By being involved and taking personal responsibility we contribute pride, not only to community, but also to the country. We become citizens, not spectators. We stand up for our beliefs and take control of our own lives. We discover a satisfaction that is only found in volunteering to improve our environment. After it was introduced 30 years ago, the phrase “think globally, act locally” became an environmental rallying cry. The grand vision of it inspired communities to mobilize and take responsibility for the health of the planet, starting in your own back yard.
The mission of Keep Brevard Beautiful is to motivate and educate business, school, group and individual partnerships to reduce litter, recycle, landscape, and beautify for the environmental and economic benefit of Brevard County. Keep Brevard Beautiful, Inc. began as an initiative to accomplish this mission in 1981 when a small group of concerned citizens founded the affilitiation with Keep America Beautiful. Founded under the premise that all aspects of the community can contribute in some way to the beauty of the community. The group manages several different programs:
Litter Prevention
Keep Brevard Beautiful, though education and clean-up programs impacts Brevard. From July 2003 through June 2004, 14,549 volunteers conductied 609 clean-ups, removing an astounding 368,000 pounds of litter from our shorelines, roadsides and neighborhoods.
Adopt-A-Shore and Adopt-A-Road
With these programs, teams carry out regular clean-ups of adopted areas. Currently, there are over 150 teams, representing civic groups, businesses, schools, clubc, churches and individuals who care about sustaining the beauty of the Space Coast.
Blue Wave Campaign
Sponsored by the Tourism Development Council and KBB, this program establishes criteria for best practices to manage both city and county beaches. These ensure that beachgoers can expect a clean, safe visit amd includes water testing, life guards, drinking water, rest rooms and litter cleanup.
Education
Pelly’s Pals, urges students to get involved and make a committment to help in cleanups. Classroom education from K-5 includes Pelly Can, our mascot and Marine Debris education, illustrating respect for our beaches and community and promoting caring participation in cleanups.
Non-Native Invasive Plant Eradication
the Brazlian Pepper is a non-native, highly invasive plant that displaces beneficial fauna. Working with city and county governments, Keep Brevard Beautiful raises awareness to the problem and recruits volunteers to combat the plant.
Beautification
The group runs many progrmas that notices home and business owners making contributions and works to help plant trees in our parks. KBB also runs a Xeriscaping program which educates and promotes low-water usage landscaping.
Keep Brevard Beautiful values the personal satisfaction of the thousands of volunteers that take personal responsibility and work to maintain our beautiful, clean community. We encourage everyone to become involved in the positive action and enjoy the satisfaction of keeping our community clean and beautiful. We all generate trash, and to be a responsible and proud citizen we should be responsible for our own trash using the carry in carry out theory. Reducing litter and beautifying our environment is a reflection of our desire to become a responsible and proud Americans.
Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world, indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
For more infomation and to get involved visit:
www.keepbrevardbeautiful.org
or call 321-631-0501