About BigKarma

Vision

BigKarma is a woman owned and operated, Sacramento based company on a mission to encourage conscious consumerism through altruism, art, and education.  We envision a zero-waste future which is only possible by harnessing our community of action-driven activists who are willing to stand up to greed and live in alignment with their values. There’s a lot of work cut out for all of us, but each action we take creates ripple effects on our cultural systems and environments. For example, choosing to buy used or recycled items reduces stress on virgin resources and sends a message to corporations that they need to improve their practices. By investing in sustainable, creative solutions to tackle the excessive waste in the cannabis industry, we are doing our best to improve not only this growing and impressionable industry, but our local communities and the planet as a whole.

The Issue

Our vision has since expanded, and our current project in the works is to create an upcycling collaboration with dispensaries. By working together, we will transform the cannabis industry’s potential for pollution into an opportunity to help our planet through supporting art and creative pursuits.

In 2019 we found ourselves knee deep in thousands of vape cartridges that were faulty and not usable nor recyclable. We got a first hand glimpse into the vast waste that is created by the cannabis industry and we knew we had to do something about it. 

Vape cartridges are specifically challenging to recycle because one cartridge can be made of dozens of smaller parts containing glass, metal, wires and batteries, which all need to be recycled separately. Batteries are hazardous e-waste that can be dangerous if sent to a recycling facility or the landfill.  Unfortunately these items are sold as “disposable” and even the most conscious consumers don’t have the patience to pry them apart and recycle each component individually.

Be a Part of the Solution

A few years ago, we attended a cannabis convention and spoke with a hardware company CEO about how wasteful and destructive cartridges were to the environment. Around that same time, Big Karma fell upon a surplus of faulty cartridges. We refused to accept that all of these cartridges would sit in landfill for decades. We decided to lean on our community and think outside the box. Rather than paying someone to destroy them and create more waste, we brought our vision to life by partnering with a local jewelry maker. We partnered with other artists and organizations and created an entire art installation out of the cartridges donated to us by the hardware company. It was here that Big Karma’s idea for a creative solution was born.

The necklaces are a representation of the power and responsibility that art has on the revolution. By supporting BigKarma you are not only saving these non-recyclable items from a lifetime in landfill, but supporting local artists and raising awareness about the larger issue at hand: potentially hazardous cannabis byproducts ending up in our waste-stream.  

BigKarma is proud that both the cartridges themselves and the packaging the necklaces are sold in are all made from upcycled cannabis waste. We encourage you to share the message about hazardous vape waste (and a necklace) with your friends and network

Read more about us in our feature in the Cannabis Business Times.