The Jewelry Development Impact index (JDI) is a signature evaluative project of Minerals, Materials and Society (MMS). Launched from group discussions at a Jewelry Industry Summit in February 2017, the JDI project was spearheaded by Elizabeth Orlando, Foreign Service Officer in the Office of Threat Finance Countermeasures at the US Department of State and Patricia Syvrud, immediate past Executive Director of the World Diamond Council and current program manager for the University of Delaware’s Minerals, Materials and Society program. The JDI is now partnering with the US Department of Labor’s Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human Trafficking; Bureau of International Labor Affairs to further the work of the JDI, and Patricia continues to oversee the JDI project management at UD. To learn more about the JDI, email psyvrud@udel.edu.
Patricia Syvrud, JDI project manager
Created within the framework of the UN Indicators of Human Security, the JDI is a relative and comparative country score that will measure and indicate the degree to which the jewelry and gemstone industries impact the economic and social well-being of the countries in which they function.
The inaugural publication of the JDI draft methodology is planned for the first half of 2020. The methodology is a work in progress with assistance from academic researchers at American University (AU) and the University of Delaware. Masters students at AU’s School of International Service have been conducting country comparison case studies to inform the methodology of the JDI since Fall 2017 (See below). The methodology is also being developed with the input of Assistant Professor Kalim Shah at UD’s Biden School of Public Policy and Administration. There will be a public commentary time before the JDI methodology is finalized.
Professor Kalim Shah, Bio
Dr. Shah has eighteen years of policy analysis and development experience working as a consultant and researcher in the fields of climate change, energy and corporate sustainability. Experience includes implementing national and regional projects on climate change mainstreaming, industrial policy evaluation and sustainability investments. He has held senior policy positions with the Governments of Trinidad & Tobago and Canada, Caribbean Central American Action and faculty appointments at top tier University of Delaware (present), Indiana University, York University and the University of the West Indies. He has completed over twenty projects and studies in the Caribbean, Central America and South East Asia. His key technical skills are policy design and analysis, institutional and organizational strategy, measurement, evaluation and assessment. He has conducted regulatory impact assessments, cost effectiveness assessments and multi-criteria assessments. Dr. Shah has also designed and implemented industry, organizational and community surveys and various climate vulnerability, environmental performance and social protection indices. His work has been published in over twenty five peer reviewed journal articles on climate change and energy policy, environmental management and corporate social responsibility. A Fulbright Scholar, he holds a Doctorate in Public Policy focused on environmental policy for George Mason University and a Masters in Natural Resource Management focused on resource economics from the University of the West Indies.
Dr. Kalim Shah
A JDI Advisory Committee is under development and has received interest and commitments for participation from the Natural Resource Governance Institute, the World Bank, the Responsible Mining Index, and multiple academic and industry stakeholders.
A Jewelry Development Impact index methodology workshop was held in September, 2018 and included UD faculty, energy and extractives and jewelry industry representatives, government and NGO stakeholders.
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Photo Credit: Larkin, Jason (Photographer) 2014 Platinum Mine in Rustenburg. Copyright of Jason Larkin from album “Tremors Below”
Fall 2020 had robust business analytics applied to the JDI methodology by UD’s Alfred Lerner College of Business & Economics Masters in Business Analytics student researchers. Under the supervision of Dr. Kalim Shah and Dr. Andrea Everard, two separate teams applied business analytics tools to test the veracity and data validation of the JDI.
Team 1 – Jewelry Development Impact Index Standardization and Analysis
Jewelry Development Impact Index Standardization and Analysis PPT Team 1
Final JDI Standardization and Analysis Team 1
Hsuan Hua Chen, Ishita Sarkar, Supriya Kale, Qinhui Wang
Team 2 – Data Validation and Prediction for the JDI Index
Team2_Final – Data Validation and Prediction for the JDI Index
Final Report Team2_Data Validation and Prediction for the Proposed JDI Index (2)
Tejaswini Ganti, Kamal Khanal, Yahan Zhang
Academic Supervisors: Kalim Shah, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Biden School of Public Policy and Administration; and Andrea Everard, Ph.D., Director, MS in Business Analytics and Information Management, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs
In collaboration with JDI partner DoL’s ILAB, during the Fall 2020 semester American University graduate students conducted research on the impact of COVID-19 on artisanal and small scale mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This valuable research is used to inform the JDI methodology.
The Impact of COVID-19 on the Welfare of Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Impact of COVID on DRC DOL Final Presentation
Impact of COVID on DRC DOL.AU Practicum Final Report Fall 2020
Khalifa Abdullah, Tyler Brazitis, Galen Gammino, Mone Gonzalez, Jamie Wallisch, Aashiqullah Zazai
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Diamond Mining in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe
JDI Guinea Sierra Leone Zimbabwe Spring 2020 PPT
Alexandra Felt, Bruna Soares, Raven Bolding, James Tartaglia, Xena Itzkowitz
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JDI Guinea Sierra Leone Zimbabwe Spring 2020 Final Report
Alexandra Felt, Bruna Soares, Raven Bolding, James Tartaglia, Xena Itzkowitz
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Amethyst in Brazil and Tanzanite in Tanzania
JDI Brazil and Tanzania Fall 2019 PPT
Sacha Brenac, Rachael Hilderbrand, Cleo Rogers, Hailee Shah, Alyssa Tender, Yujia Wan
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JDI Brazil and Tanzania Report Fall 2019
Sacha Brenac, Rachael Hilderbrand, Cleo Rogers, Hailee Shah, Alyssa Tender, Yujia Wan
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Emeralds in Colombia and Zambia
AU Spring 2019 JDI PPT Presentation
Mohammed Abdelmeguid, Victoria Colby, Kayla Henrichsen, Kritika Kapoor, Hannah Murray, Samantha Rip, and Junaid Siddiqui
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
Mohammed Abdelmeguid, Victoria Colby, Kayla Henrichsen, Kritika Kapoor, Hannah Murray, Samantha Rip, and Junaid Siddiqui
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Platinum in South Africa and Sapphires in Madagascar
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
Catherine Cohen, Brandon Hughes, Sasha Gubina, Jeneva Kuhn, Najibullah Noorzai, and Meghan Stewart
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Rubies in Myanmar and Lapis Lazuli in Afghanistan
Carissa Chantiles, Aryn Keyel, Samantha Hall, and Sade Tuckett
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
AU Spring 2018 JDI PPT Presentation
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX : Afghanistan and Myanmar
Carissa Chantiles, Aryn Keyel, Samantha Hall, and Sade Tuckett
Academic Supervisor: Hrach Gregorian, Ph.D., Director, IPCR Program, School of International Service at American University
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Diamonds in Botswana and Gold in Peru
AU Fall 2017 JDI Research Results
JEWELRY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT INDEX STUDY: A Comparative Case Study of Gold in Peru and Diamonds in Botswana
Alexandra Brown, Flora Green, Bwalya Mwaba, Aubrey Peterson & Andre Thomas
School of International Service at American University
AU Fall 2017 JDI PPT Presentation
JEWELRY INDUSTRY IMPACTS
Presenters: Aubrey Peterson, Andre Thomas, and Alexandra Brown
Contributors: Flora Green and Bwalya Mwaba
School of International Service at American University
