Composters of California: Careers Webinar

Join us for a panel discussion featuring three compost professionals with a wide range of experience in the industry from community fire remediation to equipment to sustainable end of life options.

Speakers:

Lynn Fang, SoilWise

Lynn has over 10 years of experience in soil science, community composting, ecological landscape design, and regenerative farming. She centers soil health as the foundation of thriving and abundant landscapes. Since the Eaton Fire in January 2025, she has been offering soil contaminant testing and bioremediation treatments. Her teaching and community work include partnerships with DENA Soil Project, the 131 School of Compost, LA Compost, Integrative Development Initiative, CalRecycle Community Composting for Green Spaces, Cal Poly Pomona, and Pitzer College. She has also worked with Metabolic Studio, Studio Petrichor, the LA County Arboretum Crescent Farm, CropSwapLA, Buena Vista Community Garden (now Gente Community Garden), and Huerta del Valle.

Lynn is certified as a California Native Plant Landscaper, Permaculture Designer, and Compost Facility Operator.

Braeden Cohen, Elevated Earth LLC/LifeSource

Braeden Cohen is the owner of Elevated Earth LLC, a soil and fertilizer regulatory consulting company, and the co-founder and CEO of LifeSource, a community-driven, sustainable funeral home in Los Angeles. After graduating with a degree in Environmental Science from Ithaca College, Braeden focused on building healthy soils through composting and circular organics recycling. He is a US Composting Council Certified Compost Operations Manager with extensive experience designing, building, and operating composting facilities at all scales. Through his work developing insect frass products, Braeden became an expert in CDFA and Organic soil and fertilizer regulations; he now manages nation-wide regulatory compliance for several national brands. In 2024, Braeden co-founded LifeSource to bring human composting operations to Southern California, offering Terramation and other sustainable deathcare services.

Cesar Mendoza, Sustainable Generation

Cesar Mendoza is a Technical Manager for Service & Sales at Sustainable Generation, where he partners with clients to launch, optimize, and strengthen composting operations. With more than 20 years of experience in organics, recycling, and quality systems, Cesar brings a rare combination of technical expertise and hands-on operational insight.

His background includes leadership roles at Burrtec Waste Industries and Athens Services, where he managed large-scale facilities and led frontline teams. A Certified Compost Operator through the US Composting Council, Cesar is known for solving complex, large-scale challenges in the field, training operators and technicians, and helping facilities achieve high performance while meeting rigorous regulatory standards.