Emeralds to conserve elephants

With the aim of creating awareness and raising crucial funds for the conservation of elephants, Abaran Jewellers organised a threeday exhibition on Emeralds for Elephants on August 26.The exquisite three day collection of emerald and diamond studded jewellery was designed to spread the message for the preservation of one of the mightiest animals – the Elephant.This was an initiative of Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) for the Asian elephant, the World Land Trust and ethical coloured gemstones mining company, Gemfields, together with Jaguar Land Rover and the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA India).India’s top ten jewellery designers were hand-picked to create a unique ‘pop up’ collection of bespoke Zambian emerald jewellery to spread awareness about the initiative and raise funds.This follows the success of Emeralds for Elephants organised in London in the summer of 2010.The Indian chapter of the initiative was launched by actress Madhuri Dixit in July.The collection is now on an India tour to each of the designer’s boutiques.On October 14, the collection will be auctioned in Mumbai.A percentage of the proceeds from each jewel will be going towards the World Land Trust’s Indian Elephant Corridor project and will be utilised for the cause.Indian Elephant Corridor project aims to avoid the human-elephant conflict due to unregulated expansion of farmlands and increasing movement of people and transport vehicles through the elephant corridor; the Asian elephant is experiencing significant loss of habitat.Pratap Kamath, CEO of Abaran Jewellers, said, “Elephants in a country like India is more than just an animal.Nothing starts in our country without remembering him – Shree Ganeshaye Namah.An elephant is an epitome of strength and compassion and that is what we have tried to display through our design.It is indeed our privilege to be a part of this noble cause and as a corporate we shall always support towards a peaceful existence of humans and wildlife.”