Eco Initiatives

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. At Shamans Market, we are always looking for ways to reduce our use of resources and reuse and recycle every step of the way.

Through our participation in the MIGreenPower renewable energy program, Shamans Market is directly supporting the development of new renewable energy projects in Michigan. Thus, supporting the development, construction, and ongoing maintenance/operation of our local wind and solar parks.

Our participation helps to put more clean energy onto the power grid. By making a commitment to go 100 percent renewable through the program, it reduces our carbon footprint associated with electricity use.

We reuse or recycle our cardboard, paper and packaging materials. Very little goes to waste. Many of the materials are reused in our packaging and shipping, and much of what is not, is recycled. 

When purchasing supplies we are conscience of finding eco-friendly, recycled or recyclable materials for our office, warehouse use, and packaging materials.

Whenever possible we use recycled or recyclable products for the products we package and ship. From plant based cello bags for some of our sage and incense products to peanuts that are biodegradable we constantly have an eye out for making our products and packaging earth friendly.

✓ In shipping our products to you here are some of the ways we keep our shipping eco-friendly:

✓ Use appropriate sized recyclable or recycled cardboard boxes and 100% recycled padded paper envelopes

✓ Purchase 100% recycled/recycleable kraft paper for package void fill

✓ Use Geami’s GreenWrap instead of bubble packaging and foam peanuts. Its benefits:

• 100% recyclable, biodegradable and compostable

• Easy for you to recycle in curbside recycling bins

• Made with raw materials from sustainably managed forests & producers

✓ Wrap our products in tissue paper instead of plastic when possible

✓ Print packing slips on at least 50% recycled paper

✓ Purchase only 100% plant based compostable peanuts

✓ Reuse: Paper, boxes and peanuts that we receive product in. This sometimes means you may receive petroleum based packaging. Although we never purchase it we do reuse it. So if you get petroleum based peanuts or bubble wrap you recycle it. Hint: UPS Stores will take your peanuts for you. Find my recycling options at: at www.earth911.com .

Shamans Market has teamed up with Camino Verde, a non-profit organization working to preserve the Peruvian Amazon. We are offering our customers the opportunity to offset greenhouse gases produced in shipping your order. Your $2 contribution will go to planting and maintaining endangered jungle hardwood trees that absorb carbon dioxide while protecting biodiversity and to preserving virgin rainforest .

The process of collecting carbon in forests, soils, geological formations and other carbon “sinks” is called carbon sequestration. Native trees and forests help fight climate change as part of their natural processes. As they grow, trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and convert it into oxygen.

Camino Verde (“the green path”) is a 501-c-3 non-profit organization whose work is based in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon. It is the primary mission of Camino Verde to plant trees and encourage others to do the same. Their programs and presence in several small communities in the Tambopata River basin have focused on promoting the planting and preservation of trees as a source of sustainable income and economic empowerment to small scale subsistence farmers. Migratory agriculture is the number one cause of deforestation in the Peruvian Amazon.

It is their vision to reduce the impact of human populations on wild forests through the improved economic opportunities provided by long-term perennial reforestation and agroforestry.

Camino Verde is committed to upholding the strictest standards of sustainability, integrity, transparency, and simplicity in order to realize our goals. It is our belief that the most powerful solutions are usually simple– and always direct. In the pursuit of “beyond sustainability,” the natural world is the inspiration and model for the solutions we create. Camino Verde at a glance:

✓ Over 10,000 trees planted, representing 250 species, as part of our Living Seed Bank

✓ 180 acres (75 hectares) of rainforest under Camino Verde ownership

✓ 1600 acres (640 hectares) more protected through our conservation partnerships

✓ Over 4500 trees planted with 20 partner farmers through our Basic Agroforestry project

For more information on Camino Verde and the great things they are doing, please visit: www.caminoverdeperu.org

Many of the products we sell are eco-friendly. You can easily spot these items by the green eco-friendly icon on the product page. What does eco-friendly mean? Eco-friendly literally means earth-friendly or not harmful to the environment. This term most commonly refers to products that contribute to green living, or practices that help conserve resources like water and energy. Eco-friendly products also prevent contributions to air, water and land pollution. You can engage in eco-friendly habits or practices by being more conscious of how you use resources.

Product Qualifications
Making a truly eco-friendly product keeps both environmental and human safety in mind. At a minimum, the product is non-toxic. Other eco-friendly attributes include the use of sustainably grown or raised ingredients, produced in ways that do not deplete the ecosystem. Organic ingredients or materials are grown without toxic pesticides or herbicides. Products with “made from recycled materials” contain glass, wood, metal or plastic reclaimed from waste products and made into something new. Biodegradable products break down through natural decomposition, which is less taxing on landfills and the ecosystem as a whole.

Green America certifies businesses that are committed to using business as a platform for social change. Since 1982, Green America has evaluated over 8,000 small businesses. Shamans Market is proud to be one of these companies.

They connect people to entrepreneurs building sustainable enterprises from the ground up and Main Street businesses that serve their communities.

Green America certifies businesses that are:

✓ Actively using their business as a tool for positive social change;

✓ Operating a “values-driven” enterprise according to principles of social justice AND environmental sustainability;

✓ Environmentally responsible in the way they source, manufacture, and market their products and run their operations and facilities;Socially equitable and committed to extraordinary practices that benefit workers, customers, communities, and the environment; and

✓ Accountable for their work by continually improving and tracking their progress, and operating with radical transparency in every facet of their business.