Mongolian Miners from XAMODX©ARM

November 16, 2016

In recent months, the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) has had the honour of publishing some great achievements, such as the prestigious international awards of the Nobel Peace Prize and the Olympic Laurel being made with Fairmined Gold. But for ARM, the good news just keeps on coming, because in November Yves Bertran was appointed as the new Executive Director of the organisation, a global and multicultural organization that works to transform artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) into a socially and environmentally responsible activity, through its various development programmes and the development of certification standards and systems such as Fairmined.

Yves Bertran is a geologist, with a PhD in Geosciences from the University of Paris-Sud. He has been working in the mining sector for more than twenty years, fifteen of which have been dedicated to resolving problems that arise in the field of ASM. In recent years, his focus has been on responsible mining through sustainable certification processes, the application of OECD Due Diligence concepts, and the establishment of public policies for the promotion of formalized and integrated ASM in the rural economy.

“It gives me great pleasure to welcome Yves to the ARM management team, on behalf of the Board of Directors. Yves has worked with ARM since 2013 as an ASM expert, especially in French and English-speaking Africa. He has demonstrated his strong commitment to the development of responsible ASM and to sustainable supply chains. Under Yves’ leadership, and with the support of deputy director Marcin Piersiak and a dedicated and competent team, ARM will be ready to face new challenges to achieve great results, in addition to those of recent years.” Maria Laura Barreto, President of the Board of Directors at ARM.

ARM has built up a great deal of experience over the past three years and today faces new challenges in the midst of its rapid growth. The definition of a new standard that enables the international market to access a broader base of producers will be of major concern in the coming years, and the ARM team will be fully prepared to coordinate not only its development, but also the implementation of this universal tool.” Yves Bertran, new ARM Executive Director.

Yves commences his position as director of ARM in a moment of global growth and amongst the organisation’s recent successes. These include ARM working with mining organizations in both Latin America and Africa, of which 10 have achieved Fairmined Certification and since generated $1.4 million dollars of Fairmined Premium to invest in their organizations and local communities. In addition, there are now more than 120 companies in 21 countries working with Fairmined Gold.

“These important achievements are the result of the continuous effort on the part of the ARM team, which has been directed with great diplomacy and perception by Marcin Piersiak who has been the interim director for the past few months. ARM is very grateful for his commitment towards achieving these goals, which are so important to the organization.” Yves Beltran.

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