CleanUp Your Community with Adopt-a-Place
Adopt-a-Place Cleanup Crew. Photo courtesy of PlasticBusters.
A new global initiative launched by PlasticBusters in December 2020 encourages community building by adopting a place to keep litter-free.
PlasticBusters is an organization dedicated to protecting natural habitats around the world by eradicating plastic. Eradicating plastic worldwide seems like an impossible task when you think about doing it alone, and that’s how Adopt-a-Place came to be.
In the few short months that Adopt-a-Place has existed, more than 700 places in more than 63 countries have been adopted. Each “adoption” is a pledge to keep a place of your choice litter-free.
There are no specifications of what that place is or where it needs to be. Some adopters choose to keep their immediate neighborhood clean, while others adopt a local park or trail system that they frequent.
During 2020 and now into 2021, navigating life during COVID-19 has been challenging in many ways. If you are someone that enjoys a daily walk to get out of the house or perhaps a hike with the family, litter-picking can be a great addition to these already healthy lifestyle habits. Choosing a location that you already have a connection to makes it easy to care for that place, especially if you frequently go there.
To help raise awareness of the issues that litter causes, you can also actively track your cleanups using the Rubbish App. If you are heading out with at least one other person, have one person track and log items that you find, while the other collects the rubbish and trash around you.
How to use the Rubbish App during a cleanup.
Adopting a place is a fun and easy way to keep the places you love clean and to support other cleanup initiatives. All you need to do is pick a place, fill out an adoption application, and keep visiting the place you’ve chosen to ensure it stays clean.
The application process takes just a few minutes to complete, and you will receive a certificate of participation via email like the one you see below. Once you’ve signed up, your name or the organization name will appear on the Adopt-a-Place map.
Upon learning about this initiative, I pledged to keep a small wildlife refuge that my dog and I frequent near where I currently live.
Organizing large cleanup efforts has become increasingly challenging as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. Adopt-a-Place offers an effective alternative to large group cleanups by giving you, a small group of volunteers, or a family a chance to participate in a worthwhile volunteer initiative.
Start to build a new kind of community by supporting a worldwide cleanup efforts with PlasticBusters. Learn more and adopt a place of your very own today!
Show your support and join the PlasticBusters Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/plasticbustersgroup
After you’ve pledged to Adopt-a-Place, you can post pictures of your activities to encourage others, and so we can all enjoy different views around the world!
When posting on social media about an Adopt-a-Place cleanup please use #adoptaplace and #plasticbusters