Community composters continue to assert themselves as a growing and integral sector within the composting industry. At the COMPOST2025 Annual Conference and Tradeshow, hosted by the US Compost Council, their achievements, commitment, and creativity were recognized across a variety of awards.
Three members of ILSR’s Community Composter Coalition (CCC) – Nicholas Fox, Liz Turner, and Celestine Taieb – took the top three prizes in the Emerging Composter Challenge at COMPOST2025 Annual Conference and Tradeshow, hosted by the US Compost Council in Phoenix, AZ. The challenge highlighted creative solutions by composters aimed at advancing the compost industry. A panel of industry experts heard a round of presentations from participants and a final pitch session before selecting winners.
Nathan Rutz, whose worker-owner cooperative Rust Belt Riders partnered with ILSR to co-host the Cultivating Community Composting Forum in Cleveland this past year, received the H. Clark Gregory Award for his dedication to grassroots composting.
Another CCC member from Ohio, The Dayton Food Bank, was recognized as the Compost Manufacturer of the Year – Small Scale for starting the first commercial food waste composting facility in its region, and for using its finished compost to strengthen local food security.
ILSR congratulates all COMPOST2025 award winners! Community composting continues to be an exciting and innovative way to not only divert food scraps and other organics, but provide a multitude of other economic, social, and environmental benefits to communities. The three winning composing initiatives embody the multifaceted benefits that local composting brings to communities.
Nicholas Fox won the Emerging Composter Challenge first place prize. Nicholas is tackling the island’s dire need for locally produced, high-quality, organic soil amendments. With tourism and landscaping among the largest industries, the nation generates a significant volume of organic waste—all too often sent to landfills. Nicholas’s enterprise brings composting directly to residents and businesses, helping rejuvenate Bahamian agriculture through affordable, clean, and nutrient-rich soil products.
Liz won the Emerging Composter Challenge second place prize. Liz’s initiative brings curbside composting services to rural Eastern Oregon, complete with innovative integration of goats and chickens to reduce and process food scraps. Her education-forward approach also aims to engage youth and families, highlighting the simple yet impactful steps everyone can take toward a greener future in their own backyard.
Celestine won the Emerging Composter Challenge third place prize. Celestine’s company, Source Compost, offers an all-in-one solution — collection, transportation and cleaning — for businesses, towns and residents seeking to divert food waste from landfills. While navigating stringent regulatory barriers in Northern New Jersey, Celestine’s vision extends beyond hauling to eventually processing food waste locally. By reducing greenhouse gas emissions and turning food scraps into valuable compost, Source Compost aims to transform waste management across the region.
Nathan Rutz received the H. Clark Gregory Award for his dedication to grassroots composting initiatives. Nathan, has been a key member of the Ohio Organics Council (OHCC), bringing people together from across Ohio to celebrate compost, and is always there to help communities or regions just getting started with their own program. His efforts have brought communities together to embrace composting as a solution for environmental challenges. Nathan is proud of being part of an employee-owned company in Ohio, and he loves to educate people on the power of soil.
The Foodbank of Dayton, Ohio, was recognized as the Compost Manufacturer of the Year – Small Scale for its community composting facility. This facility is the first commercial food waste composting facility in the region and is also assisting the University of Dayton with their composting operations. By diverting food waste from local businesses and providing compost for community gardens, the Foodbank of Dayton facility exemplifies how composting can drive social and environmental benefits. The facility’s model highlights the powerful intersection of food security and sustainability.
ILSR’s Composting 101 Training Guide covers the fundamentals of community composting, including benefits of composting, building and managing a compost pile, and troubleshooting.… Read More
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Use this rubric to assess how rodent resistant a composting site is, whether it's your own site or a site you manage or oversee.