Time for OUCH: Openness, Understanding, Cooperation and Harmonization
This October, CIBJO – the World Jewellery Confederation will hold its annual congress in Bogota, Colombia, and shortly after that the delegates of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) and of the International Diamond [...]
Geen dag zonder Bach….in Israel
Bach-liefhebbers in Israel waren tot een jaar of wat geleden aangewezen op het luisteren naar hun eigen afspeelbare verzamelingen, op de - sporadische - uitzendingen van Bach's muziek op de lokale klassieke zender, op de [...]
A blast from the past: Counterclockwise – a review of BaselWorld 2013
This blog, written in 2013, did not make it to the digital screen at the time, but with the Swatch company announcing it is withdrawing from BaselWorld 2019. I'm happy to share it, five years [...]
The end of emotion – the beginning of reason
From today and onward, the diamond industry and trade can stop screaming foul. During the past decade(s), the diamond industry has been discussing, arguing and sometimes been kicking and screaming foul against the tendency to [...]
By launching Lightbox, De Beers has blurred the idea of real
(Orginally published on GemKonnect on June 1, 2018) Earlier this month, the Diamond Producers Association (DPA) released the findings of a survey done by the Harris Poll revealing that ‘a clear majority of American consumers [...]
The Iceberg of Diamonds and Climate Change
One of my favorite quotes is by the Greek philosopher Heraclitus who said that “Change is the only constant in life.” Wikipedia states that "Heraclitus was famous for his insistence on ever-present change as being [...]
Welcome!
On this blogsite, I publish my professional, political and literary efforts, both in English and in Dutch, my native language. Each of these sections also has an archive.
While I have been writing all my life, I’ve not been diligent about ‘organizing’ my writing – columns, op-ed pieces or short stories, into a framework. So here we are, and I hope you’ll like what you find and read here!