What are ethically sourced crystals?
Energies are shifting globally. As a collective we going through a time of powerful transformation which means more and more people across the world, are feeling a deep stirring and a deep calling to reconnect with Earth.
If you are reading this, you are one of those people. There is something in your core that is pulling you to remember your connection with the power of Mother Nature, and often this begins to manifest as being drawn to the healing power of crystals.
Crystals are a powerful gateway to learning how to connect to the energies both within and around us and that is a beautiful thing to remember. But, like anything that becomes popular in our modern culture, it quickly gets commercialised simply because there is money to be made from it.
This rise in this popularity of crystals can therefore be a double edged sword - both beautifully healing and connecting and awakening, yet destructive and unkind at the same time. Which means it is imperative that to continue our collective journey with crystals, that we source our new tools of transformation in the kindest, most responsible and ethical way possible.
There are a few factors to think about when sourcing crystals from the land;
What is happening to the land where the crystals are mined?
Who is mining the crystals and what are the conditions like?
Who is cutting, polishing and distributing the crystals?
How are the crystals being transported across the world?
Those are lot of very heavy, complex and difficult questions to answer as a person only just starting to explore the world of crystals! So I have broken it all down here for you in a transparent piece about where my crystals come from, so that you can purchase with a clear conscience and understanding of their story.
What is happening to the land where the crystals are mined?
I’d like to begin by stating that every single crystal in my collection can be traced back to the exact mine it came from.
This is because my suppliers (the people who purchase the crystals directly from the mines and ship them to the UK) are extremely diligent in who they source from. They regularly visit the locations personally, to spot check and make sure that the standards are being maintained.
It is important to know exactly where the crystals come from because there are a lot of illegal mines across the world which destroy huge swathes of habitat, cause alarming levels of water pollution and partake in child, slave or unfair labour.
By visiting in person, it also means that they can check out how the mines operate in terms of caring for the natural environment they are mining within. The suppliers assure me that they only work with small scale mines and/or hand dug sites to ensure the impact on the environment is as minimal as possible.
Who is mining the crystals and what are the conditions like?
Most of the crystals I source come directly from Brazilian and some Indian mines via my suppliers who go directly to the mines every few months to select the pieces they want to bring into the UK.
Whilst they are on site, they check what the workers conditions are like and I have seen video evidence of them doing this. Some of the things they look for include fair pay and quality health and safety measures.
After talking with my suppliers they also mentioned that they don’t haggle down their prices when purchasing from the site as this only leads to someone else paying for the lost money down the chain, whether that’s with unfair pay, equipment not being maintained or health and safety not being properly maintained. This is why you will find the prices of the crystals I sell a little on the higher side compared with others- because everyone, right from the source has been fairly paid and corners have not been cut.
Who is cutting, polishing and distributing the crystals?
This is an easier question to answer in certain countries and trickier in others. The sites that my supplier gets their crystals from in Brazil do all of this on site. They have machines that tumble larger pieces into tiny pieces and others which are hand polished into their unique shapes, by their workers.
Again I have seen video evidence of the health and safety equipment in place for the people doing this kind work on larger scale like this. Equipment including filtering machines to prevent workers from breathing in the mineral dust.
In other countries such as India it’s a little trickier to guarantee certain things because for some cultures stone polishing in smaller batches is very much a traditional family trade. The adults teach their children how to polish the stones in order for them to be able to sustain a livelihood for themselves and their families in future. It is a passing down of skills, rather than forced child labour but it is child labour nonetheless so I wanted to be transparent about this as some of the crystals have been sourced from these families.
From the lengths that my suppliers go to, to ensure safety and fairness for all involved, I am happy to trust that this is purely a cultural difference and a passing down of skills and is in no way forced child labour. I truly believe they would not endorse this.
How are the crystals being transported across the world?
The suppliers I work with only use ships as their method of transport rather than flying the crystals to the UK as it uses far less energy to transport via the water compared to flying.
Once they reach me, I only send your new crystals treasures to you in fully biodegradable packaging and I never use plastic. All of my packaging is done with paper, including biodegradable packing tape, recycled paper business cards (printed with toxin free ink) and hessian bags or tissue paper to wrap the crystals.
I hope this has answered all of your questions but if there is anything else you’d like to know, please do feel free to contact me. I am always happy to answer hello@wildasthemoon.co.uk and don't forget to check out the 'available' highlight on Instagram to see all pieces which are still looking for a home or the sets in the shop.
