{"id":213712,"date":"2019-02-26T08:27:38","date_gmt":"2019-02-26T16:27:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=wherenext&#038;p=213712"},"modified":"2024-05-10T05:57:05","modified_gmt":"2024-05-10T12:57:05","slug":"diamonds-and-geoblockchain","status":"publish","type":"wherenext","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/diamonds-and-geoblockchain","title":{"rendered":"How Geoblockchain Could Curb \u2018Conflict Diamond\u2019 Trade"},"author":501,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","castos_file_data":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[369852,1001,791,1031],"tags":[297722,322932,297712],"department":[488812],"wherenext-category":[],"industry":[],"class_list":["post-213712","wherenext","type-wherenext","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-artificial-intelligence--ai","category-commercial","category-digital-transformation","category-natural-resources","tag-blockchain","tag-diamonds","tag-geoblockchain","department-emerging-technologies"],"acf":{"short_description":"Blockchain and location intelligence could transform the way diamonds are marketed and sold.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Diamonds have lost some of their shine in recent years due to association with African war zones and human rights abuses. Some consumers have made it clear they won\u2019t buy \u201cblood diamonds\u201d or \u201cconflict diamonds\u201d\u2014those known to fund wars or support child labor. In response to consumer demand, jewelry companies are investigating ways to document the origin of their products.\r\n\r\n<em>The<\/em> <em>New York Times<\/em> article, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/01\/08\/business\/diamonds-origin-tiffany-consumers.html\">You Know Your Diamond\u2019s Cut and Carat. But Does It Have Ethical Origins?<\/a>\u201d notes that companies are monitoring product origins in greater detail using the transaction-tracking tool blockchain."},{"acf_fc_layout":"form","form_type":"aside","form_position":"Right","form_title":"THE ESRI BRIEF","form_desc":"A biweekly email connecting senior executives and business leaders with thought-provoking articles on location intelligence and critical technology trends.","form_button_label":"Sign up now","form_content":"https:\/\/go.pardot.com\/l\/82202\/2017-10-12\/jw1bmb","form_tag":"low-commitment-form\/sign-up-form"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"The effort could gain additional support from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/location-intelligence\">location intelligence<\/a> delivered by a modern geographic information system (GIS). In fact, some signs point to a merger of GIS and blockchain technologies into geoblockchain\u2014a potential innovation in how companies respond to customer and regulatory requirements.\r\n\r\n<strong>Beyond Country of Origin<\/strong>\r\n\r\nUntil recently, major jewelry retailers such as Tiffany and DeBeers could only identify a gem\u2019s country of origin. Neither the businesses nor the mines they sourced from had the technology to trace every diamond from processor to showroom. Now IBM and DeBeers have partnered with Signet Jewelers to create a blockchain-based tracking program, according to the <em>Times<\/em> article. Through that system, called Tracr, jewelers will be able to identify which mines their merchants patronize. That information will enable them to be more discerning in their purchases, rather than rejecting outright any diamonds from certain countries.\r\n\r\nCompanies in adjacent industries are also using location intelligence technologies for transparency. Nespresso, known for its single-serving coffee products, has painstakingly documented the origins of its coffee. Leaders of the company\u2019s sustainability program use GIS to monitor the health and farming practices of 75,000 farms around the world. With location intelligence produced by GIS, Nespresso helps its farmers cultivate the most flavorful beans and get them to market faster, while updating customers on those efforts.\r\n\r\nAccording to the <em>WhereNext<\/em> article, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/sustainability-and-location-intelligence\/\">The Business Value of Sustainability<\/a>,\u201d the program has paid dividends:"},{"acf_fc_layout":"blockquote","content":"By examining and adjusting [processing] locations for farmers, the company frees up precious time and increases productivity. This impacts not only farming, but also time for education and strategic planning\u2014the very activities Nespresso hopes will sustain its coffee crops far into the future."},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Using sustainability practices and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/en-us\/see\/overview\">location technology<\/a> to support its suppliers, Nespresso has increased its brand value as a responsible producer, maintaining customer loyalty and profitability.\r\n\r\n<strong>Emergence of the Geoblockchain<\/strong>\r\n\r\nAcross industries\u2014from diamonds to coffee\u2014companies are striving for supply chain visibility, prompting industry leaders to explore new monitoring and reporting techniques.\r\n\r\nBlockchain\u2019s forte as a more secure model of transaction logging will be enhanced by GIS technology\u2019s strength as a location-aware, cloud-based system of record. Blockchain expert Constantinos Papantoniou sees the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/geoblockchain-think-tank\/\">marriage of location intelligence and blockchain<\/a> as a more efficient method of monitoring supply chains:"},{"acf_fc_layout":"blockquote","content":"The main advantages of geoblockchain are speed of transactions, data accessibility, and data accuracy [\u2026] With geoblockchain technology, those transactions are agreed on by all relevant parties and recorded in one distributed ledger, providing proof of location (PoL) and other details. So, the companies don\u2019t need to reconcile disparate versions of how, where, and with whom the product traveled."},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"As consumer expectations shape the global economy, companies will need to perform more detailed supply chain tracking. Forward-leaning executives will be equipped to answer the call for transparency by merging blockchain with location intelligence."}],"references":null},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.9 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Diamond Companies Are Turning to Blockchain for Supply Chain Visibility<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"DeBeers, Signet Jewelers, and IBM announce a partnership to bring blockchain to the diamond trade. Geoblockchain could be next.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/diamonds-and-geoblockchain\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Geoblockchain Could Curb \u2018Conflict Diamond\u2019 Trade\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"DeBeers, Signet Jewelers, and IBM announce a partnership to bring blockchain to the diamond trade. 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