Why is Enji Environmentally Conscious?
Many of you are aware that Enji encourages environmentally friendly practices such as recycling, reducing, and reusing. We also try to do our part to reduce our impact on the earth such as using lab created diamonds and only choosing ethically sourced stones. Although all our business practices take into consideration our customer’s needs and wants, there is more behind the reason Enji has chosen to be a greener company. Today we want to share our personal stories and reasons on why we believe that being environmentally conscious means.
Enji’s founder Niki Grandics believes her responsibility to the earth extends beyond her company and into her personal views. She believes that every living creature has a right to live in peace and that as humans, we shouldn’t have an egocentric point of view. This is one of her reasons why she is environmentally friendly, “we share this world with a lot of other beings and we should consider them too and how our decisions impact other living beings around us...” being able to care for the planet and its inhabitants not only reflects in her business, but also her personal life.
She is devoted to helping the environment and reducing her negative effects on the planet. She recycles whenever she can and avoids using disposable products such as cups, water bottles, and bags. She also stopped purchasing from fast fashion retailers following the Rana Plaza collapse in 2014 and choses to buy ethically. She purchases her clothing from brands that are transparent about sourcing and manufacturing to make sure her purchases align with her views. She also purchases from thrift stores and local stores that share her beliefs. Not only is Niki passionate about the environment, but also, it’s creatures.
A fun fact about Niki is that she is also a vegetarian and follows a (mostly) vegan diet. She believes that all the creatures on earth deserve to be free from cruelty and harm and shouldn’t end up as dinner.
There is another member of the Enji team who hasn’t been introduced formally yet.
Hilda Chang is the behind the scenes assistant to Enji. She works mostly on a computer, but can sometimes be spotted in the background of pictures and videos. Just like Niki, she believes in being environmentally conscious. Her passion for the environment started early in here college career when she attended an introductory geology course and learned about the earth and its processes. She realized that the earth will not sustain human life forever if humanity's rate of consumption and carelessness continues. She obtained a minor in geological science hoping to have enough knowledge to change the world before it was too late.
Although she is still new to the sustainable lifestyle and is slowly transitioning from “broke” college student, she still does what she can. One thing she does is making sure to recycle and reuse things in her home. One of her favorite items to reuse is old jeans. Hilda will keep jeans for over 5 years and when they get ripped or get worn out, she will make them into shorts and a tote bag. She keeps most of her items and tries to fix them herself since she learned how to sew from a young age. She also keeps old clothes as spare cleaning rags and makes reusable heating pads out of old socks. She believes in giving her items a second life rather than throwing them away.
Her ecofriendly way of thinking has continued to evolve to include animals. She abstains from eating most pork products, and makes sure to have at least one meatless day in her week. Although she is not a full-fledged vegetarian yet, she is taking the right steps to limit her meat consumption. She also is in the beginning stages of starting her own sustainable organic garden to reduce food and plastic waste.
The reason we wanted to share our personal stories with you today, is to show how Enji isn’t just another company. We strive to be your environmentally conscious friend and compassionate humans who change the world. Although the Enji team is small, we know that we are making a difference through our sustainable practices and are determined to stay true to our origins as we begin to expand. For this new year (2018) we pledge to continue our fight to bring sustainable practices to the jewelry industry and to never forget our origins. Follow our journey on social media as we continue to lead by example and help shape the world toward a more sustainable future.