Composting 101: The Ecological Art of Decay

"Composting 101: The Ecological Art of Decay" was a workshop series hosted by Aeryn Garvisch at the WWU Outback Farm during the Spring of 2025. Expanding from the experiential knowledge of how to compost, the workshops were accompanied with an informational booklet. The booklet, which is available here in a pdf, serves as an introduction to foundational composting knowledge, such as soil science, the soil food web, biogeochemical cycles, and various composting methods. Composting is commonly known as the managed decomposition of organic matter, although it is referred to as the "Ecological Art of Decay" to underline how composting is a creative, transformative, and intrinsic process linking death, decay, renewal, and growth in the environment. Compost, the end-product, is a biologically stable soil amendment, or fertilizer, that can be used to build soil health. The soil food web is the biotic component of soil, most prolific in humus and topsoil, which functions to drive decomposition and is a crucial part of the process of soil formation. In addition to the booklet is the recorded Honors College Capstone presentation for "Composting 101: The Ecological Art of Decay." The presentation video is an overview of composting foundational knowledge, related systemic social and environmental factors, and insights from the workshop experience. Both the "Composting 101" booklet and presentation connects the act of composting to concerns for non-regenerative waste practices, the cycling of nutrients in the environment, and community-based efforts for soil stewardship. [An accessible transcript to the informational booklet and a document with links to the presentation videos are included as supplementary files.]