First in bad news there are not really and truly any conflict free, eco-friendly diamond wedding rings. In good news no one says you have to 100% get a diamond wedding ring. Diamond wedding rings are a confusing topic because of the no-conflict issue.
Is conflict free diamond even a real term?
Yes, plenty of jewelry sellers use the term conflict-free, but it’s not a real certified term by any means. Some jewelry retailers will claim that they track every single diamond from the mine to the polisher to the shop to ensure ethical practices, but the mere act of mining diamonds sets them up as not eco-friendly, and since the term zero or no-conflict diamond is currently self-policing it means little. No one is checking up on diamond sellers.
The Kimberly Process is doing work to track conflict diamonds, but they’re not a certifying party. In fact the entire warranty system endorsed by all Kimberley Process participants, all buyers and sellers of both rough and polished diamonds relies on “personal knowledge and/or written guarantees provided by the supplier of these diamonds.” I.e. again, self-policing.
If you go hunting at diamond stores, even those selling “conflict free” they won’t be able to offer any substantial proof of their non-conflicts.
Learn more:
- There Are No Clean Diamonds: What You Need to Know About Canadian Diamonds
- There are no conflict free diamonds
- Diamonds: No One’s Best Friend?
What can you do?
You can realign your thinking – a diamond is not an indication that your love is real or that you’ll be happily married; other stuff matters more.
You could be unique – everyone has a diamond. In spite of their cost they’re not all that rare. Rings exchanged for love actually have a long history but diamonds as the jewel of choice is only indicated by an early monopoly in the diamond industry that you don’t have to blindly follow. Going with another ring will set you apart and support your eco-ethics.
You should know – if you absolutely need a diamond wedding ring it will not be conflict free and it will mean a cost to the environment.
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