Sometimes, big climate solutions start small—on a quiet street in Langley, with a bucket of food scraps, a handful of worms, and a bold idea: What if every neighborhood on Whidbey could turn its waste into nourishment for local farms?
With early support from the Whidbey Climate Fund, that idea is coming to life through the Whidbey Compost Collective—a grassroots pilot project led by Megan Thompson and Jumanji Oliana. Their goal is both simple and transformative: to divert organic waste from the landfill and turn it into high-quality compost that strengthens local soil, supports regenerative agriculture, and reduces climate-harming emissions.
The project was born out of real-world trial and error. Over the past two years, Megan and Jumanji have quietly collected over 4,000 pounds of household food scraps from a Langley neighborhood using the Bokashi composting method—a low-odor, low-emission fermentation process that works year-round. By adding a vermiculture phase—worm composting—they’ve been able to produce clean, nutrient-rich castings for gardens and farms. All of this was done without outside funding—just community spirit, buckets, and a lot of care.
This year, thanks to a grant from the Whidbey Climate Fund, they are scaling their impact through a pilot program that brings households, gardens, and farms into a single loop. The project will provide curbside collection for interested residents in the Highlands neighborhood, process the food waste on-site at a nearby farm, and return the finished compost to the soil. The team is also conducting a feasibility study, building relationships with farmers, testing for quality and safety, and documenting best practices for a model that could be replicated across the island.
From a funder perspective, this project checks every box: It’s locally led, climate-aligned, community-centered, and rooted in ecological literacy. It addresses multiple layers of the climate crisis at once—methane emissions from food waste, the carbon footprint of imported compost, the loss of organic matter from local soils—and turns them into a single, soil-based solution.
The climate impact is clear. Food waste that would otherwise rot in the landfill and release methane—a greenhouse gas 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide—is instead transformed into a stable soil amendment that helps store carbon, retain moisture, and reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers. The project also strengthens food system resilience by making farms less dependent on costly off-island inputs.
Just as importantly, the pilot nurtures something harder to measure but just as critical: a sense of shared responsibility. As households begin to see their scraps feed their own community gardens, compost becomes more than waste management—it becomes a symbol of mutual care between people and place.
This is precisely the kind of work the Whidbey Climate Fund was created to support. By seeding small, shovel-ready projects with the potential to grow, the fund empowers local changemakers to test ideas, build networks, and model what’s possible. The Whidbey Compost Collective isn’t just diverting waste—it’s demonstrating a community-scale climate solution, rooted in local soil and powered by local relationships.
It’s early days, and the worms are still doing their work. But if this pilot succeeds, it may soon become part of something bigger: a decentralized composting network that serves neighborhoods and farms across the island—one bucket, one garden bed, and one healthy handful of soil at a time.
Follow Whidbey Compost Collective on Instagram: Whidbey Compost Collective (@whidbeycompostcollective) • Instagram photos and videos
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The Whidbey Climate Fund supports local projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, restore ecosystems, and build resilience to the impacts of climate change—right here on Whidbey Island. This fund recognizes that addressing the climate crisis requires bold action at the local level. By investing in community-driven efforts—such as energy efficiency, sustainable land use, climate education, and preparedness—we strengthen our island’s ecological and economic well-being.
Through partnership with Whidbey Climate ACTION, this fund invites residents, nonprofits, and community groups to shape a livable future for generations to come. Donors who support the Whidbey Climate Fund are helping to ensure Whidbey remains a vibrant, sustainable place to live.
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