We are often asked about the ethics of the jewellery, crystals, minerals, and gemstones that we buy and sell. We understand that this is important to many of our customers, and it is equally important to us.
At Little Gems, ethics have always been at the forefront of how we trade. Throughout more than 25 years in business, we have tried to make thoughtful and responsible choices about the products we buy, the suppliers we work with, and the way we operate. For over 20 years, we have also travelled to source many of our crystals and minerals ourselves, allowing us to build direct relationships with suppliers, visit companies and mines where possible, and gain a better understanding of how our products are sourced.
We believe that beauty should not come at the expense of people or the planet. While the crystal and gemstone trade can be complex, and while crystals are not currently registered as a Fair Trade product, we do our best to source responsibly, ask the right questions, and work with suppliers we trust.
 
The ethics of the crystals and jewellery we sell are very important to us, so we have written the following guidelines to explain how we approach sourcing, working conditions, environmental responsibility, and the choices we make as a business.
 
Although crystals are not registered as a Fair Trade product, we try to ensure, wherever possible, that the crystals we buy are mined, cut, polished, and worked under ethical conditions. This means we look for reassurance that workers are treated fairly, work in safe environments, receive a fair wage, and that the natural environment is not heavily impacted by mining.
 
When considering the ethics of crystals, minerals, gemstones, and jewellery, three main issues arise:
 
Labour and working conditions
Environmental impact of mining
Carbon footprint
Labour and Working Conditions
 
With regard to working conditions, we would never knowingly purchase goods from a company that employed adults in unfair, unsafe, or poor working conditions. We aim to buy many of our goods directly from source, and we personally handpick much of our stock.
 
Where possible, we visit many of the companies we work with, sometimes unannounced, so that we can see working conditions for ourselves. From these visits, we look for evidence that workers’ rights and standards are being respected in a way that appears similar to those expected in the West.
 
This includes visiting several mines in Brazil from which we source our minerals. These visits help us to satisfy ourselves that the practices appear ethical, that employees are provided with personal protective equipment, and that the mines are operating legally and responsibly.
 
 
Turning to environmental matters, the mines involved in crystal mining can vary greatly. Some specimens are hand collected from the surface, some come from small hand-dug pits, and others are produced from larger quarries. However, these are usually still very small compared with the large-scale quarries created for building materials and industrial minerals.
We all use industrial minerals in our everyday lives, and this type of mining has a far greater environmental impact than the mining of crystals and mineral specimens. Even so, we believe it is important to remain mindful of the environmental impact of the products we buy and sell.  In Brazil, we only deal   legally licensed mines which are expected to follow environmental protection laws and employment rights legislation. This gives us greater confidence that the minerals we source are being extracted in a responsible and lawful way.
 
Carbon Footprint
We also try to reduce our environmental impact as a company by making considered choices about shipping and packaging.
Where practical, we ship goods by sea rather than by air, as sea freight usually has a lower carbon footprint. Exceptions may be made where the items are very light, such as jewellery, where goods are being shipped from a country without easily accessible sea ports, such as Congo, or where the shipping method has been requested by a customer for a special order.
We also recycle as much packaging material as possible, including paper, bubble wrap, and boxes. This means customers may sometimes find reused packaging in their delivery. We see this as a positive step towards reducing waste and making better use of materials that are already in circulation.
 
Our Ongoing Commitment
 
Ethical sourcing is not always simple, especially in the crystal, gemstone, and jewellery trade, where supply chains can vary from country to country and from supplier to supplier. However, we believe that responsibility begins with asking questions, building trusted relationships, visiting suppliers where possible, and being honest about what we can and cannot guarantee.
At Little Gems, we will continue to review our suppliers, improve our practices, reduce waste where we can, and make thoughtful choices about the products we sell. Our aim is to offer beautiful crystals, minerals, gemstones, and jewellery while treating people, communities, and the natural world with care and respect.
We know that ethics matter to our customers, and they matter deeply to us too.