The photo above is of Aappalutoq Ridge, the site of Greenland's first large scale ruby mine. The land was taken from Inuits who were denied their traditional rights to gather gems on their land. We broke this story to the jewelry trade on our Fair Jewelry Action website. For nearly ten years we have been telling the story about our efforts to support and create business relationships that strengthen communities and biodiversity. Most recently, this very place of protest, and violation of indigenous rights, has become the poster child for this new gemstone initiative of the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC). For an intoduction to our critcism with the RJC, see the Second Russian Doll from our Ethical Jewelry Exposé: Lies, Damn Lies, and Conflict Free Diamonds.
As part of our Activism and greater mission to spread awareness of ethical jewelry sourcing, Reflective Jewelry President Marc Choyt often writes freelance articles for trade magazines and appears on podcasts. A frequent topic is his 45,000 word investigative jounalist piece, the Ethical Jewelry Exposé: Lies, Damn Lies, and Conflict Free Diamonds, published in late 2018.
Gathered on this page for easy access are Marc's recent writings and podcast appearances.
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Podcast Appearances
Freelance Publications
Recent Announcements
Past Publications
- Reflective Jewelry Becomes The First Certified Fairtrade Gold Jeweler in the United States
Reflective Jewelry was announced as the first certified Fairtrade Gold American jeweler by Fairtrade International. The company has worked as the US commercial liaison with Fairtrade International to launch the certification program while pioneering their own traceable and transparent sourcing practices in precious metal and gems. August 2015
- The Banana Republic of New Mexico
Marc Choyt, President of Reflective wrote an op-ed in The Santa Fe New Mexican paper about the dangers of oil and gas, turning New Mexico into a banana republic. He has been creating alliances within Santa Fe's bioregion to prevent extractive industries from turning our beautiful landscape into a sacrifice zone. February 2015
- Beware of the Gold In the Hills
Marc initiated and co-led a campaign to stop a gold mine just south of Santa Fe. This article in the Santa Fe New Mexican launched the public part of the campaign. September 2013
- The Making of a Green Jewelry Company and an Activist
Green Money Journal publishes Marc's article that talks about the influences of his company and his activism. July 2013
- Making Sense of the Fair Trade Gold Market
Marc is quoted extensively within this article in JCK Magazine, the jewelry sector's leading trade magazine, on the challenges of bringing fair trade gold to market. May 2013
- The Kimberley Certification Process for "Conflict Free Diamonds" Must Be Abandoned
Almost the entire jewelry sector depends upon the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme to claim diamonds to be "conflict free." Marc's article opposing and abandoning the Scheme (Part 1 and Part 2 ) was widely published in jewelry blogs and on CSR websites. May 2013
- The Shakespearean Acting of the Responsible Jewelry Counsel (RJC) and the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM). Comic or Tragic?
Marc posted regularly for this environmental justice and human rights network, Fair Jewelry Action. Here's some biting commentary on the politics of ethical jewelry sourcing that drew a lot of ire. August 2012
- Rock Center Features Reflective
Rock Center's Brian Williams displays a segment about activist jewelers. Part of the piece was filmed in our Santa Fe studio with Greg Valerio, Marc's then partner at Fair Jewelry Action. December 2011
- The Santa Fe Dialogue
Marc and Helen gathered a group of the top ethical jewelry leaders, in the US and Canada, for a meeting that took place at their home in Santa Fe. Here is a declaration from that meeting. October 2011
- Jewelers and Water Issues
Marc is quoted extensively in this particular article by the UK Manchester Guardian on jewelers and water issues. August 2011
- Inuit Miners in Greenland
Marc helped spearhead the publicity campaign that brought attention to the small-scale Inuit miners in Greenland, who struggle to keep their rights to collect and sell Greenland Rubies. April 2009
- Fair Jewelry: Making a Difference from Mine to Market
Marc wrote the seminal article on the World Bank Ethical Jewelry Summit in Washington, DC. He was one out of a hundred people invited to attend the cross sector event. He reported on it for Modern Jewelry. January 2008
Marc Choyt is president of Reflective Jewelry, a designer jewelry company founded in 1995. He pioneered the ethical sourcing movement in North America and is also the only certified Fairtrade Gold jeweler in the United States. Choyt’s company was named Santa Fe New Mexico’s Green Business of the Year in 2019, and he has been honored with several awards for his efforts to support ethical jewelry. His ebook, Ethical Jewelry Exposé: Lies, Damn Lies and Conflict Free Diamonds, is available online. Choyt can be reached on Twitter at @Circlemanifesto or by email at marc(at)reflectivejewelry.com.