Baltimore is no stranger to challenges, but it’s also a city of resilience and innovation. While traveling, I couldn’t stop thinking about how these global issues mirrored our local ones. Like many U.S. cities, Baltimore faces the same struggles with waste management and plastic pollution, but it’s also home to incredible programs and people making a difference.Programs like the Baltimore Compost Collective and local initiatives for urban gardening show that sustainable solutions are possible. But like the countries I visited, Baltimore’s composting infrastructure is still growing, leaving many residents without access to facilities needed to properly dispose of so-called “compostable” products.This realization fueled my desire to create home-compostable solutions—products that break down easily in a backyard bin, making sustainability accessible no matter where you live.