SerVermont - Rich Earth Institute VISTA

Founded in 2012 in Brattleboro, Vermont, Rich Earth Institute is an independent research and demonstration organization focused on the intersection of environmental, agricultural, and sanitation solutions. Our mission is to advance the use of human waste as a resource by engaging in research, education, and technological innovation. We envision a world with abundant and widely distributed clean water and fertile soil, achieved in part by reclaiming nutrients from our bodies as elements in a life sustaining cycle. Rich Earth evolves sanitation practices from linear waste disposal systems to circular resource recovery networks. Our research, consulting, demonstration projects, and original educational tools cultivate both grassroots and institutional engagement. Rich Earth presents a simple idea with global potential. Our ongoing nutrient recycling activities in Windham County, Vermont have received the country’s first permit to produce sanitized Class A fertilizer from human urine. We have since established the first and largest community scale urine recycling network in the United States. At any scale, nutrient recycling produces agricultural fertilizer and reduces the cost of wastewater treatment, two economic advantages that help alleviate poverty. Programs and Populations Served: *Our flagship community-scale nutrient recycling network serves 200+ volunteer urine donors and 8 farms in Windham County *Our portable toilet fleet serves public gatherings, construction job sites, and festivals *Our educational programs are delivered via webinars, classrooms, and conferences to hundreds of participants each year *Our academic research and publications advance the global nutrient recycling movement *Our Annual Summit is the world’s largest conference of nutrient recycling allies *We install urine diversion systems to create collection fixtures in homes and businesses *We support and consult with nutrient recycling networks in diverse communities