February 20, 2015 – February 27, 2015

Catholic Leaders Update Statement on Conflict Minerals

In our weekly recap #84 (October 2014), we highlighted The International Cooperation for Development and Solidarity’s (CIDSE) statement on conflict minerals.

Ahead of the European Parliament Committee on International Trade’s (INTA) exchange of views on its draft report on responsible minerals sourcing, CIDSE updated its October 2014 statement on conflict minerals, which now has 125 church leader signatures.

In the updated statement, the church leaders say that they want the EU legislation to:

• Be mandatory in nature.

• Cover more than just importers into the EU.

• Include other natural resources such as copper and diamonds.

To view the updated February 2015 statement, please see the CIDSE press release.

H.C. Starck Announces That Its Tantalum Supply Chain is Conflict Free

Through a press release, dated March 2, 2015, H.C. Starck, a self-described leading manufacturer of technology metals and advanced ceramics, announced that its tantalum supply chain has achieved conflict-free status.

Andreas Meier, President and CEO of H.C. Starck stated, “We are proud of the re-certification because it proves the success of our sustainability efforts in procuring raw materials.”