How did the Mosques in Atlanta-Area-Area cut food waste during Ramadan

This story was originally published in 285 SouthA newsroir dedicated to growing immigrants in Metro Atlanta and refugee refugees communities, and shared by the gist.

One night in the early March, Frowns of Ansaris while he chose an unexpired plate left on the floor of the Mosque that he attended to his stone mountain house. “Does anyone want to take it?” He asked a group of women standing nearby. If no one answered, he chose it. Her hands have been filled with pizza and curry leftovers without her children. If he can't get the house home, throw it. “There is a lot of junk occurring during Ramadan,” says Nina, 38, growing in Georgia.

During Muslim Holy Moon – a time of spiritual restoration by further prayer and day prayer – Masjids can serve hundreds for Iftar, the sun marking fastening. Some also served a meal before time, Suhoor, before congregations began.

That everyone can add a lot of trash, however. At the Atlanta mosques and anyway, it is not unusual to find garbage cans filled with the end of the night, with some plates and plastic bottles of water

“It is not acceptable for us,” says Nina. “My family is aware of watching water and food. We eat left-we wasted or no snooty about wasting.”

He is not the one who is worried about the problem. This year, more than two dozen Atlanta-area masks planned the environmentally friendly “zero-wastefars,” whose shoots the amount of thrown food, water, and water bottles. Food waste is a global and national dilemma – in the US, About 40 percent of food supply ended with landfill. But the trash of the holy month was directly conflicting with a religious command not to waste, Marium said Maslimad the center of the Olbic center of Islam.

The masculine is part of a “green team” 17 volunteers built by Al Furqan to help solve the problem. This past year, the Green Green Team of Al Furqan focuses on something: banning bottles of plastic water. Previously, the Mosjid threw nearly 300 plastic bottles every night – but this year, hardly. In order to prepare for Ramadan, the team has added water filling stations, carried out used water bottles in five gallons of recycling members of community for $ 10 each. They also accept donations to give water bottles free to anyone who cannot afford.

On March 19, Al Furqan – where 200 to 250 people go for Iftars each week – to be with the religious groups of environmental justice. The organization provides training, workshops, and provide for available plates and cutlery. At the end of iftar dinner, Gipl also includes shipping cost over atlanta nonprofit charmwhich composted food waste and processes to repeat things difficult.

The zero-waste-waste-waste-waste-softar is only 24 zero-axes planned at Atlanta-Area Islamic Center this Ramadan. At least 15 now there are dedicated green teams. That's a big increase from 2023, if there's only one mosque with a Gipl-certified Green Team: Roswell Community Mosjid, or RCM. RCM, hosting each week zero-wastef wastefar dinner every Saturday, signing a Atlanta-based contract reading food and providing food repair services.

Monitor the trash

In Mosjid Fatimah in Stonton Mountain, Mohammed ata ur rasheed helps direct track traffic during Ramadan. She sat in a striking seat for hours every night talking to men who gathered where recycling, rubbish, and compost placed. About 150 people attended their days of Iftar each night.

“People wasted a lot of food. There were a lot of plates eaten. Sometimes the whole plate. And because they didn't want to see their plate to cover it,” Rasheed said. “I saw you! Sometimes I tell them, if you get food, get a little part. I'm eating. I'm not collected and tried people.” .

Reducing waste is not combined with religious principles – also have financial incentives. Rasheed estimates that survive his masjid nearly $ 1,000 until it does not need to call Gwinnett County to choose the excess trash: Instead of five bags each night, one one.

Masjid Fatimah still provides still managers with plastic water bottles. But this year, the recycling volume is cut by placing permanent markers with neon-green poster board instructions near free bottles. “I put a message and every day I remind people: 'Get your bottle,'” “” Rahhead said it was his personal pilot project. When they finished drinking, he reminded people to remove the covers from their bottles and crush them so that they can get a little space in the trash can.

At the end of the night, he passed through the compost bin and trash that carried the house what he could to add to his compost pile and feed his four chicks and red watis. Rasheed, growing up gardening Hyderabad, India, spent two hours a day working with his beehunevage setup after he returned home from his work as a biologist of the CDC; Her garden gives hundreds of pounds that come every year for her family four. In Mosjid, he shows other gardeners how to use pizza boxes left from Ramadan Iftars to create easy weeds. He said more congregations followed his example and carried the scrap house to feed their backyard chickens as well.

'Khalifas' on the ground, or Green Teams

Ayesha Abid is the program coordinator for Georgia Interfaith Gower and Light. Informal, he called himself to an Muslim organizer for nonprofits, and worked to increase the body organizations, but we have about 150 green teams together with about 2023. “If there are 150 masjids and 15 have the 100s with green team, I don't think bad representation. “

Atlanta Mosjid in Al-Islam in East Atlanta is composting for the first time this year, and received a grant from Gipl for zero-wastefar. Mosque, opened in 1958, was the largest and oldest center of the Islamian community in the Atlanta Metro.

Mohammed ata ur rasheed is good by the gist

“It's not that expensive to do composting,” Abid said. “What is the dear manpower or volunteer. The biggest thing I've heard is' I'm not voluntary to bring it charm. 'There is a woman in (Atlanta Mosque in al-Islam) just took six to eight bags of compost / recyclable waste in her van. You need community members who are willing to act on doing that. I think the women in the community uplift it. “

Abid says East Cobb Islamic Center, Al Furqan West Cobb Islamic Center, and Roswell Community Masjid have all called to Eliminate Single-use plastic bottles and encourage people to bring their own to take home food so it is not thrown out.

“I grew up in Georgia and go to Masjids, my most important memory in Ramadan saw that the Aunyy had forgotten where a water bottle was wasting water,” Abid said. “Volunteers are tired after fasting throughout the day and have no energy to exit it to the gardens.