A CLOSER LOOK
Our Trash is Becoming Our Treasure By Joya Elmore P ’36
“I think composting at Wellington is a way of giving back to the environment that has given us so much. And there is no food wasted. I think composting is great!” HANK MCGINNIS ’30
DIRECTOR OF GARDENS FOR ENVIRONMENT-BASED LEARNING
My parents met in Ecuador, where my dad was building compostable latrines in the Peace Corps. I guess you could say sustainability and composting have always been part of me. I grew up in geodesic domes on a small farm just outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. My parents were always ahead of their time, doing things before they became popular or mainstream: growing food, composting food waste, making sourdough bread, eating vegan, etc. They taught me the importance of food and its connectedness to all things – whether you want to connect back to the earth or with people over a meal, food has real power. Of course, as their child, I had to rebel a bit and explore my own path, though it led me back to these habits of living sustainably. So, it was fortuitous that when I decided to begin my graduate work in education, I found a program that offered an M.Ed. in EnvironmentBased Learning. With my background in elementary education, I decided to focus my work on schoolyard gardens. 16
THE JAG • SPRING 2022
I put my skills to work in Virginia and Alabama, working at both independent and public schools and nonprofits, before moving to Columbus in 2016. The minute I finished my interview at Wellington, I told my husband, “I found my place. I found my people.” Over the last six years, I have had students call me “the plant lady,” “the garden teacher,” or “the smoothie teacher” as my whole title is quite a mouthful – Director of Gardens for EnvironmentBased Learning. Wellington has been an incredible place for me to expand my work beyond gardening into nutrition and sustainability development. I am so grateful we can connect with this community over food, even food waste. Right now we are composting food waste as part of this year’s composting initiative. Every day, millions of pounds of food go to landfills in the U.S. By composting our food waste, we are not only reducing the amount of trash that goes to landfills but we are creating opportunities to help replenish our soils. Compost, or “black gold,” is a
crucial element added to farmland and gardens to nourish the soil for healthy plant growth. At Wellington, we already use real plates, silverware, and cups. As part of our sustainability initiative this year, composting was easily the next step in our commitment to living more sustainably and modeling positive, sustainable habits for our students. We partnered with Compost Clubhouse, a local nonprofit organization that empowers kids to educate their community about the importance of diverting food waste from landfills. By working with a company that has a facility to “heat up” food waste, they can compost more than we could do ourselves. They can PICTURED Compost bin in the Thomas Family Dining Room