CIBJO President presents report at ECOSOC

CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri has reported on the World Jewellery Confederation’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability programme to the High-Level Segment of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), in New York. CIBJO was one of only a handful of NGOs invited to make an oral statement at the session.

The High-Level Segment brings together representatives from UN member states, the private sector, civil society and academia, and addresses ECOSOC’s annual theme. The theme this year is “Implementing the post-2015 development agenda: moving from commitments to results.”

In his report, Dr Cavalieri described a series of programmes that have been introduced, which help optimize the involvement of the international jewellery sector in achieving the UN’s sustainable development goals. He also mentioned that they are meant to mitigate any negative societal effects that are directly or indirectly related to the sector’s activities.

Among the programmes that Dr Cavalieri reported on the ECOSOC session were - a comprehensive set of courses in Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability; an online system that will support all players in the industry in maintaining an ethical chain of custody, and reporting on proactive socially responsible policies; collaboration with government and civil society in biodiversity and combating the illicit trade in precious metals and gemstones; development and promotion of a framework that enables members of the jewellery industry worldwide to measure and offset their carbon footprints. In 2006 CIBJO became the jewellery industry’s first and only representative in the UN body, charged with engaging government, business and civil society in advancing the international community’s development agenda.