Santa Isla
Santa Isla makes jewelry in partnership with Embera Chami artisans of Colombia. The Embera Chami believe they weave spiritual intentions as a way to connect back to nature.
Established in 2013 by Jess Sanchez, Santa Isla is a love letter to Colombia. They celebrate the Embera’s weaving practice and respect its cultural significance, to create playful and intentional pieces that bring joy. A tiny piece of Colombia’s magic for you to hold.
20% of each sale goes back to the Embera Chami artisans.
The Embera Chami fight to keep their cultural legacy alive; Chami means “mountain,” and Embera means “people,” they are an indigenous group who practice the vital aspect of the power of the spirits which they trust to regulate life, health, livelihood and nature. With a long history of threats and displacement from their lands by armed groups of common criminals, drug traffickers and other conditions related to mining, poverty, malnutrition, disenfranchisement, and the general indifference of Colombian society, the Colombian Constitutional Court has declared the Embera at risk of extinction. (Proyecto Embera Wera, 2011)
When you wear Santa Isla you help the Embera culture breathe and expand. We work with a small group of Embera artisans, providing them with a source of income and an opportunity to showcase their art to the world.
