Grown Diamond Committee, where it will be represented by Ms. Park-Tonks. The committee, chaired by Wesley Hunt of De Beers, has developed a Laboratory Grown Diamond Guidance document, the goals of which is to define universal trading and handling practices for laboratory-grown diamonds, safeguarding their identity and enabling consumers to make informed purchasing decisions.
A current focus of the CIBJO’s Laboratory Grown Diamond Committee, and also an element during the discussion between CIBJO and IGDA, is the honest and accurate presentation of sustainability issues through cross-industry collaboration and leadership.
“We are delighted to be able to formalize IGDA’s association with CIBJO and the work that we do,” said Dr. Cavalieri. “We have had open lines of communication for some time already, and IGDA did participate in the public review before we released the Laboratory Grown Diamond Guidance document in 2021. Over the past several years the laboratory-grown diamonds sector has grown into a large and a prominent part of our industry, and we all have a vested interest in each other’s success. That definitely will be enhanced by having the IGDA as a permanent part of the discussion and the decision-making process.”
“IGDA is simply thrilled to be so warmly welcomed by Dr. Cavalieri,” said Ms. Park-Tonks. “This sends a clear signal to the global jewellery industry to set personal agendas and egos aside, placing the consumer and their best interests at the heart of our work. We all agree that a strategy of deriding natural diamonds or laboratory-grown diamond products is not conducive to consumers understanding of either sector. Together we are stronger and we jointly acknowledge the necessity of communicating clearly, honestly and transparently.”
Theodor Lisovoy for Rough&Polished
