Across the USA, events featuring food scrap diversion, organics recycling, and the use of compost as a solution to soil and water challenges worldwide will be the focus of celebration for International Compost Awareness Week, May 1-7, 2016.
As part of this event, compost facilities are inviting the community in to see their operations; non-profit organizations, recyclers and government agencies are holding homeowner composting demonstrations and movie screenings; Earth Day and other events are celebrating the natural microbial process of breaking down organic materials to become healthy soil amendments.
What will you do to celebrate compost awareness week? Purchase compost for a garden? Commit to composting at home? Find a local composter to either pickup or deliver food scraps from your home or place of work? There are many ways to get involved! In fact, there are a number of compost facilities and organics recyclers in New England – a web search will reveal a plethora of resources for those looking to get active in this local and sustainable green living trend.
Each year the US Composting Council membership votes on a celebratory poster to highlight the value of composting during this special week. This year’s commemorative design was designed by Yessi Budisari of West Indonesia. In her country, she heard growing concern for soil revitalization in the wake of a brush fire and smoke damage to the natural environment and designed the winning 2016 International Compost Awareness Week poster in response.
The poster, which is being distributed nationally for the celebration, focuses on a water conservation theme of Compost: The Soil and Water Connection. This year there were nearly 125 entries from all ages and across the world.
“Encouraging compost enthusiasts of all ages to think about compost as a soil and water resource is an effective way to educate people about the vital role it plays in the world’s food supply and health,” said Jeff Ziegenbein, chair of this year’s International Compost Awareness Week Committee and project manager for Inland Empire Regional Composting Authority in California.
Budisari, who is an artist, received a $500 prize for her poster’s selection.
International Compost Awareness Week is an annual multi-media publicity and education campaign that showcases composting and compost products, from backyards to large-scale composting facilities.
The U.S. Composting Council is a national organization dedicated to the development, expansion and promotion of the composting industry. Established in 1990, the USCC achieves this mission by supporting and performing compost-related research, promoting best management practices, establishing standards, educating professionals and the public about the benefits of composting and using finished compost. USCC members include compost producers, marketers, equipment manufacturers, product suppliers, academic institutions, public agencies, nonprofit groups and consulting/engineering firms.
The USCC is a non-profit 501(c) (6) organization that also directs the Composting Council Research and Education Foundation (CCREF), a 501(c) (3) charitable foundation, which administers public and private research and education activities.
Sponsored by Casella Organics, a manufacturer and wholesale distributor of earthlife compost, mulches and soils throughout the Northeast, and a proud U.S. Compost Council member.
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