A Call for Gender Equality in the Jewelry Industry

RAPAPORT... This year, we commemorate the 10th anniversary of theInternational Day of the Girl. The day, which falls on October 11, focuses on the need to address thechallenges girls that face and promotes girls' empowerment and the fulfilment oftheir human rights. In the last 10 years, there has been a greater focus on gender equality with more opportunities for girls to have theirvoices heard on the global stage. Yet, we continue to fall woefully short of where weneed to be to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 by 2030. Simply put, we are not on track to achievegender equality by the end of this decade.

A number of crises in recent years have caused further setbacks toward reaching our goal. These include the globalpandemic, violent conflict, and accelerating climate change. These challenges have tested and even reversed the progress made in expanding women's rights and opportunities. It has threatened the participation of women in industry and government, their incomes and the gains made through education.

There is an urgent need to accelerate progress. Istrongly believe that cooperation, partnerships, and significant investmentsare essential to put us back on track.

The present reality

The current state of affairs does not look good. Here aresome startling and heart-breaking facts from a recentreport published by UN Women and the UN Department of Economic and SocialAffairs (UN DESA):

?       Achieving full genderequality could take close to 300 years at the current rate of progress. ?       It will take140 years for women to achieve equal representation in leadership positions inthe workplace, and 40 years for the same to happen in national parliaments. ?       Women have lostroughly $800 billion in global income due to the pandemic. ?     Approximately 383 million women and girls will live in extreme poverty by the end of the year, compared to368 million men and boys. Many more will have insufficient income to meet basicneeds such as food, clothing, and adequate shelter in most parts of the world. ?       Only 47% of data requiredto track progress on SDG 5 are currently available, rendering women and girlseffectively invisible.These are sobering findingsand should provide us with an even stronger call to action. Itis clear that without action, the erosion of rights of women and girls willcontinue. A clear example of this is the current events in Iran, where a22-year-old woman died in custody of the "morality police", sparking outrageand protests in Iran and beyond.

We have a long road ahead and no time to lose. We need torecover lost ground and re-commit to efforts with renewed zeal and vigor.

A matter of values

I was fortunate to be raised, mentored, and guidedby several strong and inspiring women. Looking back at my childhood,my grandmother stands out as a strong female presence - a young widow whoraised three children largely through grit and resilience. I have a mom and dad and a younger brother that have alwaysfully empowered me.

First in my family and then in my workplace, it was thesewomen and men who taught me what I today know about justice, beauty, and thepower of individual expression. It is through them that I have come to believein our shared responsibility to act and strive toward a fair and equal worldfor all.

I am equally concerned and passionate about ourplanet and know that the accelerating climate crisis affects women andgirls disproportionately. We cannot save the planet from the impending climateemergency without meaningful advances in women's rights and gender equality.There must be a reason we call the planet Mother Earth!

What can be done? 

The case for supporting women'sempowerment is particularly strong in the jewelry industry. Women drivedemand for a vast majority of the world's jewelry. Furthermore, in the rapidly growingethical consumer movement, millennial and now Gen Z women and girls are drivingconsumer decisions toward products and companies that act consciously andprotect their supply chains.

Women's roles in the jewelry supply chain has beenconditioned by existing gender disparities, skewing them towards lower skilledactivities in which they are not fully rewarded or recognized. Public commitments by companies has been largely related to women inretail-facing operations and corporate leadership, and less toward lower-incomeroles. It is crucialto expand gender considerations to the entire jewelry supply chain.

The evident complexities in jewelry supply chains, and thefact that large parts of the upstream involve artisanalsmall-scale mining (ASM), make these efforts even more challenging. Asignificant portion of these workers are located in developing countrieswhere low wages, poor working conditions and exposure to health and safetyhazards are more prevalent. An estimated 100 million or more people work in orrely on ASM. The majority of ASM communities are found in sparsely populated,rural, and often remote regions.

Best practices suggest that development programs in theASM sector need to tackle gender inequality as a cross-cutting issue. Itshould be an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring, andevaluation of ASM development policies and programs. ASM sector programingshould aim to: ?       Reduce gender disparities by enabling women and girls access to, control over, and benefitfrom resources; ?       Reduce gender-basedviolence in and around mine sites; and ?       Empower women and girls economically,socially, and politically

For really meaningful progress, the private and publicsector will need to collaborate and place women and girls at the center of allaspects of decision making, including through gender-responsive laws, policies,and budgeting. We need a truly multidimensional and multi-sectoral approach.That's why I so strongly believe in partnerships. Within the Watch &Jewellery Initiative 2030, inclusiveness is a key pillar from which we want to makea real impact. Gender equality is at the heart of this pillar.

Personal experience 

I started in the jewelry industry about 20 years ago. Itwas an entirely new environment, coming from a stock market technology company.I was at a family-owned business, which gave me a head start thatwas essential and immensely empowering at that stage of my career. Based inAntwerp, I got the chance to visit operational sites in countries as diverse asSouth Africa and India, while raising a five-year old son. The industry wasclearly changing at an accelerated pace.

I feel lucky to have received the opportunity and mentorship that I received. However, that has not been the experience forwomen across so many different industries and organizations. It wouldn't be astretch to say that back then, in the year 2000, the gender ratio in ourindustry, especially at higher levels of management was very skewed. I wouldvisit sites in China and India and see many women working on the manufacturingfloor, but unsurprisingly their input thinned out as you went up the managementchains. I was brought up with a strong work ethic and a value system that taughtme to push my boundaries. I learnt that the path to real growth was neitherlinear nor smooth, and sometimes, despite one's best efforts, things don't turnout as one wants them to.

Today, I find myself becoming increasingly vocal aboutinequality and injustice. Like most women, I have had my share of sexism andhave encountered people who don't share the same principles of gender equalitythat I hold. However, Ihave also had mentors and role models at every step of my professional and personal journey. Men and women, from both inside theindustry and elsewhere, who continue to inspire and renew my faith in the principlesof human dignity and the transformative power of collective effort.

At present, I am grateful to work with such inspiring C-suiteleaders to build our initiative. I am committed to continue to be anadvocate for gender equality and to work closely with our members and keystakeholders to find meaningful opportunities that accelerate our impacton this topic.

A call for action?

I am calling on our industry leaders and stakeholders tojoin forces and accelerate efforts to make gender equity a realityfor all. We know that the origins of these challenges are structural andcenturies old. Therefore, we need approaches and solutions that are also systemic to achieve comprehensive and long-term results, leading to both structural,and cultural transformations. Join our initiative and work closely together todrive the change that is needed.

Despite the recent setbacks, there is cause for hope. Theworld is home to over 1.1 billion girls under the age of 18, and they arepoised to become the largest generation of female leaders, entrepreneurs, andchange-agents the world has ever seen. There are countless examples of women aroundthe world who are assuming leadership, and taking destiny into theirown hands to inspire us all. It is time for us all to invest in a future that believes in the agency,leadership, and potential of girls everywhere.

I will conclude with inspiring words from a young woman,Malala Yousafzai, who stood up to the insurmountable and daunting challengesfacing her, and now continues to inspire countless women and men around theglobe: "I raise up my voice - not so that I can shout, but so thatthose without a voice can be heard. We cannot all succeed when half of us areheld back."

To learn more about the Watch and Jewellery Initiative 2030 please visit  https://www.wjinitiative2030.org/Image: Iris Van der Veken. (Watch and Jewellery Initiative 2030)