In this episode, I share my interview with Monica Stephenson, founder of ANZA Gems. She started her company in 2015 with the mission of improving the lives of artisanal gemstone miners and helping East Africans participate more fully in the global gemstone trade.

They buy gemstone rough directly in East Africa and support individuals all along the supply chain by paying fair prices to miners and dealers, and use artisan cutters to facet one-of-a-kind spectacular gemstones for the wholesale trade, with a percentage of sales going to educational and entrepreneurial initiatives in the regions where they buy.

Monica also co-founded Moyo Gems as a collaboration between international traders, NGO Pact, NGO Tanzania Women Miners Assoc, and Everledger (Blockchain platform) to bring the gemstones of the women miners of Tanga, Tanzania to market.

If you didn't think she was busy enough, she's also: The current Board president of Ethical Metalsmiths On the international board of WJA On the Board of Gem Legacy On the advisory board of Black in Jewelry Coalition

Let me tell you - this woman's a powerhouse!

Links mentioned in this episode: Sparkle Award: https://sparkleaward.com Gucci x Oura: https://www.gucci.com/us/en/st/capsule/gucci-x-oura ANZA Gems: https://www.anzagems.com Moyo Gems: https://moyogems.com Ethical Metalsmiths: https://ethicalmetalsmiths.org/board-advisors/monica-stephenson WJA: https://www.womensjewelryassociation.com/boardstaff Gem Legacy: https://gemlegacy.org/our-team/ Black in Jewelry Coalition https://blackinjewelry.org/ Transcript: https://joyjoya.com/interview-monica-stephenson