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ARM and Fairphone start an unprecedented collaboration to fast-track support to the ASM sector
Photo: La Gabriela Mining organization, Colombia
Fairphone, the Dutch social enterprise building a market for ethical smartphones, has decided to join forces with Fairmined to ensure the positive social and environmental impact of its gold sourcing. In December 2022, the company became the first brand to buy Fairmined credits, guaranteeing a premium to certified miners regardless of where they sell their certified gold and ensuring that the Fairmined certified mines see their efforts fully recognized.
A solution to accelerate the engagement of companies that wish to make a change
Since it was established as a social enterprise in 2013, Fairphone has produced smartphones to motivate the electronics industry to look at both social and environmental issues in the electronics supply chain. The company has become a laboratory to experiment with fairer practices that could be scaled up and replicated globally by the electronics sector. Gold is one of the numerous materials used in the production of smartphones and speakers, therefore it has been at the center of Fairphone’s quest for fairer materials, but the wish to fully integrate certified Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) gold in their supply chain has been challenged by the complexity of their supply chain. Since 2016, the company has integrated ASM-certified gold in its production chain, yet, this could not be used for all gold in its devices, as gold is used in very small quantities, spread across many different components of the phone.
Foto: Miner from Fairmined certified mining organization Macdesa, Perú
With Fairmined credits, Fairphone found an impactful solution to compensate for the rest of its gold consumption that cannot be physically sourced from certified sources. In December 2022, Fairphone acquired Fairmined credits to account for 91% of their gold used for the Fairphone 4 and 90% for the True Wireless Earbuds and pay a premium of almost 20.000 USD to a Fairmined certified mine that could not sell its entire production with premium. This incentive is significant for small certified mines, as they often face higher barriers connecting with the market, have greater difficulties in getting fair compensation for work, and rely deeply on the premium to keep going.
By doing so, Fairphone became the first company to buy Fairmined credits and the first electronic company to become part of the Fairmined Initiative.
“This first collaboration is a great achievement for our Initiative as it proves new players in the gold industry can engage with the ASM sector and contribute to its transformation. We hope that the Fairmined credits will help fast-track the engagement of the electronics industry and that more actors will follow Fairphone’s inspiring example.” –Morgane Nzelemona, Head of Sustainable markets at the Alliance for Responsible Mining.
“Joining forces with ARM is an important achievement for us. We want to show the electronics industry a different way of creating impact through their material footprint. Fairmined credits are a way of directly supporting miners and their communities, and helping to improve the professionalization of artisanal- and small-scale mining. With this, we help to bring more responsible gold on the market, in line with the gold we consume ourselves and cannot yet fully trace or certify. We hope the electronics industry will take note and follow our example to help transform the gold industry.” – Angela Jorns, Team Lead Fair Materials and Mining at Fairphone
A flexible way to engage with the ASM gold sector
The Fairmined credits model provides a flexible way for the gold industry to make an economic, social, and environmental impact in responsible small-scale mining communities and drive the production of responsible ASM gold, without the need to source the gold physically or to make any changes in the existing supply chains of the downstream brands.
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Positive engagement with and investment into the ASM sector are widely seen by the gold industry as one of the best opportunities to contribute towards sustainable development goals and is recommended by major standards, including the OECD due diligence guidance, RJC, LBMA, RMI, WGC, IRMA, EITI among others. However, it often implies big challenges for the brands that wish to integrate this gold directly into their supply chain.
The Fairmined credits are a solution to overcome these barriers. Each Fairmined credit represents one gram of certified gold produced under the strict social and environmental requirements of the Fairmined standard and the equivalent premium paid. Under this model, the physical trading and traceability of the gold are decoupled from premium payment and credits buyers can choose the mines they wish to support. The gold is not physically integrated into the supply chain of the Fairmined credits buyers, which in highly complex supply chains is extremely difficult and can take years without success. Still, the impact on the certified mine is the same, as small-scale miners receive the Fairmined premium to maintain high standards. The Fairmined credits model offers companies a simplified alternative to positively impact the artisanal and small-scale mining sector while reducing their carbon footprint and strengthening their ESG indicators and strategies.
If you want to be part of the positive change in the ASM sector by purchasing Fairmined credits, please contact us at info@fairmined.org to learn more about this model.
About Fairphone
Fairphone is building a market for ethical phones and motivating the industry to act more responsibly. We design, produce and sell smartphones to uncover the supply chain behind our products, raise awareness for the most urgent issues, and prove that it’s possible to do things differently. Together with our partners and community, we’re working to make caring for people and the planet a natural part of doing business.
Photos, videos, fact sheets and other materials are available at the Fairphone press page: https://fairphone.com/en/about/press/ www.fairphone.com
For additional information and interview requests, please contact: Ioiana Pires Luncheon or Anna Jopp, Email: ioiana@fairphone.com, anna.jopp@fairphone.com,
Tel: +31 (0)6 21 26 28 15
About the Alliance for Responsible Mining
The Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) was established in 2004 and is a leading global expert on artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). We work to transform the ASM sector into a socially and environmentally responsible activity, while improving the quality of life of artisanal miners, their families and communities.
For additional information, please contact the Communications team: Carolina Escobar (carolinaescobar@responsiblemines.org) and Olga Rojas (olgarojas@responsiblemines.org)
