Green SXM and Waste2Work teamed up and came in second place in NPOwer’s Twinning Challenge. Photo by NPOwer.
SIMPSON BAY--A joint initiative of Green SXM and Waste2Work came in second place in NPOwer’s “Twinning Challenge”. They were awarded US $750 to fund their Community Composter project.
The award was presented to the two organisations at NPOwer’s non-profit organisations (NPOs) conference held at National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA) in Cay Hill on Saturday, February 22. This conference brought together around 150 attendees representing 65 organisations.
In the Twinning Challenge, NPOs were invited in advance to partner up for a project, which was pitched to the audience at the conference. Everyone was asked to vote for their favourite project, and a total of US $2,250 was awarded to new inter-NPO initiatives, courtesy of St. Maarten Development Fund, Be The Change Foundation, and Foresee (4C) Foundation.
“After a short brainstorming session, it became evident that a collaboration between Green SXM and Waste2Work was a win-win situation to make a long-time dream project come to reality: a Community Composter,” said the organisations in a press release on Tuesday.
“Green SXM has extensive knowledge about composting both at home and within communities. Waste2Work offers skills and reusable waste materials to make an affordable and upcycled compost tumbler. Working together, the aim is to show how to reduce waste, as 50 per cent of waste going to the landfill is organic waste that can be composted,” they said.
“I’ve been conducting ‘compostability’ tests for many years. With my experience, the metal tumbler composting is an easy way to compost and show the community how the whole process works. I can run workshops with short demonstrations to convince more people about the benefits of composting. It’s perfect for school visits, for example,” said Green SXM founder Alex Frye.
Waste2Work said it was excited to build a new upcycled product that can benefit the community.
“We build furniture with reusable waste materials in our upcycle centre, experimenting with different waste streams. We have the manpower to build a composter out of old oil drums, and we have the one magic ingredient you need to compost effectively: wood sawdust,” said Waste2Work Director Jasper Nijenhuis.
The composter will be placed at Waste2Work, which is next to the St. Maarten Red Cross building on Airport Boulevard.
Green SXM and Waste2Work said they hope the Community Composter will attract as many people as possible to feed the composter and who will be convinced to start their own composting at home.
After three months maturing time for each batch, the compost will be used for joint environmental projects such as planting trees with other green initiatives in St. Maarten, said the organisations.
“Extra amounts will be donated to small-scale farmers and gardeners. Waste2Work can also build more composter tumblers to put in community spaces and schools, with training provided by Green SXM,” they said.
