(IDEX Online) - A new Asia-based gem and jewelry leadership group has been established to boost knowledge and improve ties across the global industry.
The JALC (JTC-AIGS Leaders Council), established by a partnership between the Bangkok-based Jewelry Trade Center (JTC) and the Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences (AIGS), will include internationally renowned figures from the gem and jewelry community who will seek to develop understanding of pressing issues in the sector.
"JALC is an initiative to enhance knowledge, improve skills and align the global and local gems and jewelry industries and to bring about positive change," said Barbara Wheat, Vice-President of International Relations & Business Development of the Ho Group of Companies, which includes the AIGS, a Bangkok-based gemology lab and school.
"This type of support will enable JALC to play a leading role in the industry worldwide through better liaison and communication with people from various geographic areas and markets," added Barbara, who heads the JALC Steering Committee.
The first gathering of the JALC, chaired by Henry Ho, founder and president of the JTC, the 59-floor hub of Thailand's gem industry, will take place in Bangkok in September 2018, on the 20th anniversary of the JTC and the 40th anniversary of the AIGS, to discuss topical concerns in the gems and jewelry industry.
Members of the JALC include internationally known industry leaders, such as Jacques Prades, Dr. Pornsawat Watanakul, Masaki Furuya, Peyton Kelly, Joseph Belmont, Niels Hansen and others, who are initially appointed for a period of five years.