NYS Compost Awareness Week 2024
Sunday, May 5th - Saturday, May 11th, 2024
COMPOST…Nature’s Climate Champion!
NYS Compost Awareness Week occurs each year during the first full week of May. Join NYSAR3 and communities across the State for this annual celebration that promotes International Compost Awareness Week (ICAW), an initiative by the Compost Research and Education Foundation (CREF) that strives to raise public awareness about the many benefits of composting and how to make and use compost to regenerate soils.
Learn more about how to celebrate Compost Awareness Week with the How to Celebrate ICAW Manual.
Local Educational Events
Explore the map below to find upcoming compost-related events near you. Click on an event of interest to view more information including the date, time, location, and more.
Do you know of events happening in your region? Submit information to NYSAR3's Organics Council Member, Morgan Ingraham, at meingrah@syr.edu to be considered for inclusion on this map.
Online webinar events:
Composting Webinar
Organizations:
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County (CCE Jefferson)
Development Authority of the North Country (DANC)
Date: Wednesday, May 22 2024
Where: Zoom
When: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Host: Cierra LaDorothy Williams - Horticulture and Natural Resources Educator – CCE Jefferson County
Contact: Cierra Williams at 315-788-8450 x 222, clw247@cornell.edu or John Phelps at 315-661-3233, jphelps@danc.org
To register: https://reg.cce.cornell.edu/Composting_222
Compost Bin Sales
- Pre-order by April 19, 2024: Capital District Compost Bin & Rain Barrel Sale
- Pre-order by May 17, 2024: Ulster County Compost Bin & Rain Barrel Sale
- Pre-order by June 16, 2024: Orange County Compost Bin & Rain Barrel Sale
International Compost Awareness Week Social Media Toolkit
Are you looking to post social media for NYS Compost Awareness Week, but don't have the time to create it? The ICAW Committee has created a simple “plug and play” 2024 social media campaign toolkit (link below) that you can easily copy and paste into your social media feeds, share through emails, or print to distribute at planned events. The posts are based on this year's theme: COMPOST...Nature's Climate Champion!
Click HERE to access the ICAW Social Media Toolkit.
Be sure to tag #ICAW2024, #compost, #NYSCompostAwarenessWeek
Food Scraps Drop-Off Sites & Collection Services
If you are unable to compost at home, check out the map below to see if there are food scraps drop-off programs or collection services near you.
If you are interested in helping your community to collect and compost more food scraps, consider becoming a "Soil Maker" or a "Soil Supporter" by checking out MakeSoil.
Home Composting Resources
Are you interested in learning how to compost at home or sharing educational composting resources with others? Explore the links below:
- NYS Department of Environmental Conservation:
"Easy Home Composting!" Poster - Cornell Waste Management Institute:
"Composting at Home" Guide - Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County:
"Quick-Start Guide to Compost" - US Environmental Protection Agency:
"Composting At Home" Web Page - Institute for Local Self-Reliance:
"Home Composting Basics"
Compost Videos & Music
- Kiss the Ground (Video):
"The Compost Story" - Nate & Hila (Music Video):
"Compost (feat. DiorNoel) - A Portrait of the NYC Composting Community" - DEC/Town of Bethlehem/FoodSraps360 (Facebook Video):
The Town of Bethlehem's Food Scraps Composting Facility - Department of Environmental Conservation (Facebook Video):
Troubleshooting Your Compost Pile with DEC's Gary Feinland - Rot N' Roll (Music Album):
"Rot'n'Roll"
NYS CAW Local Leaders
Are you interested in organizing a compost-related event for your community or helping to promote NYS Compost Awareness Week? If so, consider joining a network of NYS compost educators, community organizers, and local governments who are actively participating and supporting each other in this year's celebrations. To join, email NYSAR3's Organics Council Member, Morgan Ingraham, at meingrah@syr.edu.
NYS Compost Awareness Week is a collaborative effort between the NYS Association for Reduction, Reuse, and Recycling (NYSAR3), the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), and the Syracuse University Center for Sustainable Community Solutions (CSCS).