Conda Environment Setup Skill

Automatically configure conda environments for Claude Code workspaces using environment variables instead of shell activation.

Purpose

Conda environments cannot be activated through standard conda activate in Claude Code's bash sessions because each command runs in a new, non-interactive shell. This skill provides an alternative approach using workspace-level environment variables to make Python interpreters and packages available without shell activation.

When to Use

Invoke this skill when:

• User requests conda environment activation for a workspace
• Python commands fail due to missing packages or wrong interpreter
• User mentions "activate conda", "setup Python environment", or similar
• Workspace needs specific conda environment for development

Core Concept

Instead of activating conda environments with conda activate (which requires interactive shells), configure the workspace's .claude/settings.json to prioritize the conda environment's paths in the PATH environment variable.