17Sep Three years of Moyo Milestones - an interview with Cristina Villegas
We are very honoured to be part of the pioneering Moyo Gems project, which has now been running for more than 3 years, working initially with artisanal gemstone miners in Tanzania and, more recently, in Kenya as well.
In a recent interview with National Jeweler, Cristina Villegas reflected on the many achievements of the project, how things began and subsequently progressed to a point, where it is now touching the lives of around 700 miners and their communities.
Some of the highlights of the last few years of hard work by so many dedicated people include:
Paris Fashion Week
" Repossi [an Italian jewelry brand owned by LVMH] got in touch with me in early January and said we would love to have a collection around Moyo, and we want to do it by Paris Fashion Week, which is in March. I never thought that was going to happen in my life that we made Paris Fashion Week."
Understanding Moyo's place in the market
"We’re perfectly made for collections. And if companies want to go through our sapphires and garnets, we have plenty of them. That’s what Gaia did with Repossi—she went to Piat and saw the gems and then handpicked the ones [she wanted] and made a beautiful collection."
Seeing what is possible
"Moyo Gems has shown that traceability is indeed possible in colored gemstone supply chains. I used to get so frustrated when people would say it was impossible. Moyo shows that it is possible to know your miner, to know the community."
Having a positive impact on the industry
"It’s really shifted from the industry saying how we cannot do something to shifting toward what are the various ways we can act, which is cool."
All quotes from Cristina's interview with Brecken Branstrator from National Jeweler.
To read the full interview, please follow this link:
https://www.nationaljeweler.com/articles/11176-q-a-moyo-gems-celebrates-3-years-and-many-milestones
