Ep. 5 Trash Talking with Eco-Warriors - Meredith Danberg-Ficarelli, Common Ground Compost

Hey eco-warriors, welcome to episode 5 of Trash Talking. Today we talk with Meredith Danberg-Ficarelli of Common Ground Compost and Talk Trash City.

Thank you for listening to inspiring interviews with female Eco-Warriors from around the world. Here we learn about the journeys these women have been through and their tips for living a sustainable lifestyle.

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Meredith is extremely knowledgable about the waste problem here in New York City and is actively working to do something about it. I met Meredith at a NYSAR3 event where she gave a brief presentation on the issues NYC is facing in dealing with its waste problem. Once living in Beirut, Meredith has worked at the Lower East Side Ecology center and also started her own pitch competition for people to pitch ideas that can help reduce waste and create a more closed loop system.

Currently, over 90 percent of organic matter goes to landfill. Through bicycle-powered community compost pick ups, Meredith and her team are looking to change that. The most surprising thing I learned from Meredith during this conversation was the fact that NYC already has one of the largest compost programs in the nation - and we haven’t even touched zero waste yet.

Learning from Meredith the immense problem that lies ahead and hearing how passionate she still is about making a difference is incredibly inspiring. Listen to the end because Meredith actually catches me off guard and turns the tables on me during our convo!

Let’s get trash talking.

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What Meredith has achieved and her level of commitment to figuring out a solution to NYC’s trash problems fills me with awe. Like Meredith mentioned, there are dozens and dozens of compost sites located all around NYC.

How long do you think it takes a head of lettuce to decompose in a landfill? A week, a month, 6 months? The answer may actually completely shock you - 25 years. Organic matter can’t break down in an anaerobic environment devoid of the right conditions. Composting your fruit, veggie, and eggshells is just one small thing you can do to create a zero waste system, whether you live in a city that composts or not. Check out Common Ground Compost and connect with Meredith if you want to learn more about composting.

Tune in next time, eco-warriors. Stay green.