While individual companies — including
Pandora
and Tiffany &
Co
— have been working on their own sustainability initiatives, Kering and
Cartier’s Watch & Jewelry Initiative
2030 is the first to bring the industry
together with a set ambitious and common objectives in three areas:
DEI and sustainability: The ROI of inclusive corporate cultures
Join us as leaders from the Accomplis Collective, Bard, Beneficial State Foundation, ReEngineering HR and REI share best practices for cultivating a culture of belonging and insights into how inclusive leadership can lead to more effective and equitable sustainability outcomes — Wednesday, Oct. 16, at SB'24 San Diego.
“As the watch and jewellery sector relies on the earth’s precious resources and
people’s know-how around the world within its value chains, the imperative to
act together in creating a more positive impact has become ever clearer,” said
Cyrille Vigneron, President and CEO of Cartier. “We are thrilled to join
efforts towards a more sustainable industry together with Kering, in partnership
with the Responsible Jewellery Council — and to invite other industry actors
to join this initiative. More than ever, we remain committed to share our common
vision of a future where all Maisons, their suppliers and business partners
are empowered to collaborate on projects that deliver positive impact on the
planet and its people.”
Owner of a renowned stable of fashion, leather goods, jewelry and watch brands —
including
Gucci,
Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen,
Boucheron and Pomellato — Kering has long been at the forefront of
sustainable luxury, setting the bar with its environmental profit & loss
framework and open-sourcing
it
in 2015; and last year, releasing a detailed roadmap toward its goal to have a
net-positive impact on biodiversity by
2025.
“At Kering, we believe that luxury is inseparable from the highest environmental
and social standards; and that it is our responsibility, as leading luxury
players, to initiate the changes that are needed to protect our planet,” said
Jean-François Palus, Group Managing Director of Kering. “We have long been
convinced that only collective action can make the difference to transform our
industry for the
better.
For watch and jewellery, just like for fashion, we believe that committing
collectively to a common core of quantified environmental objectives focusing on
a few themes is the best way to really have an impact. The changes we are
fighting for are essential for the future, not only of the planet but of our
industry itself.”
While focusing on its three thematic priorities, the 2030 initiative strongly
commits to transparency with the requirement to report on progress on a regular
basis. It will also support members in meeting growing expectations of
stakeholders — including
consumers,
civil society, and regulators — of exemplary environmental, social and ethical
practices.
Goal 1: Building climate resilience
The first goal is about taking priority actions to reduce carbon emissions in
line with a 1.5°C pathway, to achieve net zero by 2030. As a minimum commitment,
brands joining the initiative should submit science-based emission-reduction
targets for Scope 1, 2 and 3
emissions
to the Science Based Targets
Initiative
(SBTi) by 2022. Signatories must also demonstrate their work to help
vulnerable populations in the watch and jewellery industry value chain and
contribute to low-carbon solutions for these
communities.
Goal 2: Preserving resources for nature and communities
The second goal is to ensure that the industry’s sourcing has a positive impact
on nature and communities. As a minimum commitment by 2022, participating brands
should measure and prioritize their impact on biodiversity and
water
across their sourcing of key raw materials, using a credible science-based
framework.
Further commitments include implementing action plans to reduce water and
biodiversity impacts by 2025, by:
-
Implementing sourcing
standards
that protect natural ecosystems and the services they provide to local and
indigenous peoples — including ensuring that supply chains are free of products
sourced from ancient and endangered
forests,
restoring habitats where mining and other extraction activities have occurred,
and developing local livelihoods for mining and farming communities that respect
the balance of natural ecosystems.
-
Creating a new industry mindset focused on sustainable innovation and
circularity in materials, products and
practices
in the industry.
Goal 3: Fostering inclusiveness across value chains
As a minimum commitment, brands joining the initiative should join the RJC and
become Code of
Practices
(COP)-certified in two years. Commitments on this front include ensuring COP
certification for Tier 1 and 2 suppliers by 2030 and eliminating the exposure of
employee and nature to toxic chemical risks; increasing action on diversity,
equity and inclusion; and contributing to the preservation and transmission of
craftsmanship and industry know-how and support the upward mobility of our
workforce as manufacturing and workplaces become increasingly digitized.
The Responsible Jewellery Council is the leading standards organization of the
global jewellery and watch industry. It has 1,500 member companies in 71
countries, which span the jewellery supply chain from mine to retail. RJC
Members commit to and are independently audited against the RJC Code of
Practices
— an international standard on responsible business practices for diamonds,
colored gemstones, silver, gold and platinum group metals. The Code of Practices
(COP) addresses human rights, labor rights, environmental impact, mining
practices, product disclosure and many more important topics in the jewellery
supply chain.
In 2020, RJC and the UN Global Compact began a first-of-its-kind strategic
initiative — the “SDG Innovation & Impact in the Jewellery Industry” program. In
2021, RJC deepened this commitment by supporting the UNGC SDG
Ambition initiative to
accelerate integration of the 17 SDGs into core business management; and
launched the SDG
Taskforce
— an industry-wide action platform to advance the sustainability agenda and
benchmark progress in the jewellery and watch supply chain.
“The UN’s 2030 Agenda is about leaving no one behind. Business can be a force
for positive change and impact by supporting a global economy that protects
people, the planet and the natural systems that sustain us,” said RJC Executive
Director Iris Van der Veken. “The RJC is determined to help business be a
force for that change through transformative partnerships. By working together,
we can greatly contribute to the urgent change needed to achieve the 17
Sustainable Development Goals in this ‘Decade of Action’ and create a better
fairer world by 2030.”
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Oct 11, 2021 11am EDT / 8am PDT / 4pm BST / 5pm CEST