Jameer Rush (Cafeteria Culture) on school composting pilot and Intro 369
Jameer Rush of Cafeteria Culture describes a pilot program where one compost coordinator diverted over a ton of food scraps from four schools, arguing Intro 369 would enable scalable local composting that reduces truck traffic and supports education and community engagement.
Good morning and thank you for the opportunity for me to testify.
My name is Jameer Rush and I work with Cafeteria Culture and I urge you to pass and show 369, which will require composting processing capacity in every borough of New York City.
This year, Caviteer Culture launched a pilot program that showed what local composting can accomplish.
I was hired as a compost cranter to collect cafeteria food scraps, educate students about composting, and transport those scraps to nearby community composting sites or on-site tumblers.
Since late October 2005, I have led students to divert more than one ton of food scraps from just four schools.
PS 46, PS 34, PS 15, and PS 30.
Thank you.
Every pound of compost we use in the school gardens we created at these schools comes from compost powers, locals, composting sites.
So instead of trucking our food waste across the city and burning our other communities, we turn these food scraps into a local resource that nourishes our gardens, supports environmental education, and strengthens our neighborhoods.
This is exactly why Intro 369 matters.
Local composting reduces unnecessary truck traffic, builds resilient neighborhood infrastructure, and creates opportunities for education, jobs, and community engagement.
Our pilot proves that integrating school cafeterias into neighborhood composting is practical, efficient, and scalable.
Just one compost coordinator, me, working with four diverted, whoa,
Just one compost coordinator working with four schools diverted more than a ton of organic matter in a matter of months.
Imagine how every school in every borough could achieve.
Whoa.
Imagine what every school in every borough could achieve with the right infrastructure.
We ask you to please pass Intro 369 and invest in a composting system.
That keeps resources where they are generated and benefits every New York City community.
Thank you.
Thank you for your testimony.
Whoa.
Buzz it, you know.