Studies show that a large percentage of the household waste that reaches landfills, contributing to all the disadvantages and hazards that landfills bring, is composed of kitchen waste. Speaking as someone who's always had a compost heap and can't imagine life without one, I can't believe that people would throw such a valuable resource away...
Composting is one of the simplest ways to cut down on the amount of waste generated by your household (or organisation - workplaces, churches and clubs often throw compostable waste into rubbish destined for the landfill). What's more, it has some added benefits - you're left with magnificent organic fertiliser for your garden (or even houseplants).
Who can compost? Nearly everybody can. If you have a small garden, there's bound to be one small corner where you can tuck a bin or heap. If you have an apartment, you may have more of a difficulty in finding a place for composting, but don't despair. Compostables can be stored in black plastic bags or bins, and you're bound to have a friend or a relative who has a garden or allotment and will be happy to take your compost away for use (you might even get some homegrown veggies in return).
The first thing you will need for any compost heap of any size is something to keep it in. While it is possible to get reasonably good compost just by popping everything into a rough heap in the corner of the garden, this isn't the most efficient method. Besides, it doesn't look very good. A better option is to create some kind of structure to keep the compost contained. This will also allow warmth to generate within the heap as the compost breaks down, creating favourable conditions for beneficial microorganisms.
Ideally, you will need more than one bin or stack in your compost heap. Three is ideal, but two is adequate. These work on the same principle as in-trays on an office desk - in, processing and out (or in and out). Compost heaps can be constructed in many ways. Black plastic bags are basic but not very pleasant. Large bottomless plastic bins with lids (the size of rubbish bins or larger) work well, especially if made of darker material that absorbs sunlight to get the compost good and hot. A do-it-yourself type can easily construct a container using wooden stakes and either corrugated iron sheets (old roofing iron works) or wire netting around the outside. My compost heaps are made of pea straw bales pushed into a rectangle - these can be kept at one layer high or increased. Straw bales work just as well. The advantage of these is that the construction material eventually breaks down as well, adding to the compost heap even further.
Your compost bin should either be placed on soil, or else dirt should be added to the bottom of your heap. This acts as a "starter" to begin the process of breaking down kitchen waste. For perfect compost, make sure you have some worms in your "starter". You can place bins or a stack on concrete - I had to do this once to stop a rat digging into the compost bin - but dirt is ideal.
What do you put onto a compost heap? You can put any garden waste and any kitchen waste into the compost heap. As a matter of fact, anything that has an organic origin can go in. This includes papers, old leather shoes, cat litter, wood ash, cloth made from artificial fibres and the contents of your vacuum cleaner bag. Some things take longer to rot down than others (leather, cloth and bones take a while), so when you come to using the compost, these items may need to be fished out and put back into the heap. Some people get very scientific about the proportions of different types of waste, but a good rule of thumb is to make sure that you have about the same amount of "wet" waste (lawn clippings, vegetable peelings, weeds, etc) to "dry" waste (dead leaves, paper, straw, ash, etc). If you want to really enrich your compost heap for use in the garden, then you can collect seaweed and animal manure to add in.
And at the end of it all, you'll be left with the richest, blackest organic fertiliser that you can put on your garden. And, contrary to popular expectations, it doesn't even smell too bad!