(NEW YORK) — Southwest Airlines famously allows passengers to select their own seats upon boarding, but the low fare carrier could be changing course.
Earlier this week, after the Dallas-based carrier reported a $231 million net loss from the first quarter of 2024, CEO Bob Jordan commented on the “disappointing” results and said they are “evaluating options to enhance our Customer Experience” which he said includes “onboard seating.”
“We are focused on controlling what we can control and have already taken swift action to address our financial underperformance and adjust for revised aircraft delivery expectations,” he continued.
On a webcast recording of the earnings call, Jordan said, “It’s been several years since we last studied this in-depth, and customer preference and expectations change over time.”
Jordan later spoke about the potentially massive shift to its open seating cabins as a means to drive up revenue, CNBC first reported.
“We’re looking into new initiatives, things like the way we seat and board our aircraft,” Jordan told CNBC.
While Southwest offers priority boarding groups for an additional fee, the company’s all-Boeing 737 fleet of single economy class aircraft is known by consumers and among airline competitors for its simplistic and affordable experience.
Southwest did not respond to ABC News’ request for additional comment and pointed to the quarterly earnings report.
In this Nov. 24, 2023, file photo, a Walmart store is shown on Black Friday, in Secaucus, New Jersey. (Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — In an exclusive and far-reaching interview with ABC News, John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart U.S., talked about the retail giant’s push to hire more non-college degree workers for high-paying corporate jobs at the company.
Currently, 75% of Walmart’s salaried managers began as hourly associates. High-performing Walmart managers at the store’s Supercenters now have the ability to earn more than $400,000 a year, which includes a new stock grant rewards program. Some of those managers have college degrees, while others do not — it is not required for the job.
“While college is great for some, it’s not exactly the right answer for everyone,” Furner told ABC News.
This year, Walmart says it has doubled the number of skills certificates it offers to help people move into higher-paying careers within the company, such as software engineers, data scientists, and opticians. Walmart says certificate programs take associates about four months on average to complete, compared to years for a degree.
“Let’s say you wanted to be a technician and work on HVAC, or if you wanted to be a truck driver, or robot tech, or a pharmacy tech. We have those programs where you can do that on the job while you’re working, and they lead to great careers,” Furner said.
Businesses are increasingly removing college degree requirements from some job descriptions and shifting to skills-based hiring. But a recent report from the Burning Glass Institute and Harvard Business School found that most companies that say they are adopting skills-first hiring are not actually translating that into practice.
The report found that Walmart was among the 37% of firms analyzed that, on average, hired 18% more non-degree workers for roles for which they removed the requirement for a college degree. Other so-called skills-based hiring leaders included Apple, Cigna, ExxonMobil, General Motors, Target, Tyson Foods, and Yelp.
In a first for the company, Walmart hosted an Opportunity Summit in Washington, D.C. this month, where it brought together executives from over a dozen major companies — including Accenture, Home Depot, McDonald’s, PepsiCo and Verizon — to discuss how they can coordinate efforts and make good on their promise to offer higher-paid jobs to non-degree workers.
The shift to skills-based hiring comes as the cost of a college education continues to rise. Boston University, Tufts and New York University are among the schools that now cost nearly $100,000 a year to attend.
“A lot of the skills that we’re talking about are also applicable across a number of companies in a number of industries,” said Furner. “What we hope for is that our associates learn more and stay with us, but we know sometimes they’re going to go on to other things, and if they can take those skills with them collectively, we’ll all be better off.”
Job growth is expected to continue at Walmart as it looks to open its first new stores in three years. The retailer plans to open 150 new stores and remodel 650 existing locations over the next five years.
Retail theft and the future of self-checkout
Furner acknowledged that the prevalence of shoplifting and organized retail crime across the country remains a challenge for retailers of all sizes. He says shrinkage — the industry term for merchandise loss due to theft — has increased at Walmart over the past two years. In response, the big-box retailer has been selectively removing self-checkout counters from some locations where there are more instances of shoplifting and mis-scanned items, but Furner told ABC News that self-checkout is not going away at Walmart.
“There are a few stores where we’ve made the decision that they’ll come out of, but we haven’t made that decision in every store,” he said. “Over the next few years, we’re really going to lean into new types of technology that can make the checkout process even better for customers.”
Target recently announced it would limit the number of items shoppers can buy at self-checkout lanes, while Dollar General plans to pull self-checkout counters from 300 of its stores.
“For the industry, the concern is it causes prices to go up and it can cause stores to close,” Furner said of the problem. “Retailers need to work with state and local law enforcement, with federal enforcement to keep our communities safe for our customers and to keep the cost of goods down.”
“Deflation” is showing up at Walmart
On the inflation front, Furner says he continues to see improvement: “At Walmart, we are now seeing prices that are in line with where they were 12 months ago. I haven’t been able to say that for a few years now.”
Furner also sees deflation in big categories like general merchandise, where some prices are below where they were a year ago.
“The last few weeks, we’ve taken even more prices down in areas like produce and meat and fresh food,” Furner said.
Yet despite a recent rise in overall inflation in the past three months, Furner says he remains optimistic.
“What I’ve learned in the last few years is, it’s really hard to predict,” Furner said. “I’m feeling much better about inflation in terms of pricing versus a year ago, but we’re not finished.”
Travelers use Clear Plus kiosks at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in San Francisco, May 25, 2023. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — California lawmakers have pushed forward a new piece of legislation aimed at changing the way third-party security screening companies like CLEAR help expedite customers through security at the airport.
An annual CLEAR membership that costs $189 allows travelers to skip the onerous security lines and instead verify their identity with biometric data at a kiosk, then get escorted by an agent to the front of the line bypassing TSA and TSA PreCheck.
But California Senate Bill 1372, which passed 8-4 in the Senate Transportation Committee on Tuesday, would ban CLEAR from expanding at California airports unless the security company utilizes its own dedicated security lines.
“This bill would prohibit a public airport that provides commercial services, beginning January 1, 2025, from entering into a new agreement that authorizes a private third-party vendor that provides expedited security screening to use the standard security lane or the Transportation Security Administration PreCheck security lane,” a summary of the bill states.
CLEAR currently operates at nine airports in the Golden State.
The first-of-its-kind bill in the U.S. was introduced by Democratic state Sen. Josh Newman. It now moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee, after which the bill could be brought for a vote before the full California Senate and state assembly before potentially making it to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk.
In a press release on his official website, Newman described the proposed bill as offering “a more equitable experience at airport security checkpoints.”
“Despite what some have said, SB 1372 doesn’t seek to terminate the CLEAR concierge service at California airports. Instead, it seeks to have CLEAR and other third-party screening services operate separate lines for subscribers, eliminating the friction and frustration created by the current system,” Newman clarified in a written statement.
The bill has several opponents including the California Chamber Of Commerce and California Travel Association, and major airline carriers including Alaska Airlines, Delta Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue and Southwest Airlines.
The publicly traded expedited screening service provider, which was founded in 2010, is in use at more than 55 airports across the U.S., as well as sports stadiums and other large venues.
Tourists visit San Marco Square on April 24, 2024 in Venice, Italy. (Marco Bertorello/AFP via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Peak summer travel season is fast approaching, and some cities abroad have already implemented fees in an attempt to protect popular destinations from potential damage from increased tourism.
Bustling European cities from Barcelona to Amsterdam that get flooded with tourists, especially at historical hotspots during the high season, have used tourist taxes to help raise revenue without taxing local citizens.
Now, the city of bridges is following in the footsteps of Spain, Greece and Germany, which have all utilized a similar fee-based approach, testing a new entry fee for any visitors who come to Venice just for the day.
Earlier this year, the coastal city, known for it’s lagoon, hand-blown glass and close proximity to the heart of Italy’s popular Prosecco region, announced a new reservation system that would charge day trippers 5 euros to enter and enjoy Venice.
With nearly 40,000 visitors on average per day — nearly double the city’s population — local authorities hope this move will help protect the UNESCO World Heritage Site from the influx of tourists.
Starting Thursday, travelers can download an app to pay and attain a QR code, which will be checked by inspectors to enter the city as a visitor. If someone traveling for the day in Venice is caught without the code, they may face a fine of up to 300 euros.
“It is not a revolution, but the first step of a path that regulates the access of daily visitors. An experiment that aims to improve the liveability of the city, who lives there and who works there. We will carry it forward with great humility and with the awareness that there may be problems,” Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro said in a statement on X regarding the announcement.
“The margins of error are wide, but we are ready, with humility and courage, to make all the changes that will serve to improve the procedure. Venice is the first city in the world to implement this path, which can be an example for other fragile and delicate cities that must be safeguarded,” he continued.
Simone Venturini, Venice city councilor for tourism, told ABC News that the smart control center is within the most important part of the city — Piazza San Marco, or St. Mark’s Square.
“Authorities will use the new QR codes, plus cell phone data and the roughly 700 cameras around Venice to track and potentially regulate visitors,” he explained. “We are switching to action after 60 years of only debate… our ultimate goal is to find a new balance between the needs of the residents and the needs of tourists.”
Venturini told ABC News local officials had “a lot of discussion” with leaders in other cities who have worked to combat overtourism, including Amsterdam, Barcelona and Kyoto.
“We are talking together just to find the solution,” he said.
(NEW YORK) — Good news for airline travelers: the Department of Transportation on Wednesday announced it is rolling out new rules that will require airlines to automatically give cash refunds to passengers for canceled and significantly delayed flights.
The delays covered would be more than three hours for domestic flights and more than six hours for international flights, the agency said. This includes tickets purchased directly from airlines, travel agents and third-party sites such as Expedia and Travelocity.
“This is a big day for America’s flying public,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg at a Wednesday morning news conference. Buttigieg said the new rules — which require prompt refunds — are the biggest expansion of passenger rights in the department’s history.
Airlines can now decide how long a delay must be before a refund is issue — however, these new rules define “significant” delay standards that trigger refunds.
The DOT rules lay out that passengers will be “entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered.”
DOT will also require airlines to give cash refunds if your bags are lost and not delivered within 12 hours.
The refunds must be issued within seven days, according to the new DOT rules, and must be in cash unless the passenger chooses another form of compensation.
Airlines can no longer issue refunds in forms of vouchers or credits when consumers are entitled to receive cash.
Airlines will have six months to comply with the new rules.
“Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them — without headaches or haggling,” Buttigieg said in a statement.
The DOT said it is also is working on rules related to family seating fees, enhancing rights for wheelchair-traveling passengers for safe and dignified travel and mandating compensation and amenities if flights are delayed or canceled by airlines.
Buttigieg said the DOT is also working to protect airline passengers from being surprised by hidden fees — a move he estimates will have Americans billions of dollars every year.
The DOT rules include that passengers will receive refunds for extra services paid for and not provided, such as Wi-Fi, seat selection or inflight entertainment.
The rules come after the agency handed Southwest Airlines a record $140 million fine for its operational meltdown during the 2022 holiday travel season.
Buttigieg said Southwest’s fine sets a “new standard” for airlines and passenger rights.
“To be clear, we want the airline sector to thrive. It is why we put so much into helping them survive the pandemic and honestly it’s why we’re being so rigorous on passenger protection,” he said.
Buttigieg reiterated that refund requirements are already the standard for airlines, but the new DOT rules hold the airlines to account and makes sure passengers get the “refunds that are owed to them.”
“Airlines are not enthusiastic about us holding them to a higher standard,” Buttigieg said, adding that he “knows they will be able to adapt to this.”
Airlines for America, the trade association for the country’s leading passenger and cargo airlines, told ABC News in a statement that its members “offer a range of options — including fully refundable fares.” Is said consumers are “given the choice of refundable ticket options with terms and conditions that best fit their needs at first search results.”
The group said the 11 largest U.S. airlines issued $43 billion in customer refunds from 2020 through 2023.
(NEW YORK) — The Department of Transportation on Wednesday is rolling out new rules that will require airlines to automatically give cash refunds to passengers for cancelled and significantly delayed flights.
The delays covered would be more than three hours for domestic flights and more than six hours for international flights, the agency said.
The DOT will also require airlines to give cash refunds if your bags are lost and not delivered within 12 hours.
Airlines will have six months to comply with the new rules, the DOT said.
“Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them – without headaches or haggling,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement. “Our new rule sets a new standard to require airlines to promptly provide cash refunds to their passengers.”
Buttigieg will make a formal announcement about the major changes at a Wednesday morning news conference.
The DOT said it is also working on rules related to family seating fees, enhancing rights for wheelchair-traveling passengers for safe and dignified travel, and mandating compensation and amenities if flights are delayed or canceled by airlines.
According to the DOT, passengers are entitled to a refund for:
Canceled or significantly changed flights: Passengers will be entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered. For the first time, the rule defines “significant change.” Significant changes to a flight include departure or arrival times that are more than 3 hours domestically and 6 hours internationally; departures or arrivals from a different airport; increases in the number of connections; instances where passengers are downgraded to a lower class of service; or connections at different airports or flights on different planes that are less accessible or accommodating to a person with a disability.
Significantly delayed baggage return: Passengers who file a mishandled baggage report will be entitled to a refund of their checked bag fee if it is not delivered within 12 hours of their domestic flight arriving at the gate, or 15-30 hours of their international flight arriving at the gate, depending on the length of the flight.
Extra services not provided: Passengers will be entitled to a refund for the fee they paid for an extra service — such as Wi-Fi, seat selection, or inflight entertainment — if an airline fails to provide this service.
(NEW YORK) — As the surge of summer travel draws near, the race to book a great vacation is on.
“If you’re looking to travel domestically within the U.S., I think you should be booking now for summer travel,” Clint Henderson, travel expert and managing editor of The Points Guy, told ABC News’ Good Morning America.
Earlier this month while reporting quarterly earnings, Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian projected “record advance bookings for the summer,” telling CNBC that the carrier’s credit card data and bookings show customers are highly interested in air travel.
An increase in budget airline routes that has created more competition, paired with an easing of the post-pandemic revenge travel surge, means travelers could see more deals.
“Overall prices are down from where they were when we just had that boom out of the pandemic,” Henderson said. “So things are more reasonable.”
Hopper, the flight booking app, has shown predicted fares for flights to Europe will be down 10% in price from the same time last year.
Google recently announced its top 20 trending summer destinations, which saw a few newcomers on the list and Paris rose to the No. 2 spot.
With the Olympics taking place there from July 26 through Aug. 11, an uptick in airfare and hotel pricing is expected during the Games.
But those willing to wait out the Olympics could find big savings for flights to the host nation.
The Points Guy has featured deals from Atlanta, Dallas and Charlotte to Paris for as low as $515 from August through the fall.
Amsterdam, Prague, Spain and Iceland are among the most reasonably priced European destinations, as seen on Hopper.
Tips for booking summer travel
Don’t forget to stay flexible with travel dates and keep midweek in mind for possibly lower fares.
There’s also a time during the post-summer rush known as “shoulder season,” between September and October, when fares could drop by as much as 30%.
When it comes to airfare purchase timing, the experts at The Points Guy have found prices dip eight to four weeks before the outbound flight, but after the one-month mark, prices will creep back up.
In this Feb. 1, 2006, file photo, an unidentified woman holds up a counterfeit Coach handbag in the back room of tourist shop in New York’s Chinatown. (Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Counterfeit luxury handbags have become a social media phenomenon. Instead of cheaply made knockoffs, the latest crop of counterfeit handbags, known as “superfakes,” looks very similar to the authentic luxury item.
As high-end luxury brands including Hermes, Chanel, and Prada have boosted their prices in recent years, many consumers turned to deceivingly high-quality replicas for a fraction of the price.
The precision and attention to detail put into making replica handbags have made it easier for them to pass off as genuine luxury products, with hardly any noticeable differences to the untrained eye.
“Twenty years ago, counterfeits were terrible. Those things were $25… [Now,] some counterfeit Birkins are $6,000 plus, handmade,” Sarah Davis, president and founder of Fashionphile, a high-end consignment boutique, told Impact x Nightline, which takes a look at the counterfeit luxury goods market. This episode is now streaming on Hulu.
“[With] technology, the ability to make a superfake is easier now than ever before,” said Frank Russo, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Director of Field Operations.
According to the agency’s reports, counterfeit goods comprise a staggering 2.5% of global trade. Luxury goods are the most commonly counterfeited items. Last fiscal year, Russo’s team seized nearly 23 million counterfeit goods nationwide worth over $2 billion in estimated retail value, calculated as if they were authentic.
Even some celebrities have been sporting the superfake merchandise. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah made headlines when federal agents seized dozens of counterfeit handbags found in her possession, after her arrest in 2021 for a telemarketing fraud scheme.
Despite counterfeit sellers conducting business publicly, law enforcement said it’s difficult to crack down on their activity. ABC News contacted over 50 sellers based in China. While most declined to respond, one seller disclosed that the operation is often exceedingly discreet, with each link of the process isolated from the others.
Buying, however, is an easier process. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Amy X. Wang, assistant managing editor for the New York Times Magazine, reported on the superfake industry.
“It’s not really a secretive process,” said Wang, “[It’s] almost disappointingly easy,” Wang said.
Wang discovered an online ecosystem of replica handbags that paralleled luxury brands, making counterfeit goods easily accessible. On Reddit forums such as “r/Wagoonladies,” interested buyers can find detailed purchase guides, thorough customer reviews, and contact lists for sellers primarily based in China.
“Some people think it’s an embarrassing secret,” Wang said. “But to the other people, it’s fun. It’s subversive. It’s actually really edgy that they have a fake bag maybe.”
Despite the increased prevalence of counterfeit luxury goods, authentic luxury brands continue to be solid investments. Resale data from Rebag indicates that popular styles from brands such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Hermes are being resold second-hand for prices higher than their original purchase price. Luxury brands are keeping their goods exclusive and their prices high.
Sarah Davis, president and founder of Fashionphile, has created a resale platform that sells pre-owned luxury handbags, allowing consumers to buy authentic bags, in most cases, for a fraction of the retail price.
“The truth is, there’s never been more counterfeits that are better, the superfakes, like today,” Davis said. “And yet the luxury brands have never been stronger.”
Dallas-based leather expert and social media personality, Volkan Yilmaz, who calls himself Tanner Leatherstein, has a popular YouTube series dedicated to demystifying leather in luxury handbags. He deconstructs designer purses and comes up with his own cost estimates.
“Is it worth the price? Well, it’s up to you,” Leatherstein told Impact x Nightline.
He draws a line at counterfeits.
“Somebody’s stealing the brand’s property, that intangible prestige…which is insanely difficult to create,” Leatherstein said. “But I’m no one to judge.”
In November 2023, federal agents executed the largest seizure of counterfeit goods in U.S. history. Authorities announced the seizure of around 219,000 counterfeit bags, clothes, shoes, luxury products, and other items. The total estimated manufacturer’s suggested retail price of these items was approximately $1.03 billion.
“China and Hong Kong are [the origins of] probably closer to 70% of all the counterfeit goods that we see,” CBP Director Russo said.
“Counterfeit goods are a direct link to terrorist organizations,” said Russo.
When CBP was asked for evidence linking counterfeits to terrorism in the U.S., they cited the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center as an example. Additionally, they asserted that “other terrorist organizations have engaged in the sale of counterfeit goods and stolen cultural artifacts to help fund their organization.”
Terrorists responsible for the 2015 terror attack in France on employees of the magazine Charlie Hebdo financed their weapons partly by selling fake Nike sneakers, according to authorities.
The department declined to provide specifics when Impact x Nightline asked for evidence linking counterfeits to terrorism in the United States.
“I would say to people who are thinking, ‘well, I’m just buying a purse,’ it’s still the same issue,” Marc Miller, senior vice president of the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition, told ABC News. “One, it’s a crime. Two, it’s bad for the economy. But three, they’re also giving their financial information to organized crime.”
“Counterfeiting is a major problem throughout the United States,” said Michael Alfonso, who heads the division investigating large-scale counterfeiting networks for Homeland Security Investigations in New York. “Our law enforcement task force looks at a lot of different factors. We look at the scope of the organization. Are they importing? Are they distributing? Where are they importing from? Where’s there money moving from? And that’s how we scale our investigations.”
This photograph taken Feb. 6, 2024 shows a laboratory technician monitoring the progress of lab-grown diamond seeds at Greenlab Diamonds manufacturing firm on the outskirts of Surat. (Sam Panthaky/AFP via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The natural diamond industry has been fueled by a glittering marketing strategy for decades, but is the sustainability of modern, lab-grown diamonds as clear-cut as consumers believe?
Since De Beers Group’s 1940s “a diamond is forever” advertising campaign, dubbed by Advertising Age as the “slogan of the 20th century” in 1999, the natural diamond industry exploded into a multi-billion-dollar industry and cemented itself into modern culture.
“Diamonds are very ingrained in our culture,” Paul Zimnisky, a leading diamond industry analyst, told ABC News. “I think, as humans, we just desire these rare, precious gemstones and metals. It’s not practical, but it makes us feel good.”
In 2022, the global natural diamond market was valued at $100.4 billion and is projected to reach $155.5 billion by 2032, according to Allied Market Research.
However, the natural, mined diamond industry has been disrupted by a just as shiny and substantially less expensive competitor — lab-grown diamonds.
General Electric first produced lab-grown diamonds in 1954, according to the International Gem Society (IGS), using a high-pressure belt press to subject small seed crystals to temperatures of 2,912 Fahrenheit and atmospheric pressures of 100,000 atm.
Over the next several decades, researchers in the United States, China and Russia adopted varied methods of the initial GE patent to create lab-grown diamonds that exceed mined, natural diamonds in carat size, color and clarity, according to IGS.
Demand for lab-grown diamonds has increased every year but gained mainstream attention in 2017, according to Zimnisky.
“Production has just absolutely skyrocketed,” Zimnisky said. “The production technologies in the production capacity have rapidly advanced in just the last three, four years. And because of that, the cost of production is dropped, and the cost to the consumer has dropped.”
To the naked eye, lab-grown diamonds are identical to their mined counterparts but cost 40% to 50% less. A one-carat lab-grown diamond costs about $1,200, depending on quality, while a similar natural diamond can cost $4,200, according to The Diamond Pro.
In 2022, the global lab-grown diamonds market was valued at $24 billion and is projected to reach $59.2 billion by 2032, according to Allied Market Research.
How are lab-grown diamonds made?
Lab-grown diamonds share identical chemical and physical properties with natural diamonds, Dr. Ulrika D’Haenens-Johansson, senior manager of Diamond Research at the Gemological Institute of America, told ABC News, the difference is the origin in which they were made: In a lab vs. being mined after forming 150 miles below the Earth’s surface.
“Laboratory-grown diamonds have the same composition and crystal structure as natural diamonds, resulting in essentially the same physical, chemical and optical properties,” D’Haenens-Johansson said. “While laboratory-grown and natural diamonds may appear identical to the naked eye, they fundamentally differ in several ways: their age, the way that they grew, and the environment in which they formed.”
Lab-grown diamonds mimic the conditions natural diamonds are formed in, where carbon is compressed due to extreme temperatures and pressures.
The manufactured stones are created in two ways: through high pressure/high temperature (HPHT) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes, according to IGS.
Both HPHT and CVD lab-grown diamond productions require recreating temperatures over 1,472 Fahrenheit and atmospheric pressures up to 70,000 atm, according to IGS.
Are lab-grown diamonds sustainable?
The variation in the production of lab-grown diamonds is where the sustainability of the man-made product comes into question, according to Zimnisky, who notes, “Man-made diamonds require an enormous amount of energy.”
“You could go to a producer that’s using coal-fired, grid power, or a producer that’s using hydropower or solar power,” Zimnisky said. “Obviously, the environmental impact is going to be different depending on the source of energy.”
The production of laboratory-grown diamonds is an energy-intensive process, according to D’Haenens-Johansson, who notes, many — if not most — lab-grown diamond producers use electricity from fossil fuels such as coal.
Additionally, D’Haenens-Johansson explained that the raw materials that are used for lab-grown diamond growth, such as methane gas and graphite are “generally intrinsically tied to mining processes.”
On average, producing one polished carat of lab-grown diamond releases approximately 511 kg of greenhouse gases, according to IGS.
Amid the lab-grown diamond industry boom, China and India have risen as the top-producing and exporting countries, relying largely on coal to produce lab-grown diamonds, according to the Natural Diamond Council.
Over 60% of lab-grown diamonds are produced in China and India where 63% and respectively 74% of grid electricity results from coal, the council said in its 2023 analytical report.
“India and China right now are by far the largest producers of the man-made diamond,” Zimnisky said. “I expect them to continue to be the largest producers.”
In 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warned eight jewelry marketers that some of their online advertisements of jewelry made with lab-grown diamonds “may deceive consumers,” in violation of the 2018 FTC Act — updated Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries.
According to the FTC press release, “the companies in question advertised their jewelry as ‘eco-friendly,’ ‘eco-conscious,’ or ‘sustainable,’ and that such terms can be interpreted to imply certain specific environmental benefits.”
The FTC “admonished” the companies, saying it’s “highly unlikely that they can substantiate all reasonable interpretations of these claims,” according to the release.
Environmental and ethical impact of mined diamonds
Mined diamonds are collected through open-pit, underground and marine mining, which can disrupt ecosystems and release carbon and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, according to IGS.
Clean Origin compares the environmental footprint between mined and lab-grown diamonds, claiming one carat of mined diamond equates to nearly 100 square feet of disturbed land and nearly 6,000 pounds of mineral waste.
Meanwhile, one carat of lab-grown diamond disrupts just 0.07 square feet of land and results in 1 pound of mineral waste, according to Clean Origin.
Diamond mines are also dangerous for workers, with the mines being vulnerable to collapse and explosions, according to Clean Origin, which notes increased cancer risk, hearing loss, lung problems and other health issues are associated with diamond mining.
The term “blood diamonds,” also known as conflict diamonds, originated in the African countries Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone in the 1990s, according to Britannica.
Rebel groups used forced labor in lucrative diamond mining war zones to finance armed conflicts, which led to widespread human rights abuse, according to Britannica.
In 2003, the Kimberly Process was enacted to stop the illegal trade of conflict diamonds and protect the legitimate diamond trade, according to Britannica, which notes the agreement involves 49 participating countries including the European Union.
Why brands and consumers believe in lab-grown diamonds
Alexander Weindling, a third-generation diamond jeweler and CEO of Clean Origin, a completely lab-grown diamond company, told ABC News the ethos and affordability of lab-grown diamonds motivate his business.
Weindlings says a one-carat mined diamond can retail for $4,000 or $5,000, while Clean Origin offers what appears to be an identical stone for under $1,000.
However, regarding the sustainability and environmental effect of the industry, Weindling was careful to dub lab-grown diamonds “green-ish.”
“How many greenish alternatives are less expensive than the old technology they’re displacing?” Weindling asked. “A Tesla costs more than a Ford, and an organic apple costs more than a Costco apple.”
“So we have, what I believe to be, if not a more sustainable than a far less disruptive product on so many levels. And it’s less expensive,” Weindling said, adding, “It’s a win-win.”
Melissa Jawaharlal, the co-owner of STEM Center USA and bride-to-be in Southern California, told ABC News choosing an engagement ring with less ethical and environmental impact was important to her.
“We all make a footprint, and I know every one of my choices has implications,” Jawaharlal said. “Choosing a lab-grown diamond was a way to still have that sparkle, have that symbol of love — but do it in a way that wasn’t going to feel ethically compromising.”
In terms of “eco-friendly” and “sustainable” marketing, Jawaharlal believes “clarity and transparency in marketing is always so important.”
“If it’s not done that way, it’s just going to hurt the industry more later on,” she added.
Looking to the future of the lab-grown diamond industry, Weindling believes that advances in sustainability are on the horizon, but in the meantime, “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
Corporate America took notice four years ago when Larry Fink, CEO of investment giant BlackRock, declared climate change a top concern. “Climate risk is investment risk,” Fink wrote in an annual letter popular in C-suites.
His latest letter, released last month, spans well over 100 paragraphs before the first mention of “climate.” Whereas Fink mentioned “climate” a total of 29 times in the 2020 letter, he wrote it just four times in the missive last month.
The shift in Fink’s letters has coincided with an apparent wider chill of momentum behind climate action among many of the world’s largest companies, which have faced a conservative backlash against sustainable business practices derided as “woke capitalism,” experts told ABC News.
Many firms have struggled to follow through on ambitious, years-old climate pledges, in part due to high interest rates that make funding more expensive, the experts added, noting that some environmentally conscious companies have bucked the trend.
“BlackRock is still considering climate risk but boy has their message changed,” Mindy Lubber, chief executive of environmental advocacy group Ceres, which examines corporate conduct, told ABC News.
“The pushback has been fierce and severe, and we’re seeing things slow down,” Lubber added.
BlackRock did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
In a statement on its website, BlackRock says a worldwide transition to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 would “benefit the global economy and our clients in aggregate.” In turn, BlackRock encourages clients to develop “robust transition plans” by 2030, the statement adds, noting the limitations of BlackRock’s role as an asset manager.
“BlackRock’s role in the transition is as a fiduciary to our clients,” the statement says. “Our role is to help them navigate investment risks and opportunities, not to engineer a specific decarbonization outcome in the real economy.”
A little over half of the world’s largest 2,000 companies have adopted pledges to achieve net-zero carbon emissions, according to data from research firm Net Zero Tracker reviewed by ABC News. Net zero marks the point at which a given firm offsets its emissions by removing the same amount of carbon from the atmosphere.
The number of companies with net-zero pledges has jumped 40% over the past 16 months, the data showed. However, the vast majority of the company pledges lack credibility, Net Zero said, noting that only one out of every 20 commitments meets United Nations guidelines for what constitutes a quality pledge.
To meet the U.N. threshold for a quality pledge, a company must adopt a plan to address all forms of carbon emissions, present intermediate goals for emissions cuts by 2030 and align its government lobbying with the objective of net zero, among other criteria.
“There is unequivocally a massive lack in the quality of these plans,” John Lang, the project lead at Net Zero Tracker, told ABC News. “We just haven’t seen momentum or movement on that.”
“It’s easy to set a target,” Lang said. “It’s much harder to create a robust plan to meet that target.”
Dave White, director of the Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation at Arizona State University, said the evidence of major companies fulfilling climate pledges is “mixed at best.”
“We’ve seen important progress but many of these companies are realizing they’re meeting only a small fraction of the aspirational goals they’ve made,” White said.
Experts who spoke with ABC News attributed the corporate difficulties to a surge of conservative criticism over sustainable business practices as well as high interest rates, which make it more costly for companies to pursue capital-intensive climate initiatives.
Conservatives have directed much of their ire at environmental, social and governance investing, or ESG, a type of investing that takes into account non-financial information about a company, such as its climate impact and staff diversity.
Prominent Republican politicians, such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, have assailed ESG as a portfolio strategy that prioritizes liberal goals over investor returns. Eighteen states have adopted anti-ESG legislation — and all but one features a Republican governor, law firm K&L Gates found in July.
“When it comes to things like these Wall Street banks, what they’re doing to try to impose an agenda is something that’s very, very troubling,” DeSantis said last May upon signing a law that prohibits state officials from investing state money to further ESG goals.
Some on the left have questioned the rigor of ESG funds, warning that they establish insufficient standards for companies seeking to qualify.
ESG investing, meanwhile, has sharply declined. Funds worldwide categorized as “responsible investing” received $68 billion of net new deposits in 2023 through November, according to data from financial firm LSEG Lipper. That amount had fallen dramatically from $158 billion for all of 2022 and $558 billion for all of 2021.
The backlash from conservatives, White said, has hampered corporate conduct beyond ESG, including carbon emissions commitments.
“The politicization of this area in some cases is providing cover for corporations to backslide on their commitments,” White said.
To be sure, some companies have continued to achieve progress toward achieving net-zero emissions, some experts said, noting that the recent hiccup in climate action owes more to the scale of the task than the reluctance of the corporations.
“The transition to a carbon neutral economy that we’re experiencing is really a transition on the scale of the great industrial revolution,” George Georgiev, a professor at Emory University School of Law, told ABC News.
“I don’t think it’s a retrenchment — it’s more of a professionalization of the function within companies and them being more careful,” he added. “We’re probably not moving fast enough but that doesn’t mean we can’t adjust course.”
