2024 ReFED Food Waste Solutions Summit
June 11-13, 2024 | Baltimore, MD
Baltimore Convention Center
Kenneth L. Moss Jr.
Lead Youth Composter
Baltimore Compost Collective
Bio:
Kenneth (Kenny) L. Moss Jr. has been employed with the Baltimore Compost Collective for half a decade. He is a long-time resident of South Baltimore, specifically the Brooklyn/Curtis Bay community. When Kenneth lost his father (who loved to cook), it sparked an interest in food sustainability for him. This led him to grow his own tomato plant at the age of six at Filbert Street Garden. He attended various environmental opportunities in his community, such as the Masonville Cove Environmental Education Center, where he participated in nature walks, bird watching, and learned to fish.
Kenneth has kept busy most of his life by being involved in different non-profits like Code-It-Here, where he learned coding, JavaScript, and the importance of teamwork. At the age of twelve, he attended Green Street Academy in Baltimore for middle school, where he learned about environmental sustainability, climate change, and agriculture. Kenneth has been actively involved in his community; he was a scholar at the Greater Baltimore Urban Leadership Program and employed with B`More Beautiful, where he picked up litter in his community. Since the age of fourteen, Kenneth has held various positions with YouthWorks in Baltimore.
He has established a career as a youth composter with the Baltimore Compost Collective (BCC), where he engages in public speaking about its importance. Environmental justice is crucial in his community because pollution has caused $55 million worth of health damages. Kenneth has been with BCC since he was fifteen and has used this experience to propel his other pursuits. Being able to share the impacts of the incinerator and educate other youth and residents of the community on alternatives have had a strong impact on him.
After giving Councilman Zeke Cohen a tour of the Filbert Street Garden, Kenneth landed an internship with the Councilman. He attended New Generation Scholars (NGS), founded by Sharayna Christmas and co-founder Bashi Rose, learning about the African Diaspora through photography, dance, music, and literature. He had the opportunity to travel with this program to St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands, where he visited the mountains where the Maroon people hiked and migrated.
He attended the Youth Perspective Baltimore Photography Camp founded by Kyle Pompey, where he learned to take pictures that helped him boost his business, Kenny Captures LLC. Kenneth had his first gallery showing of his photography during a BCC fundraiser event. He graduated from Benjamin Franklin High School with a 3.0 GPA.
Schedule
Tuesday, June 11
4:00pm - 6:00pm
Documentary Screenings: 4DWN & Compost Fever
This session will showcase two documentary screenings followed by Q&A sessions, respectively. Both will be screened at the top of the hour : 4:00pm and 5:00pm.
4DWN: 4DWN tells the unconventional and deeply personal story of a South Dallas skatepark whose mission is to change the lives of everyone who walks through the gate. The 4DWN skatepark is a resilience hub rooted in skate culture, tackling the challenges of food insecurity and social justice in one of the city’s poorest communities.
4DWN is at once punk, irreverent, and authentic. But it’s also organic, nurturing, and profound. The magic of this skatepark-turned-urban farm is brought to life through a beautiful, intimate mixed-media approach that pays homage to the canon of skate films that came before it. 4DWN chronicles the past and present lives of the Park’s founders and one budding young skateboarder who finds kinship, camaraderie, and a reason to keep pushing.
Compost Fever: Compost Fever! is a compelling short film that follows two passionate composters in their battle for environmental justice. Their mission: to starve the Incinerator, enrich the soil, and nourish the community. Facing numerous challenges, they confront profiling and skepticism, yet turn these negatives into positives with a simple question: "Do you compost?"
Serving 10 Baltimore communities, they boast over 275 customers and diverted 24,000 tons of organic material from incineration last year alone. Through tours and workshops at South Baltimore's Wakanda, they've educated thousands of youth, setting a model for community composting in Baltimore City and beyond. This film arises from a community plagued by the highest pollution rates in the country. It seeks to spread "Compost Fever" through education, fighting toxic incinerators for clean air. Learn more about composting and environmental justice with the Baltimore Compost Collective. Join the movement and remember, "A rind is a terrible thing to waste!"