Keep America Beautiful and Volunteers Unite for Great American Cleanup Earth Day Events Nationwide

Nation’s largest community improvement program delivers environmental, economic and social benefits to local communities
Apr 17, 2018 2:45 PM ET
Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanup

STAMFORD, Conn., April 17, 2018 /3BL Media/ - Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, led by its network of more than 600 affiliates and other partners across the country, will rally tens of thousands of volunteers at events across the country on and around Earth Day, Sunday, April 22, as part of its annual Great American Cleanup.

In its 20th year, the 2018 Great America Cleanup is the nation’s largest community improvement program with an estimated 60,000 events occurring from spring through fall in more than 20,000 communities across the country.

The Great American Cleanup will engage more than 5 million volunteers throughout the country to help renew parks, trails and recreation areas; clean shorelines and waterways; remove litter and debris; reduce waste and improve recycling; and plant trees, flowers and community gardens, among other activities to inspire a new generation of community stewards.

“Earth Day allows us to celebrate and reflect on the invaluable work that Keep America Beautiful, its affiliates and all the dedicated volunteers have done for 65 years and counting,” said Helen Lowman, president and CEO, Keep America Beautiful. “Working together, we continue to advance our fight to End Littering, Improve Recycling and Beautify America’s Communities and we’re proud of all the events that support these collective efforts. On Earth Day and every day, we encourage everyone to join us in our mission and take part in a local community improvement event.”

On April 19, Keep American Beautiful is headed to Dallas, Texas, to kick off this year’s Earth Day events by partnering with EarthX, the world's largest environmental expo, conference and film festival, for EarthXRecycling, a one-day EarthX / Keep America Beautiful conversation. Environmental, recycling and community stakeholders will come together for “How We Can Help Consumers #BeRecycled and #BuyRecycled,” a series of panel conversations about ways businesses, government, NGOs and others can help consumers recycle. Learn more at http://www.earthx.org.

Great American Cleanup Earth Day Events

Highlighted below are just a few of the many Great American Cleanup Earth Day events taking place throughout the country via Keep America Beautiful affiliates:

Keep Phoenix Beautiful - Earth Day Phoenix 2018: Keep Phoenix Beautiful will celebrate Earth Day on April 21 from 11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. at Steele Indian School Park with Exhibitors, mini eco-classes, and more!

Keep Pinellas Beautiful - Great American Cleanup – Memorial: Keep Pinellas Beautiful is partnering with the Clearwater Marine Aquarium for a rewarding day of community improvement, engagement, and beautification on Sunday, April 22. from 8:00-10:00 a.m.

Keep Jackson Beautiful - Keep Jackson Beautiful Month: Keep Jackson Beautiful will host a series of Great American Cleanup events on Saturday, April 21. Activities include removing litter and debris, recycling, cleaning vacant lots, edging and cleaning curbs and gutters, and planting trees and flowers.

Keep Rockland Beautiful - Great American Cleanup Events: Keep Rockland Beautiful has local cleanups taking place throughout April in support of the Great American Cleanup and Earth Day. Residents will remove tons of litter from streets, parks and waterways to make their communities throughout Rockland County, New York, cleaner, healthier and more beautiful.

Keep Virginia Beautiful - Earth Day 2018: Explore ways to make our world a better place with Keep Virginia Beautiful on April 21 from 11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. This free family-friendly event will have exhibitors, a green market, a “zen” zone, children’s activities, festival foods, music and more!

I Love a Clean San Diego - Creek to Bay Cleanup: Join I Love A Clean San Diego and volunteers to remove debris from San Diego County on April 21 from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Participants are encouraged to join a cleanup site with low volunteer numbers.    

Keep Indian River Beautiful -  Earth Day Festival and Community Cleanup: Volunteers can visit Keep Indian River Beautiful at a booth during the Sebastian Earth Day Festival to receive a cleanup location and supplies.

Find a local Keep America Beautiful affiliate using the Affiliate Search Map at kab.org.

In addition to events organized by Keep America Beautiful’s network of community-based affiliates and partner organizations, volunteers are encouraged to organize events in their own neighborhoods – right on their own block – and then celebrate the hard work afterward … creating a national #cleanYOURblock Party! Take the first step to a more beautiful future by creating your own #cleanYOURblock fundraising team or by signing up for a Great American Cleanup event near you and joining a local team. Additional resources can be found here.

National Sponsors of the 2018 Great American Cleanup include Altria, Dow, The Glad Products Company, Lowe’s, McDonald’s and Niagara Bottling.

About Keep America Beautiful

Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. Celebrating its 65th Anniversary in 2018, Keep America Beautiful strives to End Littering, Improve Recycling and Beautify America’s Communities. We believe everyone has a right to live in a clean, green and beautiful community, and shares a responsibility to contribute to that vision.

Behavior change – steeped in education, research and behavioral science – is the cornerstone of Keep America Beautiful. We empower generations of community and environmental stewards with volunteer programs, hands-on experiences, educational curricula, practical advice and other resources. The organization is driven by the work and passion of more than 600 Keep America Beautiful affiliates, millions of volunteers, and the collaborative support of corporate partners, social and civic service organizations, academia, municipalities, elected officials, and individuals. Join us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Donate and take action at kab.org.

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