Chef Todd Gray and Dame Ellen Kassoff, our hosts with the compost, will share their sustainability journey and pass along valuable tips on how you can start composting and save money by rescuing valuable ingredients you’re probably tossing. Wasting food wastes all kinds of resources and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. By embracing seed-to-stem cooking and diverting food waste into compost, we can help reduce methane emissions and produce an invaluable resource — often referred to as “black gold” — for growing food and maintaining healthy soil.

The afternoon will begin with a tour of Equinox’s composting system, followed by a cooking demo with Chef Todd where you’ll get to taste some surprisingly scrappy snacks. We’ll toast to compost with cocktails and mocktails made with ingredients that often go to waste, and end with insights from a panel of sustainability experts:

Caroline Howe, Aspire Program Coordinator, Innovation & Equitable Development, DC Department of Small & Local Business Development

Jeffrey Neal, Founder & CEO, Loop Closing

Lela Singh, Retail and Social Media Manager, Teaism Tea Shop

During the event, you’ll have the opportunity to bid on sustainable lifestyle items at the silent auction and raffle. Proceeds of the auction and raffle will fund the Les Dames DC Chapter’s grants and scholarships program in support of the advancement of women in the food, beverage, and hospitality industries.

Metro accessible via Farragut West and Farragut North stations.

Cost: $35 for members and non-members and includes passed bites and one drink.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER