Kentucky Composting Council honors UofL's Brian Barnes with the 2025 Jean Bonhotal Award
At the October 8th kickoff to the 2025 Kentucky Composting Conference, the director of the University of Louisville's Community Composting Project, Dr. Brian Barnes, was awarded the Kentucky Composting Council's Jean Bonhotal Award.
The award is presented to an individual or organization that demonstrates outstanding dedication to composting in Kentucky. This year, the honor goes to Dr. Brian Barnes, who also currently serves as the Executive Director of the Louisville Compost Co-Op and is a faculty member in philosophy at UofL.
Back in the early 1980s, Brian single-handedly fostered a culture of sustainability that was virtually unheard of at the time. He collaborated with community partners, such as Heine Brothers Coffee, to show that, with passion and a bit of determination, real change is possible. Today, Dr. Barnes oversees a composting facility, manages 300 compost subscriptions, and leads the effort to divert over 7,000 pounds of food waste from the local landfill each week.
Brian began composting in 2005 when he was a manager with Wild Oats Markets. This initial project spawned the non-profit organization Breaking New Grounds (BNG), and Dr. Barnes collaborated with the owners of Heine Bros Coffee in Louisville to compost both organizations’ compostable wastes. Brian was a consistent volunteer, along with being an early board member.
Within a couple of years, Barnes was training with other members of BNG at Growing Power in Milwaukee under the guidance of MacArthur Fellow, Will Allen. Over a few years, Dr. Barnes was trained in composting, vermicomposting, aquaponics, and a variety of urban farming practices. He helped make compost and vermicompost at BNG, which became the foundation for the organization’s community garden and aquaponics operations as a Growing Power regional training organization.
In 2009, Dr. Barnes became interested in starting a composting program at the University of Louisville, where he was a lecturer in the Philosophy Department. Brian collaborated with UofL’s new Sustainability Director, Dr. Justin Mog, to pull together a composting plan for university food waste that included the reclaiming of surplus dumpsters and a volunteer-oriented strategy. The UofL Community Composting Project began the next year with a handful of dedicated volunteers, Brian’s small car, and the mission of teaching anyone in Louisville to compost and vermicompost, as well as providing a place for the public to practice composting and reuse.
Since 2010 Dr. Barnes and his project have donated thousands of tons of compost and vermicompost to anyone in the community who needs it. Brian continues to consult on composting-related matters and to provide education each week through "Compost Church," a standing volunteer day on Sundays that provides compost education and products to anyone willing to trade labor for living soil. His project has employed many students, supported educational partnerships and internships, and helped composting efforts at dozens of schools, farms, backyards, kitchens, and offices throughout Louisville and Southern Indiana.
In 2017, Barnes partnered with Sean Raph to create The Louisville Compost Co-op. In partnership with UofL, the Co-op offers a compostables pickup service for area residents and businesses by providing a weekly compost container exchange. Co-op members can also request soil to be delivered when their bucket is exchanged.
Dr. Barnes helped organize the Second Annual Kentucky Composting Conference at UofL in 2024, and he is a member of the Kentucky Composting Council’s Advisory Board. He has presented at a variety of academic and professional conferences on composting topics, and he has taught composting at the university level in the U.S. and in Panama.
Jean Bonhotal is giant in the composting world. She is renowned internationally, nationally and, especially, within her home state of New York. Many composters owe their understanding of composting to Jean. Many composters have successful businesses because of her. It is safe to say that, without Jean’s research and teaching, the practice of composting animal mortalities would never have become the common practice that it is now. Quite simply, Jean’s impact has been huge. For nearly 30 years, Jean’s students, clients and peers have approached her with sincere friendship and respect. And Jean always responds in kind.
The Jean Bonhotal Award was established after Jean generously agreed—without hesitation—to assist Kentucky in enhancing its composting infrastructure. In 2023, Jean served as the Kentucky Composting Conference's inaugural Keynote Speaker. During that conference, we found Jean standing right in the middle of a compost pile nearly five feet high. Though Jean is no spring chicken, she eagerly rolled up her sleeves for the sake of compost. Each year, the recipient of the Jean Bonhotal Award receives a commemorative plaque and a $250 Educational Grant.
