June 2025: Member Spotlight - Khari Diop
- Jordan Roberts
- Jun 2
- 2 min read
Meet Khari Diop, father, farmer, compost connoisseur, and longtime champion of community-led sustainability in Atlanta.
For more than 25 years, Khari has been on a mission to reconnect Black communities with the land. Through urban agriculture, food justice, and composting, he’s been helping people grow more than just food…he’s growing resilience, sovereignty, and a shared sense of purpose.
His journey started early. Raised in Atlanta, Khari spent his childhood hauling cow manure and turning compost piles in his family’s backyard garden. But everything shifted in 2011 when he met Corrine Coe, a composting expert who opened his eyes to the deeper magic of compost. That spark of inspiration led to action. Khari co-founded Terra Nova, a compost cooperative that transformed food scraps into what he calls “soil gold.”
Today, Khari wears many hats. He’s the founder and CEO of ThinkGreen Inc., an environmental education nonprofit. He manages the Community Compost Learning Lab at the Truly Living Well Center for Natural Urban Agriculture and co-leads the Westside Compost Project. Under his leadership, and with support from a Drawdown Georgia Climate Solutions & Equity Grant, his team has already diverted over a ton of food waste from landfills, turning “waste” into a community resource.
But Khari’s work goes far beyond compost bins and garden beds. He designs systems that regenerate both soil and people. His approach is rooted in food sovereignty, environmental education, and the belief that healthy, culturally-relevant food is essential for community self-determination.
“I think we have to be hypervigilant in ensuring that we are providing the best nutrition for ourselves, and for our children, and for our families,” he says. “If we can do that at scale, then a huge pressure will be lifted and people can focus on the next step in our evolution.”
Khari sees compost not just as a soil amendment, but as a revolutionary tool. Through workshops, school gardens, and neighborhood farms, he invites people to engage directly with the food system, restoring both land and legacy.
“One of the things my grandfather used to say was, ‘They aren’t making any more land.’ But we do have the ability to participate in that creation process through composting,” Khari says.
For those just getting started, he offers this advice: Start small. Start manageable. Stay consistent. Don’t get discouraged.
And if you need help, Khari recommends the Drawdown Georgia Composting Toolkit as a resource. Whether you begin with a backyard bin or a community site, the key is to get your hands in the soil and begin.
This month, we’re proud to spotlight Khari Diop as a true example of Sankofa bringing ancestral knowledge forward to build a sustainable future. His work reminds us that regeneration is not only possible, it’s already happening, one banana peel at a time.
Compost on, Khari. You inspire us to grow, heal, and build new earth together!
For more information:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thinkgreeninc/
Linked-In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kharidiop
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkgreen_kd/
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