Title of Research Project: “Oakes College Composting: A Student-Leg Community Composting Model to Help UCs Reach Zero-Waste Goals”
Summary:
Food waste composting service for Oakes College at UCSC; compost is intended for use as a soil amendment to produce food within the Oakes Garden, to test and optimize the model of a local, multi-source food waste composting system, educating community members on their
waste’s potential, and pursuing the expansion of similar composting models to other
areas of campus and other UCs.
Frontier Fellow 2023-2024:
Gabriel Schiering
Oakes College Composting: A Student-Led Community Composting Model to Help UCs Reach Zero-Waste Goals
This Frontier Fellows Project aims to test and optimize the model of a local, multi-source food waste composting system, educate community members on their waste’s potential, and pursue the expansion of similar composting models to other
areas of campus and other UCs. This project is supported by Dr. Alexie Leauthaud and Dr. Elliott Campbell, and builds upon their continuing work around the integration of waste management, water harvesting, and food production systems.
In Spring, Summer, and Fall (2023), data will be collected regarding the magnitude of waste diversion from the Oakes College of UCSC as well as the quantity and quality of final-product compost and compost teas. The project will explore different methods of food-waste composting and evaluate different practices in the non-industrial, aerobic-pile context.
Gabriel is a 4th-year undergraduate at the University of California, Santa Cruz majoring in Business Management Economics. Also minoring in Sustainability Studies, Gabriel’s
interests lie at the intersection of ecological regeneration and economic prosperity. As a university resident and manager of a campus garden, Gabriel observed the necessities for both organic soil fertility and effective waste management that underscore this project. Inspired by the triple bottom line approach to sustainability, Gabriel hopes to merge notions of social justice, environmental protection, and tangible economic
progress in order to progress the movement towards a more just and equitable future.
Outreach and student experiential education will be pursued via events and workshops with the Oakes Gardening Club and the wider network of garden organizations on campus. In Winter and Spring (2024), a report will be assembled to present the findings of the model and recommendations for improvements to the UCSC Sustainability Office. Of great significance in the report are the resource and energy savings and greenhouse gas reductions generated from the model.
Additionally, a short, informational film will be created by Gabriel Schiering and fellow undergraduate Lydia Oltman to detail the operations of this compost program and to provide reflective testimonials from the system’s operators and users about their
experiences and conceptions of waste management. To receive maximum traction, the video will be published to Youtube and promoted on the Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok pages of student environmental organizations system-wide.
