100% ethical gold

Introducing our low impact,

mercury-free gold

that empowers indigenous women miners

Mercury and cyanide are often used to extract gold from mines.

Does that sound dangerous to you? That's because it is.

What mercury poisoning can look like in humans:

Kidney failure
Memory loss
Mental confusion (like, Mad Hatter mad)
Tremors
Peeling skin
Gingivitis
For pregnant women, exposure can affect the baby's brain development, lead to premature birth, congenital defects and even miscarriage

The environmental impact of a gold mine is just as toxic, but it also lasts for generations.

In Indonesia, more than 10.5 million hectares of rainforest land is used for mining. That's 2.7 million football fields' worth of jungle being deforested each year.

The damage is long-lasting: once enough gold is extracted from a site, the mine is usually left abandoned without any rehabilitation or reforestation efforts.

Artisanal and small scale gold miners can use up to 17 times the amount of mercury as the gold they get. The Blacksmith Institute tested three primary rivers in Indonesian Borneo and found mercury levels 14.5 to 140 times higher than the EPA safety standard.

We need to clean up our act.

Starting from the source.

We partner with artisanal indigenous women miners in Indonesian Borneo. We pay them a premium for their pledge against the use of mercury and cyanide.

These women are our partners, not our employees – meaning they can make more profit for themselves on top of a stable income.

In 2020, we purchased 955.8 grams of gold from their panning. In the process, we avoided releasing an estimated 9.56 to 14.34 kg of mercury into the world.

This is Gardens of the Sun's 100% ethical gold from Borneo

traceability

We personally know everyone involved in our Borneo gold supply chain.

Everyone. Even their children. And their children’s children.

For example, we get our gold from Ibu Leni, her sister Priskila and her mom Ibu Gineng who send it directly from Central Kalimantan to our Bali studio.

minimum environmental impact

No cyanide. No mercury. No deforestation.

The indigenous women miners we partner with use low impact mining methods at abandoned mining sites. Once these women learned just how bad mercury was for their families, they were happy to stop using it.

MAXIMUM POSITIVE SOCIAL IMPACt

No child labor. No exploitation or modern slavery. Only good feels for you.

Poverty is all about the lack of opportunities. And the silencing of ambition. We try to help break the cycle by providing bi-annual scholarships for youth in our mining community.

LEGAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL EMPOWERMENT

Legal mining operations and micro-finance opportunities.

Working in the jungle means the rules can get a little wild. But when we cross our Ts and dot our Is, everyone is protected under a legal framework.

This means our partners can have peace of mind simply because our paperwork is up to date. We also purchase our gold at a premium price well over the village’s going rate.

$309.60

of scholarships awarded

$21,088.70

of premiums paid to artisanal gold miners

FROM THEIR HANDS TO YOURS

Join us on a journey beyond jewelry

LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR IMPACT →

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SHOP ETHICAL GOLD JEWELRY

A Beautiful Mystery

My mystery box was such a fun experience! Getting it around Christmas time was like a present for myself. And the coordinated aquamarine set was beautiful and such a unique design.

Since it was a mystery box, I couldn’t vet the stone in my ring, which had an inclusion. But their great customer service got back to me quickly confirmed it didn’t put the ring at risk of breaking. I can’t wait to wear this set!

Perfect ring and perfect service

The team at Gardens of the Sun made me - us - the perfect engagement ring. It’s beautiful!! The advice I got in designing it was very good and delivery was quick and safe. Thank you so much!

Love the pendant

Wish I could take it off the chain without destroying the chain though.

Beautiful Earings!

I recently got these as a gift to my mother for Christmas ans she is very pleased with them. When I received them in the mail, I opened them to see what they look like and they are so beautiful. They're simplistic yet complex. The unboxing was even an enjoyable experience. I will definitely buy from here again, whether it be for myself or a family member.

Great Experience

Got a recommendation from Art of Eloping Instagram and had a great experience. Price, Product, and management were all great as a customer and now that I've presented the gifts to my mother and granny they're beyond thrilled with the rings themselves - not to mention the little extras in the packaging. Would strongly recommend Gardens of the Sun.

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100% ethical gold

Introducing our low impact,

mercury-free gold

that empowers indigenous women miners