Thursdays, 5:30-7:30 PM • 2 weeks ONLY 11/12/26 and 02/25/27 MDI High School Instructor: Jock Robie Jock Robie will demonstrate and assist as beginners set up their own worm bins. While there is no limit to the number of registrants for the class, only the first 5 registrants will receive a worm bin at the time of the class. Everyone else will have an opportunity at a later date to get one from Jock. After assembling worm bins, Jock will give his “Worm Talk": • What is Vermiculture and Worm Composting and how is it different from regular composting? • Why do it? What are the benefits? • What are the main things to consider before trying? • What is important for worms to thrive? What are the main problems encountered and how to avoid (or remediate if necessary.) • Recommended Reading List Please note: this is a months' long commitment to your worms! Jock will collect contact information (phone numbers and email addresses) from each household to stay in contact for a year or more until students reach a point of self-reliance. All the alumni of the November workshop gather again for their “First Harvest” when Jock returns February 25. About the Instructor: Jock Robie is a retired chemical engineer and environmental educator based in Gorham, Maine. He is best known as the founder of Mainely Worm Bins an outreach initiative dedicated to promoting vermicomposting (composting food scraps using worms) to reduce landfill waste. Through his organization, Robie acts as a community mentor, educator, and advocate for sustainable living. Since launching Mainely Worm Bins in 2008, he has scaled his efforts from a single personal bin to supporting well over 1,700 active worm bins across the state of Maine. Because of his volunteer efforts and community impact, Robie was awarded the 2019 Eco-Excellence Award by Ecomaine, a regional waste management corporation, recognizing his commitment to waste reduction and easily replicable sustainability models.