Composting and a Pep Talk

Pep Talk

I'm sure I'm not the only one who was bummed out by the recent blow-out over the Green City Initiative... so here's a thought to cheer us all up:

Yes, unfortunately, there are always going to be at least a few jerks in the world who are willfully ignorant and disrespectful...but there are also always going to be passionate, compassionate people out there striving to think outside the box and make this world a better place. Ultimately, all we can do is keep doing our best to be the second type of person and hang in there.

I'm proud of all of us.

That said, life goes on. And so I'd like to talk to all of you in internet-land about some of the (bacterial) life happening in our dorm room....

Composting

In case anyone doesn't know, compost is decomposed organic matter that can be used in the garden to give plants a nitrogen boost. Composting is great not only for the garden but also for a) physical well being (shoveling and turning piles of decomposing matter is a workout and it gets you outdoors!) and b) reduces the amount of waste going to landfill. Why throw it away when you can still put it to good use?

Soka will soon be sending all of its cafeteria wastes to a composting facility. However, Ranya and I have already gotten a jump start on that in our dorm room.

 We bought this metal tin at Good Will for $3, and we use it to compost the food wastes we generate in our own rooms. Each Sunday when we work in the garden, we bring our goodies to the garden to add to our compost piles or the vermiculture bin.

What we compost:
Tea bags (staples removed)
Yerba mate

Apple cores

Orange peels

Banana peels

Paper towels

Personally, it makes me feel better to know I'm wasting a little bit less, and I can put it to direct use in the garden. We grow bigger plants, eat, and then compost the wastes again!

And, no, it doesn't stink because there's a lid on it and we empty it out regularly.

The gift that keeps on giving!