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Boldly Building the Future:
Gold, Diamonds, and Jewelry in a Transformational Age

IAC’s 12th Annual Gold + Diamond Conference
July 18 – 20, 2022

Bohemian National Hall
321 E 73rd St, New York, NY

In its 12th annual Gold + Diamond Conference, IAC took a deep dive into critical issues in responsible practice, sustainability, luxury, and artisanry.

We face, on the one hand, imperatives articulated in the UN SDGs and in the outcomes of COP 26. And on the other, an ever-present and evolving need to preserve the magic, romance, and emotional power of gold, diamonds, and jewelry.

This tension was the focus of the 2022 Gold + Diamond Conference.

Through podium presentations, panel discussions, and conversations we explored the following:

      • Climate change and planning for the future
      • Responsible sourcing and best practices at the interface of LSM and ASM
      • Defining luxury in an age of responsible practice
      • Artistry, vision, and practice in contemporary jewelry
      • Training jewelers and goldsmiths for the future
      • Succession planning and ensuring the future in the jewelry and precious metals sector
      • Comparative approaches to achieving better outcomes in ASM

The Conference kicked off on July 18 with an evening event honoring women of accomplishment in the jewelry industry to take place at CADAR, the New York City-based fine jewelry line designed by Michal Kadar. During the Conference, IAC will again present two major awards: the Award for Leadership in Responsible Practice and the Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Diamond and Jewelry Industries. Prior recipients of the Award for Leadership have included Toby Pomeroy (Mercury Free Mining), Feriel Zerouki (DeBeers Group), Anisa Costa (Tiffany & Co. and the Tiffany & Co. Foundation), Robert Weldon (GIA), and Cristina Villegas (Pact). In 2021, the inaugural recipient of the Outstanding Contributions Award was World Diamond Council President Edward Asscher.

Program agenda

Monday, July 18, 2022

5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Opening evening honoring women of accomplishment in the jewelry industry

CADAR
595 Madison Avenue, 5th Floor
New York, NY

Remarks, Jean Z. Poh, CEO, CADAR

 

Tuesday, July 19, 2022

8:30 – 9:00 a.m. Registration and coffee
9:00 – 9:20 a.m. Introduction: “Why Are We Here?”
Lisa Koenigsberg
(President / Founder, Initiatives in Art and Culture)
9:20 – 9:30 a.m. Opening remarks
Mark Hanna
(CMO, Richline Group)
9:30 – 10:50 a.m. Climate change and planning for the future
Moderator—Mark Hanna
(CMO, Richline Group)

  • Sarah Dupont (Founder, Amazon Aid)
  • Luis E. Fernandez (Executive Director, CINCIA and Research Associate Professor of Biology, Wake Forest University)
  • Simone Knobloch (Chief Operating officer, Valcambi)
  • John Mulligan (Director and Climate Lead, World Gold Council & President, Sustainable Development Commission, CIBJO – World Jewellery Confederation)
  • Hélène M. Piaget (CEO, Responsible Mining Foundation)
  • Tensie Whelan (Clinical Professor of Business and Society and Director of the Center for Sustainable Business, NYU Stern School of Business)
10:50 – 11:05 a.m. Break
11:05 – 11:25 a.m. Case studies in mercury elimination
Cassie Hoffman
(Conservation X Labs) & Toby Pomeroy (Mercury Free Mining Challenge)
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. “Origin”: Where do your gold and diamonds come from and why does it matter?
Moderator—Rob Bates
(News Editor, JCK)

  • David Block (CEO, Sarine Group)
  • Angel Camacho (criminal analyst with over 10 years’ experience working transnational organized crime matters; member, Advisory Board, Amazon Aid)
  • Olivier Demierre (President, Swiss Better Gold + Senior Vice President Corporate Social Responsibility, MKS PAMP Group Origin Solution)
  • Joanne Lebert (Executive Director, IMPACT)
  • Christina T. Miller (Christina T. Miller Sustainable Jewelry Consultants)
1:00 – 2:15 p.m. Luncheon
2:15 – 3:15 p.m. Succession: Transition and ensuring the future in the jewelry and precious metals sectors
Moderator—Brandee Dallow
(Founder, Fine Girl Luxury Brand Building & Communications)

  • Edward Asscher (President, World Diamond Council)
  • Lita Asscher (Co-President, Royal Asscher Diamond Company)
  • Ted Doudak (CEO, RIVA Precision Manufacturing)
  • Alice Cicolini (jewelry designer, curator, & author)
3:15 – 3:30 p.m. Break
3:30 – 4:40 p.m. Mining in the ASM sector: Design and adaptation of best practices
Moderator—Brecken Branstrator (Senior Editor, Gemstones, National Jeweler)

  • Olivier Demierre (President, Swiss Better Gold + Senior Vice President Corporate Social Responsibility, MKS PAMP Group)
  • Joanne Lebert (Executive Director, IMPACT)
  • Christian Sieber (consultant, Valcambi)
  • Cristina Villegas (Director, Mine to Market, Pact)
  • Ruby Stocklin-Weinberg (Program Manager, GemFair, De Beers)
4:45 – 5:30 p.m. Keynote conversation
Facing forward: Update from the Kimberley Process and World Diamond Council
Edward Asscher (President, World Diamond Council)
5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Evening celebration
Presentation of Initiatives in Art and Culture’s awards for Leadership in Responsible Practice and Outstanding Contributions to the Diamond and Jewelry Industries

Wednesday, July 20, 2022

9:20 – 9:30 a.m. Welcoming remarks
9:30 – 10:45 a.m. Global expectations: Language, legislation, regulation, and transformation
Moderator—Mark Hanna
(CMO, Richline)

  • Gaetano Cavalieri (President, CIBJO – The World Jewellery Confederation)
  • Angel Camacho (criminal analyst with over 10 years’ experience working transnational organized crime matters; member, Advisory Board, Amazon Aid)
  • Theresa M. Forbes (Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Lead, Anti-Human Trafficking Expert, International AML/CFT Advisor, US Department of the Treasury)
  • Joanne Lebert (Executive Director, IMPACT)
  • Tiffany Stevens (CEO/President Jewelers Vigilance Committee)
10:45 – 11:00 a.m. Break
11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Responsible sourcing and best practice at the interface of LSM and ASM
Moderator—
Christian Sieber (consultant, Valcambi)

  • Aimee Boulanger (Executive Director, Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance [IRMA])
  • Edward Bickham (World Gold Council)
  • Nick Cotts (Vice President – Sustainability and External Relations, Newmont Mining Corporation)
  • Hélène Piaget (CEO, Responsible Mining Foundation)
  • Christina T. Miller (Christina T. Miller Sustainable Jewelry Consultants)
  • Cristina Villegas (Director, Mine to Market, Pact)
12:15 – 1:30 p.m. Luncheon
1:30 – 2:00 p.m. Matters of principle and practice: Towards an industry roadmap to sustainability
John Mulligan (Director of Market Relations & Climate Change Lead, World Gold Council & President, Sustainable Development Commission, CIBJO – World Jewellery Confederation)
2:05 – 3:10 p.m. Training goldsmiths and jewelers for the future
Moderator—Christina Miller
(Christina T. Miller Sustainable Jewelry Consultants)

  • Nanz Aalund (author, A Jeweler’s Guide to Apprenticeships)
  • Ted Doudak (CEO, RIVA Precision Manufacturing)
  • Ebba Goring (Chief Executive, The Scottish Goldsmiths Trust)
  • Karen Westland (Ethical Making Programme Manager, The Scottish Goldsmiths Trust)
3:15 – 3:45 p.m. Principles in practice: The Scottish Goldsmiths Trust’s Ethical Making Pledge
Ebba Goring (Chief Executive, Scottish Goldsmiths Trust), Karen Westland (Ethical Making Programme Manager, The Scottish Goldsmiths Trust)
3:45 – 4:00 p.m. Break
4:00 – 4:45 p.m. Drawing on heritage and artisanry for jewellery for our time
Alice Cicolini (jewellery designer and curator)
4:45 – 5:30 p.m. Determining the Belperron of the future: who, how, and why?

  • Mark Emanuel (Owner, David Webb)
  • Lisa Koenigsberg (President, IAC)
  • Jean Z. Poh (CEO, CADAR)