Gone are the days when we can toss our unwanted items in a landfill or burn them in the backyard. We have come to realize that we live on a planet that has finite space—a space that we want to keep clean for our children, and the generations beyond theirs. Today we seek to look at trash as a resource, rather than refuse, with our guests Tyler Frank, founder of the curbside composting program, Garbage to Garden, and Kevin Roche, CEO of ecomaine.
Photo by Nicole Wolf
Tyler Frank grew up backyard composting in North Yarmouth, Maine. After graduating from Cheverus High School in Portland, Maine, he attended Boston College, majoring in Economics. After returning to Portland, Frank explored a number of career avenues; he started a web company with a friend, worked for a car dealership and ran for the Maine House of Representatives. Shortly thereafter, Garbage to Garden took root, Maine’s first curbside composting program and the most successful program like it in the US.
Kevin Roche is the chief executive officer of ecomaine. As the result of a nationwide search, Kevin joined ecomaine in 2004. He has worked in the field of solid waste management since 1988 and his experience includes positions as the Director of Solid Waste for Broome County (New York), Materials Recovery Administrator for the City of Glendale (Arizona), Manager for Metro Waste (Rochester, NY), Owner of MRF, Inc., a recycling facility in Rochester, New York, and Solid Waste Coordinator for both Monroe County and the City of Rochester (New York).
