There are a lot of viewpoints about what constitutes an ethical diamond—and a lot of companies trying to brand their product as the ethical choice. The diamond industry has been happy to offer up a range of certifications assuring environmental and social responsibility. Reputation is paramount in the industry, and no one wants you to feel guilty for choosing a diamond! So how does one make sense of all this information?

What is a 'blood diamond'?

The term "blood diamond" refers to what is more accurately called a conflict diamond: a diamond mined and sold to finance a conflict, whether it's trafficked by a warlord, rebel group, or terrorist organization.

People often misunderstand the term "blood diamond" to simply mean there are brutal mining conditions. However, "blood" is meant in reference to the deaths and violence that will occur as a result of the funds raised from sale of these diamonds.

Developing a diamond mine is an investment that costs millions if not billions of dollars. Major corporations steer clear of regions in conflict because there are risks the mine might be taken by force to finance said conflict. This means that conflict diamonds are typically collected through low-technology surface-mining operations.

All too often, conditions for miners are in fact brutal and inhumane. Miners are forced (or out of desperation take a pittance) to work long hours in physically demanding conditions. Workers face hazards like pit wall collapses. Threats of physical violence or death may loom over miners.

It's not just diamonds

There are actually a lot of materials that are considered to be conflict resources: resources whose extraction and sale facilitates conflict or violations of human rights. Examples include other types of gemstones, valuable timbers, oil, tungsten, gold, and lithium.

The conflict resource issue is only the most intense with diamonds because they are small and relatively easy to traffic with a comparatively high perceived rarity and value. In short: traffickers get a lot of bang for their buck with diamonds.

Are blood diamonds still a thing?

If you feel like "blood diamonds" had an era, you're not wrong. The term was popularized in the late 1990s, with a lot of people's understanding based around the 2006 film Blood Diamond starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Conflict diamonds still very much exist, but it has become a lot harder to get them into the commercial market.

In the early 2000s, the diamond industry organized with the United Nations to introduce the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. That's right a bunch of geniuses came together to create a system to rebuild consumer trust by certifying diamonds as conflict-free, and they decided to name it a "scheme"—one of the most dastardly-sounding words in the English language.

Point being, the Kimberley Process is basically a giant system to establish chain of custody certifying a diamond came from a conflict-free source, and regulating imports and exports in the diamond market. The process aims to prevent any opportunity for conflict diamonds to enter the commercial system.

Cool so I can buy Kimberley Scheme diamonds?

Despite precautions, if my memory serves right—and it occasionally does—the industry likes to cite the statistic that an estimated mere 0.2% of the commercial market still comes from a conflict source. That is a pretty good improvement! But it's not as groovy as it all might seem.

The Kimberley Process has been criticized as a cynical ploy to launder the reputation of diamonds from regions under conflict. It is suspected that bribery and backroom deals have led to mines with questionable ethics being included in the KPCS.

The KPCS only looks at part of the process

The Kimberley Process isn't certifying diamonds as ethically sourced. They are more narrowly defined as "non-conflict diamonds," which does not take into consideration other human rights or labor abuses. Diamonds from a conflict-free mine using child labor can still be certified through the KPCS, for example.

Human rights abuses can also occur through later stages of the production chain, which would similarly bypass Kimberley Process checks. India is the world's diamond cutting and polishing center, producing over 90% of finished product. This production can involve child labor, or it can occur under hazardous conditions. Polishing without adequate safety gear causes silicosis (a lung disease caused by inhalation of the small particles) which has become rampant in India. Silicosis is irreversible and can prove fatal; it is also entirely preventable with appropriate precautions such as education, masks, and ventilation.

What about antique diamonds, predating all these conflicts? 

Image from The Book of Diamonds: Their History and Romance from Ancient India to Modern Times (Joan Younger Dickinson, 1965).

Antique and pre-owned jewelry

Purchasing antique or pre-owned jewelry is certainly a great way to reduce your impact as a consumer. Previously-owned jewelry is referred to as "estate jewelry." Technically pieces can be of any age or era, so "estate" doesn't necessarily mean "old."

There usually isn't a lot of history available about antique and pre-owned pieces, so it's hard to know a diamond's source. There are prior eras where a much higher percentage of diamonds on the market originated from labor abuses and conflict sources. Even so, a lot of people believe the only ethical diamond is a reused diamond; anything else supports the modern diamond industry.

To be clear though, there is no "pre-dating conflicts"

There is a lot of violence and imperialism in the history of this industry, so don't be fooled by romantic notions about some artisanally mined Old European Cut diamond being "better." Modern-day conflicts associated with blood diamonds can be traced back to the fractures and instability created by the rapid colonization and decolonization of the African continent.

The discovery of major diamond and gold sources in the 1800s fueled the colonization of Africa led by European business magnates; similarly India's diamonds were looted in the colonial era. The colonial relationship was one of exploitation, extracting resources at low costs to bolster the wealth of European states and businesses.

Origins of an industry

The Kimberley Mine in South Africa is considered to be the first major diamond mine. Its discovery in the 1870s would lead to the establishment of De Beers by Cecil Rhodes, who became intimately involved in the colonization process. The commercial diamond jewelry industry was emerging by the early 1900s, monopolized by De Beers.

The Kimberley Mine and colonial gold mining operations established the pass system, the framework for the apartheid system that would rule South Africa well into the 1990s. Black laborers were paid near slave-wages and treated in a dehumanizing manner. Miners at times were not allowed to wear clothing on-the-job, or might instead be invasively cavity-searched after a shift to ensure they weren't hiding anything to take home for themselves. In the 1910s through at least the 1950s, mines owned by De Beers were known to subject workers to an x-ray at end-of-shift daily (which surely had cumulative health effects).

Canadian diamonds? FFS surely no one died for those.

Yep that'll wipe your conscience for conflict diamonds! And diamonds from Canada are pretty good quality if you decide to go that route. They come with a "Canada Mark," a little card or brochure certifying their source. Canadian diamonds have a bit of a mark-up to go along with that assurance; this is because they maintain chain-of-custody through the entire process of bringing the diamond to the market. This is important if you want to ensure you are getting a diamond cut and polished under safe conditions (not associated with silicosis risks).

BUT

Now for the other bad news: the environment

Check out Part II to learn about the environmental impact of diamond mining, and the ethics of lab diamonds.