OPERATION GREEN: IMPROVING OUR COMMUNITIES

Litter is an unfortunate byproduct of our throwaway consumer culture. It is also a visual blight on the American landscape, a hazard to human health and safety, and often a disruptive force in natural ecosystems. Keep America Beautiful believes every person has a stake in their community, including a stake in the community's litter problem. Research and experience tell us that litter attracts the eye and, at times, attracts even MORE litter. We have found that a clean community discourages littering and illegal dumping. Proper handling of litter and waste in a community raises the standards and expectations of everyone.

• What are the sources of litter?
• Why do people litter?
• Where do people litter?

What can you do about it?

>> Learn more about the pervasive issue of cigarette litter.

>> Read about KAB's Cigarette Litter Prevention Program

For background on how Keep America Beautiful affiliates are implementing the Cigarette Litter Prevention Program, go to the following Web sites:

• Keep Glendale Clean & Beautiful (California)
• Keep Plano Beautiful (Texas)
• Keep Norfolk Beautiful (Virginia)
• Keep Akron Beautiful (Ohio)
• Keep Pearland Beautiful (Texas)

Litter Free Events

A Litter-Free Event is one in which the public takes an active part in placing their trash in litter and recycling receptacles. Through a litter-free event, the public is encouraged to take personal responsibility for the proper disposal of one's own trash.

For guidelines and additional information from Keep America Beautiful affiliates on how to run a successful litter-free event, go to the following Web sites:

• Keep Chicago Beautiful  
• Keep Iowa Beautiful  
• Keep Oklahoma Beautiful  
• Keep Denton Beautiful (Texas)

Garbage isn't something most Americans want to think about every day, but managing the over 230 million tons we generate each year has daily environmental and economic consequences.  Successful integrated waste management, according to the U.S. EPA, considers how to prevent, recycle, and manage solid waste in ways that most effectively protect human health and the environment.  This means evaluating local impacts of solid waste, and then selecting and combining the most appropriate waste management options. While America is making gains in the effort to reduce the amount of waste produced each year and to improve the way we deal with garbage, there is still work to do.

The raw materials we recycle have value to manufacturers, and thus can create a revenue stream for fundraising. Recycling events are also great ways to get communities working together, and to educate all ages in the process.

Activities that can you can implement on campus or in your community include:

• Collect recyclables on campus and deliver to a recycling center (eg telephone books, paper, aluminum cans)
• Hold an e-cycling event to recycle old cell phones, computers, laptops, etc.
• Set up a composting station at your school
• Adopt-a-road, highway, stream or river and pledge to maintain the adopted area
• Develop a waste-in-the-workplace system at your school
• Organize a "Trek for Trash" involving bicyclists or hikers cleaning up litter along scenic roadways or trails, and educating consumers along the way

>> More examples and links coming soon!

Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanup™

Each year, from March 1 to May 31, millions of volunteers nationwide mobilize to improve their communities as volunteer participants in the Great American Cleanup.  Phi Theta Kappans are encouraged to join in! Great American Cleanup activities are diverse and should address the specific needs of your communities or campuses, including beautifying parks and recreation areas, cleaning seashores and waterways, handling recycling collections, picking up litter, planting trees and flowers, and conducting educational programs and holding litter-free events. 

There's strength in numbers, so Phi Theta Kappans should get involved by by either volunteering with a local Keep America Beautiful affiliate or Great American Cleanup participating organization.

• Volunteer for a Great American Cleanup event in your area.
• If there isn't a KAB affiliate or GAC participating organization near you, get tips on how to organize your own GAC activity.

We want to know how you're doing, so please document and submit your results using this form.

The more than 575 affiliates of Keep America Beautiful are improving the vitality and economic integrity of their communities by beautifying their surroundings in ways that make a huge difference. Neighborhoods that are beautiful to look at are beautiful to live in, work in and visit. Graffiti abatement, and planting trees, flowers and community gardens are examples of initiatives that you can undertake to beautify your campus and community.  These beautification initiatives will have an immediate positive effect on how a neighborhood is perceived.

Graffiti Hurts®

Graffiti Hurts® - Care for Your Community is a grassroots community education program. It was developed in 1996 by Keep America Beautiful through a grant from The Sherwin- Williams Company, producers of Krylon® brand of aerosol paint. The Graffiti Hurts® program is dedicated to raising awareness about the harmful effects of graffiti vandalism on communities.

At the heart of the Graffiti Hurts® Program are four goals:

• Educate citizens about the importance of graffiti prevention and abatement.
• Provide local municipalities with a platform for delivering graffiti prevention messages.
• Utilize local organizations and Keep America Beautiful affiliates to provide opportunities to give back through community service.
• Create healthier, safer and more livable community environments.

Graffiti Hurts® helps communities initiate local graffiti prevention activities and educates youth and adults about the impact of graffiti vandalism. To do this, the Graffiti Hurts® Web site contains all the tools communities need to begin graffiti education, prevention, and clean-up. Phi Theta Kappa chapters can organize a paint-out or a mural painting of an area continuously plagued with graffiti.

>> Learn 10 things you can do to get involved in the prevention of graffiti.

Other campus or community beautification activities that you can get involved in include:

• Conduct a tree-planting ceremony at a local school.
• Plant a Liberty Garden(red, white and blue) to show pride in your community or campus.
• Restore a vacant lot and create a community garden for neighborhood residents.
• Encourage the development of green space for walking and outdoor activity.
  

The starting point for changing behaviors is raising awareness of the issues through education. Keep America Beautiful's curricula teach the fundamentals of litter prevention, preserving our resources, responsible solid waste management, and how to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Many Keep America Beautiful educational programs are sponsored by leading corporations and are developed with the help of other national organizations and federal agencies. All programs are designed to be locally adaptable to meet the needs of individual communities. 

In addition to curriculum guides, Keep America Beautiful reaches our schools with stewardship messages through Web-based programs like Clean Sweep U.S.A. and the Toolbox for Community Change . In addition, full-color classroom posters themed "Take Action" and "230 Million Tons of Trash" build environmental knowledge, foster stewardship, pride and individual responsibility among young people.

Examples of the many awareness-raising or educational activities that Phi Theta Kappans can lead in your communities include:

• Offer to teach a lesson or conduct an activity about the environment for a local youth group or environmental club. Keep America Beautiful has many lessons to choose from.
• Conduct storm drain stenciling in your community to raise awareness about the importance of not dumping things into storm drains. There are several kits available for groups to conduct this activity.
• Distribute environmental education information on campus and at local events and festivals.
  
  

Reporting your activities will enable Keep America Beautiful and Phi Theta Kappa to evaluate the impact and success of the partnership and utilize this program as a template for other service organizations. 

>> Every participating chapter should plan to report on their activities and service through the Chapter Annual Report, which is due at Heardquarters every spring.

Top 25 Ways for your Chapter to Improve Your Community

Make sure your chapter is registered as a Chapter of Service. If your chapter isn't registered, simply complete the online form .

>> Click here to read 24 more ways your Chapter can help to improve your community.