April / May 2020 - Lab Grown Magazine

April / May 2020 | LG | The Lab Grown Diamond Resource Book 16 To advertise call (888) 832-1109 | April / May 2020 17 to the Namibian economy,” says Riaan Burger, Nameb chief executive officer, adding “and we are very excited about the sea exploration project with De Beers.” The hopeful sale of earth min- ing in Namibia is a reminder that sustainability is about now, not tomorrow. An Anglo-American executive stated that this increase in future diamond output represents a 35% year-on-year increase of current levels from this one region alone and that it will be 100% carbon neutral. Or will it? What about the energy used to make and fuel the ships? With more than 3,700 square miles of marine diamond conces- sions along its southwest coast, Namibia is ex- pected to support the natural diamond industry for the next 50 years. How is it then that DPA insists that white diamonds are rare? So, challenged by multi-million-dollar diamond- searching ships and millions of members world- wide from well-funded mined-focused global entities, where should LG producers turn for as- sistance and information? Hint : This is where you may want to grab your umbrella. It’s a Start In May 2019, the Lab Grown Diamond Council (LGDC) was launched in Manhattan with Chris Casey at the helm and Michael Barlerin (who also heads Silver Promotion Service) as chair- man. The Mission of the LGDC is to “develop and implement a multi-tiered, international com- Debmarine is a joint venture between De Beers and the government of Namibia. The new vessel is expected to add about 500,000 carats a year of production capacity with its seabed mined diamond output. (Photo: Debmarine Namibia) munications program designed to increase the awareness of, knowledge about and demand for lab-grown diamonds,” according to a press state- ment issued by LGDC. Barlerin explained, “Many leading companies in the lab-grown market have approached me over the last year regarding the need for focused, research-based messaging on advocacy, com- munications and education of the unique offering of lab-grown diamonds. The LGDC creates the platform to develop and deliver on these needs.” “The ‘sustainability grown diamond estima- tion mark’ is being established to create a uni- fied voice to maximize the growth of lab-grown diamonds,” said Casey. “Our intent is to provide members with the tools they need to continue to drive the growth of this revolutionary product.” With sustainability in mind, the LGDC created an LG certification—a branded way to identify LG stones through a neutral third party called Scien- tific Certification Systems, Inc., now doing busi- ness as SCS Global Services (SCS). Still, it is unclear how LGDC effectively pro- motes lab-grown diamonds as being “greener” than mined stones. Do its efforts focus only on LG? Do they show how many producers are us- ing renewable energy? Do they show what tools may be available to help? Stay tuned. Another LG group has a been around for four years. Founded in February 2016, the Interna- tional Grown Diamond Association (IGDA) is >>