當你用餐時會不會想知道你吃的食物從那裏來？

你看到賣得很便宜的食材時會不會質疑它的來源或用料？

它是否天然或是基因改造還是化學合成？

它的耕作產地是否有機或是大量使用化學肥料與農藥？

也許，經歷過食安問題的你很在意購買食物的生產履歷、加工過程等等。但是，關於時尚，你有想過身上穿的衣服是誰縫製的嗎？是否來自工資低廉、童工氾濫的第三國家呢？布料染色工廠是否符合環保要求，是否排放化學染劑廢水？你身上閃閃發光的飾品又是從哪裡來的？它們(寶石、貴金屬)是否是經過不當開採且破壞並汙染環境而換來的呢？它是否經過如同小編在"跟您一起留下一個美麗的環境！台灣品牌談環保意識"裡所提及的非法電鍍而造成水源的重金屬汙染所換來的？

 

 

時尚、精品其實可以不是環保殺手！從電影「血鑽石」給我們的深切警示

 

時尚、精品產業帶給人們美好的體驗，卻也常常與浪費、環境傷害畫上等號，更衝擊勞動人權與社會道德等問題。尤其是近年崛起的「快時尚風潮」，儼然是個環保殺手，特別是當快時尚真正的目的不是因為「需要」而購買，反而想引導消費者因「誘惑」而掏錢。知名時尚設計師Gaurav Gupta說：「快時尚大大地增加了汙染問題，我們應該督促設計師走向「慢時尚」，這才是真正環保也對地球好的舉動。」他說，「我們應該穿這些衣服很多年、重複使用，最後再回收它們，擁有快速消費主義的消費者也是助長汙染的關鍵之一，轉型應該從你我做起。」因為精準地花費資金在治裝上，除能省錢外，也是對環境最大的友善態度。

 

國際知名服裝設計師: Gaurav Gupta

 

這些快時尚飾品、廉價飾品、拋棄式飾品對環保造成的衝擊是巨大的。因為供應商使用便宜卻對環境不友善的金屬，例如鎳合金飾品，所製成的飾品是非常容易損壞的；而同時，因為這種金屬很容易導致人體過敏，但由於平價飾品的成本有限，所以必須使用廉價且破壞水源的電鍍過程，最後再使用價格低廉、取得便利卻難以被環境分解的塑膠包裝交到客戶手上，客戶配戴個1~2次因為過敏、退色、變形再將它丟到垃圾桶增加了垃圾量。加上該金屬飾品因為本身廉價又因體積小不值得業者回收進而直接予以掩埋，這不但增加垃圾丟棄量還同時造成了泥土和水源的汙染。

 

 

近年歐美日興起並已在台灣萌芽的「永續珠寶」概念介紹

 

那麼喜歡首飾的您應該如何購買珠寶首飾等飾品呢？是否聽過「永續珠寶」這個名詞？我們很榮幸被邀請參加Sustainable Jewellery/ 永續珠寶SUS750在2018年12月1日所舉辦的「永續珠寶」座談會，由於mittag jewelry一直致力於環保議題，因此對這個議題充滿著正面的肯定與義不容辭的參與感。根據Financial Times報導，地球上礦物存在的比例，1公克的黃金，比上60克的銀與40萬克的鑽石（沒有錯！鑽石產量大到令人吃驚﹚。而這相對珍貴的黃金中有78%都被做成珠寶首飾。然而，這些閃亮首飾背後的金屬來源，卻不一定如它們外表所呈現的那樣閃耀動人；因為這些貴金屬若來自非法採礦冶煉的管道，不但傷害了礦工的健康，還造成了環境汙染（例如秘魯的非法淘金客會使用含有劇毒的水銀來吸附黃金，然後將含汞的廢水直接倒入河水裡，不僅汙染水源還會進入食物鏈，造成嚴重的汞污染﹚；除此之外，甚至還存在男女工作權不平等、童工等勞工權益的問題。接著，更別說這些品牌在後續的首飾製造過程中，也存在如同小編在"跟您一起留下一個美麗的環境！台灣品牌談環保意識"的文章裡所說的第二次的加工汙染了。

 

因此，「永續珠寶」即是希望改善上述狀況，強調無論在貴金屬的提煉或後續的首飾製作過程中，能降低對環境的傷害以及維護勞工權益之下，並且維持經濟效益。在此概念下，才能讓每件珠寶首飾背後的故事也如它本身一樣地美麗。mittag jewelry不僅僅是期望自己能身體力行，還希望讓更多品牌與消費者都能有機會獲取這個資訊與理念。但其實現在在國外已經有如公平交易咖啡一樣的「公平交易金屬」（Fairtrade Gold/Silver, Fairmined﹚，也有不少永續珠寶的品牌，mittag也會在日後慢慢跟大家分享。

 

 

此刻，您我對於「永續珠寶」已經有一些概念，身為消費者的我們在購買飾品時其實可以：

1. 主動詢問材質來源：是甚麼金屬製成？金屬來自何處？
2. 不使用/不購買來源不明的電鍍飾品。
3. 使用/購買有認證的金屬或寶石：金屬是否購自公平交易金屬（Fairtrade Gold/Silver﹚？寶石是否經由合法礦場符合環保法規開採？
4. 購買品質好的飾品: 購買保值的鉑金、黃金、白銀製品，好好愛惜保養，長期配戴保存。即使日後不配戴還可以到珠寶銀樓回收變賣，經過提煉再重生為新的美麗飾品，生生息息，永續不止。

 

mittag jewelry的貴金屬材料來源是由專業的貴金屬回收提煉業者由台灣坊間的金飾店所回收的飾品再提煉的，這不但有助於降低碳足跡以外，還能對台灣環境的永續循環利用上有著很大的幫助。另外，令人振奮的是，mittag jewelry首先在2020年成為國際公平貿易貴金屬認證標章「Fairmined 公平採礦」的審查，成為台灣唯一使用公平貿易貴金屬的珠寶品牌，讓關心並期待參與永續議題的消費者也能在台灣購買到貨真價實的公平貿易珠寶。此外，並在2021年3月進階採用更先進並友善環境的「全環保剝金術」所生產的「有機金(Organic Gold)、有機銀(Organic Silver)」，而該技術來自於台灣優勝奈米公司(UWin Nanotech)獨步全球的專利技術。自此開始，mittag jewelry同時提供源自礦產與回收的雙材料貴金屬供消費者選擇，而兩者皆符合友善環境的「責任貴金屬」。而且，就如同"跟您一起留下一個美麗的環境！台灣品牌談環保意識"的mittag文章中所寫的，mittag jewelry所提供的白銀與K金商品皆「拒絕使用電鍍技術」，採用全程手工拋光取代，並提供永久免費保養的服務來對消費者負責。

是否曾想過世界因為我們的購買或不購買而改變著？

 

“Every time you spend money, you're casting a vote for the kind of world you want” 

"每一次你花的錢 ，都是在為你想要的世界投票"。

-Anna Lappe.

(Anna Lappe 是提倡永續食物發展的食物系統專家、暢銷書作家、教育家)

 

用 Anna Lappe的這句話跟大家一起努力！ 我們每一次的消費，就像是一張選票，決定著地球未來的樣貌。選擇公平貿易融入日常消費，就是對生產者、消費者、 自然環境三方公平且永續的最好方式！

Shop wisely and conscientiously! 有意識的消費，本著良心購物，才能創造更美好的世界。購買之前請多深思熟慮後再做出消費決策，買更少但更好的東西，微小的進步也會帶來巨大的改善。期望我們也能勤勉為之。

 

 

接下來，邀請您一同觀賞由Fairmined所製作的影片。也誠心地呼籲與mittag jewelry一樣期望永續生活在這片土地的您，能夠將這篇文章轉貼給您的親朋好友，讓更多、更多的人可以知道這份愛的訊息，謝謝！

 

 

 

 

What is sustainable jewelry? How can consumers pay attention to?

by mittag jewelry

When you dine, would you like to know where the food comes from?
Do you question the source or materials of the food that are sold too cheaply?
Is it natural or genetic modification or chemically synthesized?
Is the farming area organic or heavily used in chemical fertilizers and pesticides?
Perhaps, after experiencing food safety problems, you are very concerned about food production history, processing and so on. However, regards to fashion, have you ever thought about who sew the clothes you wear? Is it from a third country with low wages and child labors? Does the fabric dyeing factory meet environmental requirements, or discharge chemical dye wastewater directly into rivers? Where does the shiny jewelry you wear come from? Are they (gems, precious metals) exchanged for improper mining, destruction and environmental pollution? Are they exchanged for heavy metal pollution caused by illegal electroplating mentioned in our article "Leave us a beautiful environment! A Taiwanese brand talking about environmental awareness"?

 

 

Fashion, boutique can actually not be an environmental killer! A deep warning from the movie "Blood Diamond"

 

Fashion and boutique industries bring people a wonderful experience, but they are often linked with waste and environmental damage, and they also impact labor rights and social ethics. In particular, the "fast fashion trend" that has emerged in recent years is obviously an environmental killer. Especially when the real purpose of fast fashion is not to buy due to "needs", it is to induce consumers to spend money because of "temptation". Well-known fashion designer Gaurav Gupta said: "Fast fashion has greatly increased the pollution problem. We should urge designers to move towards slow fashion. This is the real environmental protection and good behavior for the earth." He said, "We should wear these clothes for many years, reuse them, and finally recycle them. Consumers with fast consumerism are also one of the keys to fuel pollution. Transformation should start from you and me." Because of the precise spending money on clothes, apart from saving money, it is also the most friendly attitude towards the environment.

 

Fashion designer: Gaurav Gupta

 

These fast fashion accessories, cheap accessories, disposable accessories have a huge impact on the environment. Because suppliers use cheap but environmentally unfriendly metals, such as nickel alloy jewelry, which are very easy to damage; at the same time, because the metal is prone to cause allergies, but with the limited cost of affordable jewelry, it is necessary to use an electroplating process that is cheap and destroys the water source. Finally, it is delivered to the customer with a plastic package that is inexpensive and convenient but difficult to be decomposed by the environment. The customer wears it a couple times then dump it  because it is allergic, discolored, deformed. In addition, the nickel alloy jewelry itself is a cheap metal, not worthy of recycling by the industry, so very often just directly bury it, which not only increases the amount of garbage discarded but also causes pollution of soil and water sources.

 

 

 

Introduction of "sustainable jewelry" that has sprouted in Europe, the U.S. and Japan in recent years

 

So how should you buy jewelry and other accessories? Have you heard of "sustainable jewellery"? We are honored to be invited to participate in the "Sustainable Jewelry" seminar held by Sustainable Jewellery/SUS 750 on December 1, 2018. Since mittag silver cares alot environmental issues, we are full of positive opinions on this issue, with a strong sense of participation. According to the Financial Times, the proportion of minerals on Earth is 1 gram of gold, compared to 60 grams of silver and 400,000 grams of diamonds (Yes! Diamond production is surprisingly large). And 78% of this relatively precious gold is made into jewelry. However, the metal sources behind these shiny jewelry are not necessarily as dazzling as their appearance; if these precious metals come from illegal mining and smelting pipelines, not only hurt the health of miners, but also cause environmental pollution (such as in Peru, the illegal gold digger will use mercury containing highly toxic drugs to adsorb gold, and then directly pour the mercury-containing wastewater into the river, which will not only pollute the water source but also enter the food chain, causing serious mercury pollution); in addition, there are even men and women unequal work rights, child labor and other labor rights. Then, let alone these brands in the subsequent jewelry manufacturing process, there is also a second processing pollution as described in the article "Leave us a beautiful environment! A Taiwanese brand talking about environmental awareness".

 

Therefore, "Sustainable Jewelry" is intended to improve the above situations, emphasizing that in the process of refining precious metals or subsequent jewelry making, it can reduce environmental damage and safeguard labor rights, and maintaining economic benefits. Under this concept, the story behind each piece of jewelry can be as beautiful as it is. mittag jewelry is not only expecting to be able to do it, but also hopes that more brands and consumers will access to this information and ideas. But in fact, there are already fair trade metals (Fairtrade Gold/Silver, Fairmined) in foreign countries. There are also many brands of sustainable jewelry, and mittag will share with you in the future.

 

 

At the moment, you and us have some concepts about "sustainable jewelry." As consumers, we can pay attention to followings when buying jewelry:

1. Proactively ask about the material source: What metal is it made of? Where does the metal come from?
2. Do not use/ do not buy unknown plating accessories.
3. Use/purchase certified metals or gems: Is the metal purchased from Fairtrade Gold/Silver? Are gems mined by legal mines in compliance with environmental regulations?
4. Buy good quality jewelry: Buy maintained value platinum, gold, silver products. Take good care of the jewelry. Wear it for a long time. When you don't wear it in the future, you can go to the jewelry shop to sell it. After refining and regenerating it into a new beautiful jewelry, it will last forever.

 

The source of mittag silver precious metal materials is refined by the professional precious metal recycling vendor collecting from the Taiwan's jewelry shops, which not only helps to reduce the carbon footprint, but also the sustainable recycling of the Taiwan environment. In addition, what is exciting is that mittag jewelry has got "Fairmined" certification in 2020, becoming the only jewelry brand in Taiwan that uses fair trade precious metals, so that if any consumers cares and looks forward to participating in sustainable issues can find fair trade jewelry in Taiwan. Besides, in March 2021, we adapted the more advanced and environmentally friendly "Organic Gold and Organic Silver" extracted by "eco gold stripping technology"; and this technology came from a Taiwan company UWin Nanotech. Since then, mittag jewelry has provided two material resources that came from mines and from recycling for consumers to choose, and both are in line with the environmentally friendly "responsible precious metals". Moreover, as written in the mittag article "Leave us a beautiful environment! A Taiwanese brand talking about environmental awareness", the silver and K gold products offered by mittag silver "reject the use of electroplating technology", using hand polishing to replace electroplating and mittag provides a permanent free maintenance service to be responsible to consumers.

Have you ever thought about the world changing because of our purchasing decision?

 

"Every time you spend money, you're casting a vote for the kind of world you want"

-Anna Lappe

(Anna Lappe is a sustainable food advocate, bestselling author, educator).

 

Use the words of Anna Lappe to work with everyone. Every time we spend money, it is like a vote that determines the future of the planet. Choosing fair trade into daily consumption is the best way to be fair and sustainable for producers, consumers and the natural environment! Shop wisely and conscientiously. Conscious consumption, shopping with conscience, can create a better world. Please think more before making consumption decisions. Buy fewer but better things, and small progresses will bring huge improvements. Hoping that we can also be diligent to realise it.

 

 

Next, you are invited to watch the film produced by Fairmined. We sincerely appeal to everyone who are hoping to live sustainability in this land just like us, can post this article to your friends and family, so that more and more people can know the message of loving this land, thank you!