Illinois to kick off International Compost Awareness Week: How to celebrate
A wine tasting, a bookmark contest and an alpaca farm tour. There’s one thing connecting these upcoming suburban events: compost.
Starting Sunday, the Illinois Food Scrap and Composting Coalition will kick off International Compost Awareness Week with nearly 60 live events and two virtual ones. With the programming ranging from backyard composting demonstrations to sustainable brewery tours, organizers say visitors will have the opportunity to see, smell and touch compost at almost every one of the events.
Facilitated each year by the Compost Research and Education Foundation, the week is a global education initiative of the compost industry to raise awareness of the benefits of composting organics. But that’s not all that’s being celebrated, said Merleanne Rampale, chair of Illinois’ programming this year.
“This is International Compost Awareness Week, but we're not just talking about compost and composting,” Rampale said. “We're talking about food waste diversion and food waste prevention, whether that's in our own homes, restaurants, government entities. We're talking about conservation, water, plant care, taking care of this earth. We're talking about healthy soils, we're talking about healthy foods, feeding people, hunger, climate — and it's all wound up in one big conversation. I say it's International Compost Awareness Week, but we're talking about all of those interrelated topics, issues and concerns.“
Rampale, who is education director at the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County, added that this year’s theme highlights compost as “nature’s climate champion.”
That’s because when food scraps decompose in the oxygen-free environment of a landfill, they can’t properly decompose. Instead, it produces significant amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas that holds more than 25 times more warming power than carbon dioxide.
As a result, landfill methane is a major contributor to climate change. This is especially true in Illinois, which was recently ranked eighth in the country for highest methane emissions from landfills.
“Between diverting food waste from landfills and cutting down on the amount of food we waste, I truly believe composting for us as individuals, as residents of this planet, is probably one of the best things we can do to address the environmental concerns that we have today — and possibly reverse some of the things that are happening,” Rampale said.
While the majority of events will happen in-person Sunday, May 5, and Sunday, May 11, several libraries will be displaying books and resources about composting, sustainability and the environment throughout the week.
There will also be two virtual events: a legislative lunch and learn Wednesday afternoon and a compost cafe full of stories, songs and other performances Thursday evening.
“We’re trying to reach people of all ages: young people, adults, our seniors,” Rample said. “There may be people who live in urban areas and maybe they’re not familiar with composting. Getting them to a garden or a fun event is another way of bringing people in and providing some resources and opportunities to learn a little bit about why this is so important to not only our local community but to the planet.”
A full list of events, organized by date and county, can be found at illinoiscomposts.org/icaw-2024.
• Jenny Whidden, jwhidden@dailyherald.com, is a climate change and environment writer working with the Daily Herald through a partnership with Report For America supported by The Nature Conservancy. To help support her work with a tax-deductible donation, see dailyherald.com/rfa.