Milan: World Jewellery Confederation President Gaetano Cavalieri has announced the establishment of the CIBJO Academy, which will be responsible for the preparation and delivery of educational programmes and materials, suitable for jewellery professionals and the consuming public, about standards, operating principles and terminology developed within CIBJO’s various commissions and expert committees. The announcement was made at the VICENZAORO show in Vicenza, Italy, on January 22, 2023.
The CIBJO Academy will be headed by industry veteran Ken Scarratt. It is being designed to deliver the content of the CIBJO Blue Books and and guides, tailored for specific audiences. This will be done using multiple platforms including the CIBJO website, social media, webinars and live in-person events. The content will be relevant to the entire spectrum of the gemstone and jewellery industries and cover natural diamonds, laboratory-grown diamonds, coloured gemstones, pearls, coral, precious metals, principles of responsible sourcing, the operation of gem laboratories, marketing, and more.
One of the world’s most respected gemmologists, over his 50-year career Mr. Scarratt has been the Managing Partner at ICA|GemLab in Bangkok, CEO of the Bahrain Institute of Pearls & Gemstones (DANAT), Managing Director for SE Asia for the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), Laboratory Director for the AGTA (American Gem Trade Association) Gemological Testing Center in New York, Director of AIGS (Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences) in Bangkok, and Chief Executive and Laboratory Director GAGTL (Gemmological Association & Gem Testing Laboratory of Great Britain) in London. He has published papers extensively in such journals as The Journal of Gemmology (UK), Gems and Gemology (USA) and many others. He co-authored the books, The Crown Jewels, and The Pearl & the Dragon. He also is President of CIBJO’s Pearl Commission and Vice President of the organisation’s Coral Commission.
“The goal of the CIBJO Academy will be to make available to the greater jewellery community the massive body of work that is being produced on a constant basis by the commissions and special committees of World Jewellery Confederation, in a way that is a easily understood and applicable,” Mr. Scarratt said. “With new generations of consumers seeking professional guidance, It is vital that all industry members become aware of, and implement, these excellent CIBJO benchmarks.”
“Year in and year out, the various working groups within CIBJO have worked to produce and the keep up to date what are undoubtedly the most authorotative sets of harmonised standards and nomenclature in the jewellery industry,” said Dr. Cavalieri. “They have formed the basis of a number of ISO standards and various government regulations, and have guided gemmologists and standards compliance bodies throughout the industry. But, because they often are voluminous and very technical, we felt that they often do not reach the grass roots of the business. The role of the CIBJO Academy will be to remedy this, providing easy and comprehensible access to what is a treasure-trove of knowledge and research. We also are delighted that Ken Scarratt has agreed to take this on. There are few people anywhere more qualified to do the job.”
