As a student at The MET Sacramento High School, Shamar Russell spends part of his week at an internship in the community. Shamar interns at the Creative Connections Arts Academy (CCAA), where two needs he saw in the garden area sparked an idea for his Caring for Our Watersheds project.
Shamar wanted to teach the children of CCAA about composting, but there was not a good space to build a 3-section compost bin. There was also a need for seating for a teaching space in the garden area.
Shamar decided on a project that would fulfill both needs: a compost bench! While the bench has a smaller capacity for composting garden waste, it still can be used as a focal point to teach about composting to the students. It also serves as a place where students can sit for a lesson in the garden or where students and teachers can rest after planting, weeding, or harvesting.
The current design allows for a potential worm bin, or the bottom can be removed if ground contact is desired for more traditional composting. Signage will be included to point out this unique new feature of the garden space at CCAA. Caring for Our Watersheds funding helped Shamar purchase lumber and hardware to build the bench.