Building together︎ on purpose.
Chatting with community compost advocate, Kathryn.
Kathryn is a crew member at LB Community Compost. She contributes to mutual aid networks in Long Beach, prefers riding her bike, and likes reality shows. She finds joy in recreating value from waste materials. Kathryn and I sat down over some sharing of fries to discuss her recent experience building a 3-bin compost system that we will be testing soon.
Photos by Xinyu.
Interview & photo editing by Celeste.
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Why did we decide to build the 3-bin system? ︎
We want to see how it can work for community spaces, like neighborhoods and gardens. We can teach community organizations how to build and operate one. Also, give feedback to the city’s environmental departments on how it could work in parks, gardens, and recreational spaces.
Why do you think more community run 3-bin systems would be beneficial in Long Beach? ︎
It’s a version of composting that’s more accessible to people and it’s contained, so people don’t have to worry about smells and stuff. The idea of composting being more accessible for people to drop off and the opportunity for us to teach others how to run and maintain a 3-bin system excites me.
How did you first get interested in community building? ︎
I’ve alway felt like I’ve been a communal person. There’s a lot of beauty in working together and supporting each other. My sister is also my inspiration.
The first time I really got interested in actually building stuff was when I did a service year helping to build and repair houses. I really loved doing that and it felt satisfying to put stuff together for people. I also just find joy making things out of repurposed items.
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We want to see how it can work for community spaces, like neighborhoods and gardens. We can teach community organizations how to build and operate one. Also, give feedback to the city’s environmental departments on how it could work in parks, gardens, and recreational spaces.
Why do you think more community run 3-bin systems would be beneficial in Long Beach? ︎
It’s a version of composting that’s more accessible to people and it’s contained, so people don’t have to worry about smells and stuff. The idea of composting being more accessible for people to drop off and the opportunity for us to teach others how to run and maintain a 3-bin system excites me.
How did you first get interested in community building? ︎
I’ve alway felt like I’ve been a communal person. There’s a lot of beauty in working together and supporting each other. My sister is also my inspiration.
The first time I really got interested in actually building stuff was when I did a service year helping to build and repair houses. I really loved doing that and it felt satisfying to put stuff together for people. I also just find joy making things out of repurposed items.
Any lessons learned from building the 3-bin system now? ︎
Ask for help. Rely on people more. It all worked out, but planning goes a long way. It’s easy for me not to ask for help but I was thinking about that and it could’ve been a lot less stressful and more people involved in the behind the scenes process.
Hardest part? ︎
Gathering all of the materials. Once everyone was together and building and learning together, I feel like it went really smoothly. It felt like, okay this is okay. We’re getting it done.
Fun part? ︎
For me, it’s always finally seeing it... the bigger structure. Also, hanging out, eating food and figuring it out. It was satisfying to be like, “we did this together” and all played a role in it.
Thanks for reading! Want to see more community projects like this? Come join us.