# Environment Variables

Environment variables are dynamic values that are **set outside** of the main program and are used by various processes running on the SDK. These variables contain information about the system environment, such as the `SHIMOKU_TOKEN`, the `UNIVERSE_ID` or the `WORKSPACE_ID`, that are **specific** **for every user** and **must not be shared**. 

Using a `.env` file, the values of the variables can be stored, and using a `.gitignore` file, the git processes will ignore them, thus will not publish them.

***

When creating a project in the SDK you will encounter a code similar to this:

<pre class="language-python" data-title="main.py"><code class="lang-python"><strong>from os import getenv
</strong>from shimoku import Client
from dotenv import load_dotenv

load_dotenv()

access_token = getenv('SHIMOKU_TOKEN')
universe_id: str = getenv('UNIVERSE_ID')
workspace_id: str = getenv('WORKSPACE_ID')

//[...]
</code></pre>

The `getenv()` function returns the value of the variable stored in the `.env` file, indicated in the parameters:

{% code title=".env" %}

```makefile
SHIMOKU_TOKEN=your_access_token_here
UNIVERSE_ID=your_universe_id_here
WORKSPACE_ID=your_workspace_id_here
```

{% endcode %}

To access these credentials, log into your account on [Shimoku.io](https://shimoku.io/), click on the top-right corner **User Icon** and then on **Settings > Information For Developers**.

{% hint style="info" %}
If you do not have an account, check [Shimoku Cloud](/dev/cloud-and-community/shimoku-cloud.md)
{% endhint %}

<figure><img src="/files/E3V3M61xyGp1dJtdKby7" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Finally, to ensure that none of this values can be published when using git tools, create a `.gitignore` file and add the `.env` file:

{% code title=".gitignore" %}

```gitignore
# Ignore files containing sensitive environment variables
.env

# Ignore any other files or directories as needed
#[...]
```

{% endcode %}


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