The heartbeat of GSS
DOMOINA RANJATOELINA, MBA, FGA
CEO & Founder
Domoina is originally from the island of Madagascar and lived in France, South Africa, and now calls Vancouver, BC Canada her home. As a Malagasy-Canadian BIPOC female social entrepreneur, she has always been passionate about jewerly, travels, nature and cultures, which led her to advocate for sustainable practices in the mining sector in 2019 when she won the “Inspire! Marketing Coloured Gemstones” competition prize held in Nairobi, Kenya. The pilot project phase allowed her to collaborate with amazing women in Madagascar; unfortunately, the endeavour had to be on standby during the Covid-19 pandemic. Domoina's original academic background is in Gemology (FGA), Diamond Grading (HRD), and Lapidary (GIA), and has gained progressive experiences and skills from various industries including industrial mining, business, research and tourism. After graduating with an MBA, a burnout and going through personal life events, she took a 360 degree turn to start designing her own jewelry line and curating ethical products from around the world. She joined the Maple Ridge Lapidary Club (MRLC), where she contributes with her skills and passion with other rock and crystals lovers. More recently, she also took part of the G20 Young Entrepreneurs Alliance (YEA) 2024 summit in Goiania, Brazil to represent Canadian entrepreneurs.
Domoina's vision and mantra are fuelled by their values, hopes, and positive aspirations for future generations and the planet. Nelson Mandela once said: “We can change the world and make it a better place. It is in our hands to make a difference”.
Our GSS tribe
Our team and collaborators has been through a lot of changes throughout the years, due to other commitments and responsibilities, and really just life! We are constantly networking with people in the industry and always looking for projects, opportunities and people passionate like we are about sustainable mining and thriving local communities throughout the world. So feel free to reach out to us!
HERIZO HARIMALALA TSIVERISOA | Quality Assurance Consultant
Holding a Degree in Geology and Development, Zo has 16 years of experience in Madagascar and in other African countries as a trainer in added value and development on gemstones. Zo plays a crucial role in the GSS project, because she is an expert in gemstones quality that come from local communities we work with. Her solid experience in regional and global cooperation with women in the mining sector, her achievements in the field of Gemology training, her ethical values, and passion for coloured gemstones have led him to join our team.
EULALIE HARISOA TANTELINIONY | Local Community Senior Advisor
Environmental management professional with specialized experience in the mining and natural resources sector. Eulalie’s passion and role focuses on empowering marginalised communities, especially women and vulnerable groups by delivering community-based structures leading to a self-sufficient local organization. Her particular assets are stakeholder liaison, and community capacity building in environmental and social issues relating to vulnerable communities in extractive industries. She has experience in strengthening local government and civil societies to harmonize extractive industries with sustainable development. She has also been involved for years in empowerment projects of migrant miners in gemstone mining in the south west of Madagascar (Sakaraha and Ilakaka), the biggest sapphire mining sites in Madagascar.
KANTO MARIELLA ANDRIANINA | Project & Marketing Coordinator
Kanto studied political sciences and had the opportunity to be part of the Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) in South Africa in 2018, in the public management track. Kanto’s passions lie in arts and culture, leading her to found an association named Tamihako in 2018, a cultural association that promotes education, art, and Malagasy traditional games.
Collaborators, partners & acknowledgments
We are grateful for the organizations (below) which initially organized the Inspire! Marketing Coloured Gemstones pitch competition in 2019 in Narirobi, Kenya. We would also like to thank the Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Mines of Madagascar and other associations, public, private sector, and individuals who have been participating and collaborating in this adventure with us, without whom this endeavour would not have come to life. Even though we did not list all of them here, we will share their stories through Gondwanna's social media and upcoming newsletter, so stay tuned! We dedicate this project to our families, our Malagasy Community, Friends on rest of the African continent and the Global Coloured Gemstones Community.
Contact
We are always looking for new and exciting opportunities. Let's connect!
+1 (778) 257 8951 (Canada)