Community composting in New York City is a connected system of education, infrastructure, outreach, and hands-on work that reaches neighborhoods, schools, gardens, buildings, and residents across the city. For fiscal year 2026, which goes through June 30, 2026, this work is made possible through funding from New York City Council Members.
Their investment supported composting at every level, from classrooms and community gardens to curbside composting outreach and large-scale composting systems, helping more New Yorkers to learn about composting and take part in it in their own communities. See all of the funded organizations, including Big Reuse, here.
Help us thank NYC City Council for funding impactful community composting programs and encourage them to continue this funding for fiscal year 2027, which begins on July 1, 2026!
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Individuals can support community composting by sending a quick thank-you email to their City Council Member through our email campaign, which takes just one minute to complete.
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Schools, gardens, nonprofits, and other community groups can also support this work by adding their organization’s name to a sign-on letter advocating for continued community composting funding.
- You can also email your City Council Member directly to share how Big Reuse’s composting programs have supported you, your organization, or your community. Find City Council contact information HERE
What City Council Funding Makes Possible for Big Reuse in fiscal year 2026
City Council funding supports the full scope of Big Reuse’s composting work. This includes compost education for New Yorkers of all ages, such as helping residents understand how compost works, what belongs in the curbside composting bin, and why composting matters for soil health, climate resilience, and cleaner neighborhoods - through community tabling events, Master Composter program, workshops, volunteer events, and building presentations.
Support for community composting and volunteers creates opportunities for residents to actively participate in turning food scraps into finished compost while strengthening local green spaces and neighborhood connections. Funding also makes it possible for our curbside composting outreach team to support residents and buildings with resources in multiple languages, working to increase participation in the city’s mandatory curbside composting program.
Funding makes youth programming possible, bringing hands-on compost education into schools, libraries, museums, and community spaces, so children and teens can build a meaningful connection to the environment through learning, curiosity, and play.
City Council investment helps Big Reuse install rat-resistant increased capacity composting systems at community gardens and urban farms, providing essential infrastructure for local composting. Big Reuse provides technical assistance for community gardens/urban farms staff, volunteers, and browns deliveries.
In addition, City Council funding supports large-scale composting systems, including the operation and expansion of two new composting sites opening in early 2026 that will increase Big Reuse’s capacity to process organic waste locally and sustainably.
What This Looks Like in Communities
One way this funding came to life was through youth compost education. Students across the city learned why sorting food scraps matters and how compost supports healthy soil and a cleaner environment. In classrooms, composting became something tangible and exciting. When students met the worms that help break down food waste, they often gave them names, turning composting into something personal and meaningful.
Community composting and volunteer programs also played an important role. At sites like Randall’s Island, volunteers - including high school students earning community service hours and youth participating through clubs and group programs - helped maintain compost systems and build new infrastructure. In one case, students worked together to help build one of the sites’ first compost windrows, gaining hands-on experience while contributing to a long term community resource. These moments are just a small glimpse into the many ways City Council funding supports composting in neighborhoods throughout New York City.
Why City Council Funding Matters
None of this work would exist at its current scale without City Council funding. Compost education, youth programming, bin installations, outreach, volunteer coordination, and large scale composting systems all require sustained investment and staffing. City Council funding helps ensure that community composting is not limited to a few neighborhoods, but reaches communities across the city. It expands access to compost education, helps young people see themselves as environmental leaders, and supports local systems that turn food scraps into compost instead of landfill waste.
Written by NYSERDA Fellow Tatiana Guerra