KEY RESULTS IN A NUTSHELL

Started and managing composting programs in 18 schools in the Montgomery County Public School System: Wayside ES, Jones Lane ES, Rock Creek Forest ES, Kensington Parkwood ES, Rolling Terrace ES, East Silver Spring ES, Dufief ES, James E. Daly ES, North Chevy Chase ES, Wooton HS, Oakland Terrace ES, Rachel Carson ES, Redland MS, Galway ES, Somerset ES, Westbrook ES, Hallie Wells MS, and Flower Hill ES
Managing and promoting food recovery programs in 140+ schools in Montgomery County
State level advocacy- passed SB124 composting grant, collected over 25K postcards in our postcard campaign
County level advocacy- passed composting facility bill (Bill 15-25), worked with community groups and local legislators
Presented at 30+ events and all of our schools, working on the education component of the food waste issue
>2 million pounds of food waste diverted or recovered by our organization

“Our students have fully embraced composting as part of our school culture at North Chevy Chase, it’s become second nature to them. They take pride in reducing waste and helping our planet, and it’s inspiring to see their enthusiasm spread from the cafeteria to the classroom.” - Principal Stacey Rogovoy, North Chevy Chase Elementary School

THE VISION

Dumping our half-eaten food scraps and even untouched food items in the trash for landfill and incineration is standard practice because it's an easy system - easy for our governments to manage, for businesses and municipalities to operate, and for everyday consumers to be complicit in. It's this last group - us - who can stop making it so easy for those in power to let over a billion tons of preventable, post-consumer food waste pollute our atmosphere every year, while approximately 1 in 7 children faces food insecurity in America. We ask you to stop ignoring the pang of guilt or helplessness you may feel when you let go of that old or unwanted sandwich, and instead help us make noise about a way to simultaneously tackle three issues that intersect on school grounds: food waste, hunger, and inequitable K-12 educational opportunity.

In each of our schools, we launch a program consisting of food-share tables, composting bins, educational curricula, and advocacy campaigns - tangibly reducing emissions while bringing lasting culture change to schools and the communities they touch.

THE DETAILS

Please look over this presentation for an overview about our work!