STANDARD ZERO FOR FAIRTRADE ARTISANAL GOLD AND ASSOCIATED

STANDARD ZERO FOR FAIRTRADE ARTISANAL GOLD AND ASSOCIATED SILVER AND PLATINUM ARM’S MULTISTAKEHOLDER INITIATIVE Cristina Echavarría Executive Director 8 TH CASM ANNUAL MEETING Brasilia, October 2008

MAIN POINTS • Who is ARM? • What conceptual principles underpin the Fair Trade certification scheme for ASM? • Why Fair Trade? • How reliable is the market for fair trade precious metals, gems and minerals? • How is Standard Zero for Fair Trade Gold and Associated Silver and Platinum being developed?

• ARM’s mission is to work towards the transformation of artisanal and small scale mining into a socially and environmentally responsible activity, facilitate an economically just supply chain and educate the consumers as to their power to directly improve the quality of life of artisanal miners by purchasing fair trade jewellery and minerals.

• Born from Oro Verde in 2004 • As an international and multi-institutional organisation operating from the South • Supply chain approach and players • To take advantage of emerging green and fair trade markets as incentives for improved social and environmental performance of ASM and contribute to poverty reduction • ARM proposes a process through which key stakeholders can reach agreements to define universal standards and criteria for the certification of responsible and environmentally friendly artisanal and small scale mining practices.

QUIRAMA VISION • ASM is a formalized, organized and profitable activity, that uses efficient technologies and is socially and environmentally responsible; • it progressively develops within a framework of good governance, legality, participation and respect for diversity; • it increases its contribution to the generation of decent work, local development, poverty reduction and social peace in our nations, • stimulated by a growing consumer demand for sustainable minerals and jewellery

PRINCIPLES FOR RESPONSIBLE ASM • Framed within the Millennium Development • Rights based approach • Decent labour based ILO guidelines • Legality • Quality of life and sustainable human development • Environmental protection • Gender equality • Multicultural approach • Based on organization and integration of ASM • No to illicit activities nor armed conflict

WHY FAIR TRADE? • Exclusive label for small scale producers • Recognises change is a process: minimum and progressive requirements • It is an integrated approach • Based on long term partnerships • Includes pre-financing schemes • Pays a fair trade premium to producers and a fair price

SO WHAT IS THE POTENTIAL FOR FAIRTRADE JEWELLERY? • Emails to ARM requesting responsibly produced gold • Green Gold lost sales due to limited supply in Choco • Jewellers wanting to buy from pre-certified pilot sites to support the process • USA jewellery market is US$45 - $50 billion per annum • International gold jewellery consumption in 2005 was US$39 billion, with US$16 billion for gold jewellery consumption in the US market* • If just 1% of gold was Fair Trade = $400 million for ASM.

PROCESS TO DEVELOP STANDARD ZERO 2006 -2009

Participation of Stakeholders

PROCESS TO PILOT TEST STANDARD ZERO • Pilots are based on existing partnerships • Network of support organisations • Hands on learning • Testing producer support toolkits • Making adjustments to comply with the requirements • Testing traceable supply chain • ARM to coordinate and technical committee to follow up • Exchange of experiences • Reinforce miner’s organisations • 9 producer organisations in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru

Criteria for Pilot Selection • • • A variety of national contexts and laws for ASM Different types, sizes and levels of organization of ASM - local linkages among them Different types of gold mining, i. e. Alluvial and hard rock. Different ecosystems: tropical rainforest, Andean mountain, Andean coffee region, and Atacama Desert. Different processing techniques, i. e. amalgamation, cyanidation, mercury-free gravimetric methods, etc. Legislation that offers transparent mechanisms for private persons to export metal

MAIN POINTS ABOUT STANDARD ZERO • Standard Zero is for artisanal and small scale mining, with time it may be expanded to medium scale mining • Includes only primary, not recycled gold. Both alluvial and hard rock gold extraction and processing in contemplated. • Includes silver and platinum produced through the same extractive and processing method as the gold. • It addresses the challenges of responsible use of mercury and cyanide and ecosystem restoration • It is an opportunity to promote greater social justice and environmental responsibility for artisanal and small scale mineras producers throughout the supply chain • It is a long term alliance between responsible miners and retailers • It has the potential to benefit millions of miners

Next Steps • Expand the scheme in the vicinity of existing pilots • Expand the standards to include the Garimpo model and test in in Brazil and Peru • Create standards for silver Mexico in focus • Scoping studies in West Africa network of pilots in Africa • Scoping and outreach to Asia • Launching of our Brand….

The Brand on a Page Proposition*: Guarantees a better deal for small-scale mining communities. Promise: When you buy fairmined jewellery, you are supporting well managed community mines that are environmentally and socially responsible. Benefit: Precious jewellery with a proven impact and a positive story Reason to believe: The jewellery has a certified stamp of origin showing it’s been carefully extracted from a limited number of small scale mines, so it can be traced right from the miner to the jeweler. You can access the unique story of every mining community that is ‘fairmined’ certified.

A Living Mark: How does the Mark work in Real Life?

ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES