Sustainability is the heart of what we strive for. Our mantra is based on ideals and pragmatism in tandem with luxury and beauty.
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Sustainability is the mantra at the heart of so much of what we strive for at Avila Vara - it captures what we want to be as we participate in the world as a company based on ideals just as much as luxury and beauty. It is our intrinsic desire to help maintain the gifts and wonder of nature, our habitat, our eco-systems, our social mechanisms – all in support of nurturing the repair and beauty of our planet and caring for human beings.
What, after all, can we offer generations to come if not to protect and cherish? What, after all, can we offer as a company if not a true dedication to minimising our carbon footprint and engaging in our work in a way that fosters care on a personal as well as environmental level? For us, sustainability means social responsibility, the two ideals cannot and must not be separate goals, they must be symmetrical, copacetic, they must live in tandem or we are not doing our jobs right.
To that end, we know that sustainability and social responsibility are buzzwords now, sometimes empty phrases that capture the right spirit, but don’t actually deliver. Greenwashing is a truly pervasive and unsettling reality in our consumer culture, and yep, we do have something to say about it here.
Sustainability involves considering the entire lifecycle of products, from production to disposal, and making decisions that prioritise long-term ecological and social well-being over short-term gains.
Is it possible to really be responsible and eco-conscious in every way? The simple answer is no, it is impossible to create physical goods without there being some impact on our environment. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t make as many choices as possible to create goods in a socially responsible manner, causing as little damage to the planet as possible. For Avila Vara, sustainability means trying our absolute best, and being honest about shortcomings and trying to overcome them. We champion transparency alongside eco-conscious practice. Choices impact the planet and human beings, which means it’s so important to not only conceptualise but champion value in different ways, and how choices can make positive rather than negative impact on people and the planet.
We source products and services from suppliers and manufacturers who prioritise ethical and sustainable practices. This means we choose suppliers that adhere to fair trade principles, use environmentally friendly production methods, and ensure the well-being of workers throughout the supply chain. Our diamonds are sourced from a single supplier, a carbon neutral company that grows and cuts extraordinary lab grown diamonds at facilities that have undergone the rigorous audit for environmental and socially responsible ethical practices. Our jewellery is handcrafted in the UK by an artisanal boutique manufacturer who strictly utilise recycled precious metals that are certified by the Chain of Custody by the Responsible Jewellery Council. Our luxury packaging is created in the Southwest of England, each box hand made by a leading sustainable packaging company. Totally lush, multi-purpose for storage and display and our eco-protective packaging materials are made from recycled and FSC (Forest Stock Certified) paper and cardboard creating and are wholly biodegradable.
Social responsibility considers the ethical and moral obligations that we have towards our customers, contractors, employees, local communities, and the environment, to engage positive practices that benefit society as a whole.
At Avila Vara, social responsibility is demonstrated in our commitment to our supply chain and responsible sourcing. From our diamonds, our to our jewellery to our lush sustainable handmade jewellery boxes, each step of production is respectfully actioned, with the health of the environment and fair and positive treatment of workers front and centre. We source products and services from suppliers and manufacturers who prioritise ethical and sustainable practices, that adhere to fair trade principles, use environmentally friendly production methods, and ensure the well-being of workers throughout the supply chain.
The products we source and the expert manufacturing of our jewellery follows fair trade practices, and is focused on worker safety and welfare. Critically, we champion what we call the 5th and 6th C for our diamonds, which promotes a redefinition of monetary values in diamond culture to understand the worth of luxury products that care for the planet and for people.
Avila Vara is a small boutique company. We work with a select, but very special group of experts, suppliers and producers. Whilst our employee footprint is small, we have a contract in place that assures the fair and equitable treatment of our workforce that values diversity and opportunity. Our exclusive suppliers and manufacturers have similar practices, and in the case of our diamond supplier, they have gone through a rigorous external audit to ensure that not only are they maintaining a carbon neutral status as a company, but that their factories in India meet the highest ethical standards for workers rights and treatment.
Avila Vara understands that we can’t engage in perfect carbon negative, nor even carbon neutral practices perfectly, but we can do our best. For us, sustainability and social responsibility captures environmentally and person-centric practices that minimise negative impact on the planet and society. Taking that further, for Avila Vara, being sustainable and socially responsible means being transparent and true to ourselves, but also being honest about how we can improve as a company and how we can improve our own practices as we grow as a company. You cannot separate social responsibility from true sustainability, because the aim is one in the same, to protect, nurture and help heal our eco-system, and our cultures and peoples.
My partner and I are passionate about the ocean (I grew up along the Northern California coastline, and he grew up in the Southwest and the Cornish Seaside). Whilst we are just starting out in this journey, we are making a pledge to give back 2% of our sales to charity organisations that are dedicated to protecting our oceans and organisations working to counteract the effects of our global carbon footprint. There are some really honourable non-profit organisations that work tirelessly to advocate policies that protect and conserve the ocean as well as mass clean ups that revitalise our beaches and protect marine life and marine life diversity. There are also innovative non-profits creating ways to combat global warming and cool the planet.
We are currently looking for partner charities who would like to work with us towards these goals, and we ask that our customers give feedback to us as well as to what they wish to see in our commitments to giving back and creating earth positive impact.
Memories of my local coffee shop... A strange place to spark discussion on the subject. But what is sustainability if not sentimentality?
A beautiful of metaphor of the sustainability of life itself, lab diamonds are diamonds that are man-made. Created, pure, exquisite.