DiamondBuzz
Natural Diamond Council Celebrates Legacy of Canadian Diamonds at Exclusive London Event with Lily James
Event at Canada House Highlights the Ethical Sourcing, Cultural Significance, and Global Impact of Canada’s Natural Diamonds
On March 19, 2025, the Natural Diamond Council (NDC), in collaboration with the High Commission of Canada in the UK and the Government of the Northwest Territories, hosted the prestigious “Diamonds, A Canadian Love Story” event at Canada House, Trafalgar Square, London. This exclusive gathering showcased the ethical sourcing, cultural heritage, and global influence of Canada’s natural diamonds, with a special focus on their positive impact on Indigenous communities and the fine jewellery industry.
Canada is renowned as one of the world’s leading sources of ethically mined diamonds, and the event celebrated the country’s commitment to responsible practices in the diamond industry. Key figures in the sector gathered to discuss the role of Canadian diamonds in the future of luxury jewellery.
A highlight of the evening was an insightful panel discussion moderated by Bronwyn Cosgrave, celebrated author and producer. The panel featured Lily James, Emmy-nominated actress and Global Ambassador for the Natural Diamond Council; Kateri Rose Lynn, Councillor of Dettah – Yellowknives Dene First Nation and representative of Diamond de Canada; Paul Gruner, CEO of Tłı̨chǫ Investment Corporation; and Jody Wainwright, Managing Director at Boodles. The discussion explored the rich legacy of Canadian diamonds, their ethical mining practices, and their cultural importance to Indigenous communities.
Attendees were also treated to an immersive exhibition featuring stunning collections from prestigious jewellery brands such as Dries Criel, Almod Diamonds, Boodles, Lands Collection by Diamonds of Canada, Misfit Diamonds, Gemporia, HRA Group, Diacore, and Canada’s winners of the Shining Light Awards by De Beers Group. These brands showcased the artistry and craftsmanship of Canadian diamonds, emphasizing their journey from the Earth to luxurious fine jewellery.

“Canadian diamonds are a true testament to ethical luxury, built on transparency and unmatched craftsmanship,” said David Kellie, CEO of the Natural Diamond Council. The event successfully brought together industry leaders, designers, and diamond enthusiasts for a meaningful conversation about the future of natural diamonds in the realm of responsible luxury.
DiamondBuzz
De Beers Group Sets Out Portfolio and Organisational Actions to Support Long-Term Value Creation
Company outlines strategic cost optimisation, portfolio streamlining and operational changes to strengthen resilience while positioning for long-term growth in the natural diamond industry.
De Beers Group is advancing delivery of its business streamlining by setting out a number of planned portfolio and organisational changes to ensure an efficient cost base that strengthens resilience in the near-term while enhancing future competitiveness and retaining optionality as industry conditions improve.
Since 2024, De Beers has been streamlining its business in line with its Origins strategy to reduce costs, divest non-core assets and prioritise investment in activities that create the most value. Significant progress has been made, with more than $100 million of annual overhead costs removed from the business, the sale or closure of a number of non-core assets and significant capital and cost reconfigurations to asset expansion projects.
Simultaneously, De Beers has reinvested in natural diamond category marketing to support the industry’s efforts to grow natural diamond demand, launching new large-scale campaigns and collaborating with key stakeholders across the value chain to foster industry-wide investment. Global consumer demand for natural diamond jewellery returned to growth in 2025, while natural diamond sales increased across US independent jewellers in 2025 and into Q1 2026, led by higher value diamonds and those promoted by De Beers’ Desert Diamonds marketing campaign.
On the supply side, global rough diamond production is now decreasing, with several producers closing mines during 2026. Whilst the increasing rarity of diamonds and the emerging signs of improvement in consumer demand are likely to support longer-term value creation, rough diamond trading conditions are expected to remain challenging in the near-term due to cyclical and industry-specific factors.
Consistent with recent actions to improve business resilience, De Beers intends to pause production at the Venetia mine in South Africa for two years to reduce costs while also rephasing capital expenditure on its underground project. This will involve critical infrastructure investment to enhance the capacity and efficiency of the mine, with the intention to support future production growth as business and industry conditions improve.
De Beers is engaging with stakeholders in accordance with relevant requirements and the company’s values as it moves through this process, and will both support impacted employees and continue to invest in its community and Social and Labour Plan commitments.
This proposed action at Venetia Mine follows the decision earlier this year to pause the Tuzo Phase 3 expansion project at the Gahcho Kué Mine in Canada.
In parallel, De Beers plans to reconfigure its global operating model to refocus and prioritise resources on the core operational businesses and reduce its central corporate cost base.
Al Cook, CEO of De Beers Group, said:

“In line with our commitment to focus and streamline our business, we are making a number of changes to De Beers to ensure greater business resilience in the near-term, while supporting long-term value creation. We recognise the protracted challenging conditions as the diamond industry evolves, though we are encouraged by signs of consumer demand growth in the US and beyond, particularly in higher quality diamonds.
Global rough diamond supply is falling, bringing more support to the market. The changes we are making to our business are focused on underpinning our efficiency now and into the future, favourably positioning De Beers in its leadership role.”
De Beers Group will maintain current production levels through its other operations, and previous production guidance remains unchanged.
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