2016 ILACSD Accomplishments

2016 was a great year for I Love A Clean San Diego! Check out the highlights of our impact in San Diego this past year.

2016 ILACSD Accomplishments

 

2016 Accomplishments Breakdown:

We led 250 cleanups in 74 communities around San Diego. Of the 433,098 pounds of debris picked up at cleanups, the most common items were cigarette butts, plastic pieces, food wrappers, and straws/stirrers. 63,183 cigarette butts were found during last year’s Coastal Cleanup Day and through our Adopt-A-Beach program alone! The weirdest items? We found a dog house, wizard hat, wedding dress, and dentures.

Our Education team empowered more than 31,000 kids and adults through 750 presentations around San Diego County. The presentation topics focused on local San Diego environmental issues, such as watershed protection and zero waste.

Our Recycling Programs team received more than 13,000 inquiries through our hotline and recycling database, WasteFreeSD.org. The most frequently requested items: paint, motor oil, medicine, florescent light tubes, and sharps/needles. If you aren’t sure where to recycle these items in your area, visit WasteFreeSD.org and search by item and zipcode.

Want to get involved with us in 2017? Subscribe to our newsletter to hear about upcoming volunteer events. Subscribe to our Facebook events to get updates whenever we add an event. Adopt a beach, canyon, or park in San Diego through our Adopt-A-Beach Program to get involved on a more regular basis. Or join our Clean Committee to become a bigger part of the ILACSD team.

Get to know Sam!

Today, we’d like to introduce I Love A Clean San Diego’s Contract Manager, Sam! Sam hit the ground running when he first joined our team in October. Now that he is more settled in his role, we’d like to take this opportunity for all of you to get to know him better. Read on to learn about Sam’s journey to ILACSD!

Sam DeCapua, I Love A Clean San Diego’s Contract Manager (right)

Q: What brought you to I Love A Clean San Diego?

Before coming to ILACSD, I really enjoyed politics, but since there was such a wide array of issues that needed to be addressed, I realized that this is my chance to hone in on a topic I could really contribute to.

There are so many problems which affect us all in the environmental sphere, so I felt I had a great opportunity to make a positive change in my new-found home (San Diego) and I could work towards something I was passionate about: curbing food waste, educating others on the importance of the world around them. The great office culture that exists at I Love A Clean San Diego is a plus, too.

IMG_1259Q: What environmental topic are you most passionate about?

Although I think they are all important, I think food waste is a BIG one. It is a stark reminder that we have this abundance of food, which if channeled properly, could be a large step forward in effectively ENDING hunger in the United States. What a change that would be! Not only that, but food waste creates methane, which is 25 times more dangerous than CO2 emissions, when disposed at landfills. I’m also very intrigued by the Zero Waste initiatives showing up around the country. I love that California has been so aggressive to reduce the waste we create. It’s a great goal to pursue, and I’m really looking forward to contributing to the implementation of those lofty goals.

Q: What is your most recent environmental goal?
Since joining I Love A Clean San Diego, I’ve seen what a noticeable difference the smallest habits and actions taken daily can make. Therefore, I’ve tried to reduce buying excess packaging which creates unnecessary trash, as well as making sure I plan my portions for food to avoid wasting valuable food by either spoilage or excess. Packing lunches goes a long way in saving the environment and your wallet!IMG_1513

Q: “When I’m not at a the office or a cleanup you can find me…”

I love going to the gym, it is a big part of my life. Additionally, I love doing outdoorsy stuff, and I really want to get into surfing soon! Apart from all of that, I really love reading and watching Netflix. I’m also getting into the local restaurants and breweries, and as a big burrito and beer fan San Diego has definitely exceeded my expectations!

Black Mtn. Ranch beautified after last year’s wildfires

On Saturday, December 5, I Love A Clean San Diego closed out its 2015 cleanups with a volunteer project and guided nature walk at Black Mountain Ranch Open Space in the 4S Ranch neighborhood.  More than 200 volunteers from the community came out to beautify this natural area, which had been badly damaged by wildfires in 2014.

In just 3 hours, volunteers filled a 40-yard dumpster with things like furniture, exercise equipment, and metal drums—all while learning about the native and non-native plants that grow right in their backyards. Check out these photos from the event.

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Safety first! Our team kicked off the event with a presentation on how trash can travel from this neighborhood out to the coast, local recycling rules, and safety reminders for the cleanup.

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This girl scout knows the importance of picking up small pieces of litter, which animals often mistake for food.

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Our Executive Director, Pauline Martinson, and long-serving board member, Bill Haines, joined forces with our volunteers to beautify the area.

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Our Education Manager, Emily Nelson, and Clean Committee member, Andrew Heath, led a group on a nature walk of the area. The volunteers used field guides to help them identify native and non-native plants. They saw a coyote, too!

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Farther down the trail, some young volunteers helped load bulky items into our truck, which we used to shuttle trash to the dumpster.IMG_2352

Tiny trash is important to pick up, but of course the big stuff matters, too! A team effort helped pull this old fridge out of the ravine.IMG_2363

Two of our board members, Vince Reardon and Michael Page, got their hands dirty alongside our Program Assistant, Vince Rivas, and volunteer Stan Nelson. This is their last haul of debris before calling it quits for the day.

Special thanks to the 4S Ranch-Del Sur Community Foundation for providing the funding to host this project and educate the community about caring for our environment!

Visit CleanSD.org for more information about upcoming 2016 events!

From intern to director to goodbye

morgan team15 v2Today’s blog comes from one of I Love A Clean San Diego’s most tenured staff members, Morgan Justice Black, who is saying goodbye after working at ILACSD for almost a decade. Below, she reflects on her time with the organization. 

In June 2006, George W. Bush was the president, the World Cup was being played in Germany, the Disney film Cars was released, and I responded to a Craiglist posting for an unpaid internship with I Love A Clean San Diego. I’m not sure how much competition I had, but I landed the internship and my story with I Love A Clean San Diego began.

After a few months, I got lucky and my supervisor moved on. Again, somehow I landed her job and became the organization’s Volunteer & Events Coordinator at the ripe old age of 22. The best part of this gig…I was getting paid! I took the reins just in time for our biggest event of the year, the 22nd Annual Coastal Cleanup Day where I had to rub elbows with the likes of Supervisor Pam Slater Price and my childhood crush, local meteorologist Loren Nancarrow.

Here I am, the first photo of me on the job at Coastal Cleanup Day 2006. I don't look frantic at all...
Here I am, the first photo of me on the job at Coastal Cleanup Day 2006.

After a year on the job, I convinced my boss Pauline that we needed more help, so we hired someone even younger than me! Fresh out of college, Natalie arrived and became my right hand woman and still to this day Natalie and Pauline are key ingredients in the secret sauce that is ILACSD. I became the Outreach Director and tried the best I could to be involved in pretty much everything with ILACSD. I helped to orchestrate annual Halloween costume parties and earned the title of craziest office cat lady, as I fed the ever-growing pack of feral kittens. As the unofficial “jill of all trades” at ILACSD in those days, I got a lot of great experience doing a little of everything!

 

 

Those cats and I had a very special relationship. So special in fact that I would climb out of my office window to spend some quality time with them on my lunch break.
Those cats and I had a very special relationship. So special in fact that I would climb out of my office window to spend some quality time with them on my lunch break.

I learned how to maximize storage in our external storage unit, do dishes in the bathroom sink, and haggle for an office truck. I also learned the value of collaboration, and through new partnerships we began working closely with other nonprofits and companies to expand our programs.

2010 was a big year for me, and for ILACSD. We restructured and I became the Director of Development & Marketing. We also moved, saying goodbye to the office kitties, and hello to our current digs in Liberty Station. Over the years, I’ve written hundreds of grants, coordinated thousands of volunteers, been on tv too many times to count, had 5 different titles and attended 10 Coastal Cleanup Days – which just happen to always fall on my birthday weekend.

One of my proudest moments - getting ILACSD a truck for not a penny more than we wanted to pay for it!
One of my proudest moments – getting ILACSD a truck for not a penny more than we wanted to pay for it!

In fact, in 2013, I celebrated by 30th birthday at Coastal Cleanup Day with the ILACSD team, my family, a few elected officials and hundreds of volunteers. They actually sang happy birthday to me after Supervisor Cox announced over the microphone that it was my 30th birthday!

My 30th Birthday Party Posse at Coastal Cleanup Day!
My 30th Birthday Party Posse at Coastal Cleanup Day!

In addition to my “day job”, ILACSD has allowed me the flexibility to pursue my passion for volunteering in the community. With their support, I spent a number of years volunteering with the Junior League of San Diego and five years ago became a member of Women Give San Diego. I’ve been able to transfer skills from volunteering into the workplace and vis versa. And I’ve been able to fulfill my desire for constant civic engagement.

This week, after more than nine years and countless chapters, the story is coming to an end, as I say goodbye to the place that I’ve spend more time in than anywhere else in my adult life. I’ve developed many friendships, countless skills, but most importantly, I’ve grown into an adult under ILACSD’s watch. I’m sad to say goodbye, but I’m happy that ILACSD has instilled in me the confidence to go after a new opportunity in which I will continue to make San Diego a better place.

Thanks to all of you who have been a part of my journey over the last decade. It’s been quite a ride!

-MJB

Staff with Mannequin

Get to know our Program Assistants!

Today’s blog comes from I Love A Clean San Diego’s Development and Marketing Coordinator, Sarah who was inspired by all the hard work that our Program Assistants put into our programs. In addition to our office staff who coordinate events, and educate students about the environment, we have a wonderful team of Program Assistants, also known as PAs.  Read on to learn more about what it means to be a Program Assistant!

(Left to right) Angelica (PA), Halle (intern), Pia (PA), Nicole (PA) and former PA and current Community Programs Coordinator, Moriah all showing off our brand new temporary, I Love A Clean San Diego tattoos at Coastal Cleanup Day!

It’s no secret that we’ve been busy this Fall with everything from Coastal Cleanup Day, to Beautify Chula Vista Day, and most recently, our Fall Social Fundraiser. If you have ever wondered how we do what we do all year round, we’re here to let you in on a secret – Program Assistants. Program Assistants are not volunteers, but rather they are hired members of our staff. While they don’t normally work in the office, they are there to support us when we need them most, at cleanups, fundraising events, and educating students all over San Diego County. If you’ve ever been to one of our events, there is a good chance that they handed out the supplies that you needed, weighed the trash you collected, or came to your student’s classroom. Read below to learn more about each of our amazing Program Assistants!

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Grace joined the team just a couple months ago to support our environmental education department. When she’s not engaging a classroom full of students in a discussion about waste reduction and pollution prevention, you’ll find her running, stand up paddle boarding, and SCUBA diving. Check back in November to read her very first blog!

 

 

 

DSC00301Lauren is a recent Boston transplant who became interested in ILACSD after seeing our logo on a Clean Beach Coalition poster in Mission Beach. Lauren has a degree in environmental studies, and she’s most looking forward to connecting with San Diegans about recycling—at her last job, she successfully initiated a recycling incentive program for her coworkers.

 

DSC00315Vince also joined I Love A Clean San Diego earlier this year and has helped out at a number of our cleanups and adopt-a-beach presentations. In his spare time he’s working to start an organization with a mission to turn beach volleyball players into environmental stewards.

 

 

 

 

Angelica Truong 131 x 172Angelica is in SDSU’s Masters of Public Administration program and works part-time for the County of San Diego conducting research for the Climate Action Plan, LEED Neighborhood Development and other sustainability projects. Angelica is passionate about sustainable development and has a background in urban and regional planning. She’ll also be assisting with our recycling hotline!

 

SONY DSCIn addition to her work at the Water Conservation Garden, Pia has been a great extension of our staff as a program assistant. She runs a fabulous blog where she has highlighted her work with ILACSD and other environmental organizations.  She was also invited to speak on San Diego’s CW6!

NicoleNicole is one of our longest serving program assistants who helps out in the classroom, as well as at cleanups and fundraisers! We are very thankful to have such a knowledgeable and versatile team member like Nicole to support our programs.

Now that you’ve gotten to know our amazing team of Program Assistants, be sure to say hi to them the next time you’re at one of our events! For a current list of upcoming events, please visit our website!

 

Brittany’s litter-free beach day guide

Brittany FischerToday’s blog comes from our administrative assistant, Brittany! San Diego native, born and raised, Brittany it goes without saying that she loves our beaches and 4th of July. To get you jazzed for the long holiday weekend ahead, she has put together some of her favorite waste-free tips for a day at the beach!

 

 

Looking for something fun to do for the upcoming patriotic holiday? Why go anywhere else when you live in a city full of beautiful beaches! The 4th of July has always been one of my favorite holiday’s to spend at any beach in San Diego. With so many people at our beaches, there is one thing that tends to be left behind and that’s trash. This 4th of July, Clean Beach Coalition will have large trash and recycling bins located at Ocean Beach, Mission Beach, Mission Bay, and Pacific Beach to give every beachgoer a chance to continue to keep the beach sparkling clean!  Last year alone, the CBC bins collected 96,860 lbs of trash and 2.8 MILLION pounds in the last 8 years. Pretty impressive, right? In order to prevent more trash from ending up on our beaches this holiday, I wanted to share some of my favorite things to pack in order to stay green while still rocking red, white, and blue!

CBC bins
Keep an eye out for our huge trash and recycling bins. They’ll be hard to miss so be sure to put them to good use!

The key to staying green is to pack up all your reusable items to prevent any trash! Here is my easy to follow step-by-step guide to a waste-free weekend!

  1. For starters, instead of using a Styrofoam cooler, bring a more durable reusable cooler. Not only will it last you years, it prevents any Styrofoam pieces from ending up on our beaches and the Pacific Ocean where it will never biodegrade.

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    Plastic pieces are easily mistaken for food by marine animals causing serious health issues. Here are pieces mixed in with sea kelp recently found at a cleanup.
  2. When packing up your goodies, try using reusable containers to transferring and reusable silverware! Here are a couple of my personal favorite snacks to bring to my Fourth of July beach festivities:

Fourth of July Rice Crispies Treats are a favorite of mine. Not only are they easy to make, but you can put them in a reusable container and be set to go! Check out the recipe here!

Fruit Kabobs! All you need are some wooden skewers, strawberries, bananas, and blueberries and you have an ecofriendly, patriotic snack!

plastic free treats
Fruit kabobs are the perfect plastic-free treat! Although the skewers will eventually go in the trash, wood will naturally biodegrade with time, unlike plastic.

 

3. Feeling thirsty? Fill up a reusable water bottle and bring it with you! Did you know American’s throw away 35 billion water bottles a year? It’s important to reduce bringing plastics to our beaches because once plastic enters the ocean, it is extremely difficult to clean up. Don’t have a reusable water bottle? Check out some of ILACSD’s reusable water bottles online!

patriotic water bottle
Brittany always carries her reusable water bottle wherever she goes whether it’s the beach, a park or work. Check out our merchandise to get you own ILACSD gear to sport around town!

4. Don’t have anything to pack up the rest of your goods? Use a tote bag! My favorite tote bag can be washed and reused over and over again. Do your best to not bring plastic bags to the beach, not only are they not recyclable but if blown into the ocean, marine mammals can accidentally mistake them for food.

Still not ready to end your beach time this weekend? Come show your patriotism in a new way with I Love A Clean San Diego on July 5th for the Morning After Mess Cleanup. From 8-11am we will clean up the excess trash left behind on Mission Beach from the holiday celebrations. Plus, the first 400 volunteers will receive a free tee from REI!

Whether you decide to stay in San Diego this 4th of July Weekend or travel elsewhere, please enjoy the scene, but keep it clean. Have a safe and wonderful 4th of July!

 

 

 

Meet Moriah!

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Today’s blog comes from our new Community Program Coordinator, Moriah Saldaña! Originally from Redlands, Califorina, Moriah first joined ILACSD nearly two years ago as a Program Assistant, working evenings and weekends while in school. Well, Moriah recently graduated with her Masters degree in Public Administration and we welcomed her on board full-time as our Community Program Coordinator. Read on to learn more about the newest mastermind behind our cleanups! 

Q: What brought you to I Love A Clean San Diego?
A: What stood out to me about ILACSD was the organization’s focus on individual empowerment to create noticeable changes in our community and our environment. I have been passionate about the environment since I was a little girl, going on river walks and learning about native plants with my mother.  It wasn’t until college though that I found myself able to make small but noticeable changes at my university, such as advocating for composting food waste on campus and starting the university’s now annual bike week.  Once I moved to San Diego I looked for an organization that would allow to me continue my passion for better our local environment, and ILACSD was a perfect fit!

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Last month Moriah completed her Masters degree in Public Administration from SDSU. Congrats, Moriah!

Q: What environmental topic are you most passionate about?
A: I think that one of the best ways to make a positive environmental impact as an individual is through being a smart consumer, so it is important to me that everyone has access to the information they need to “vote with their wallet.”  I make a conscious effort to buy items that use less or ideally zero plastic packing and that do not contain ingredients that our harmful to our environment, like microbeads.  Shopping in this way not only reduces your environmental footprint but also encourages companies to make more sustainable choices when developing their products.

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“…it is important to me that everyone has access to the information they need to ‘vote with their wallet.'”
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Moriah, Natalie and Lexi at this year’s Creek to Bay Cleanup. Be sure to join them for Coastal Cleanup Day happening Saturday, September 19th!

Q: What is your favorite ILACSD program?
A: The two annual countywide cleanup efforts that we coordinate, Coastal Cleanup Day and Creek to Bay, are my favorite events at ILACSD.  The amount of teamwork, energy, and thought that goes into these large scale events highlight what a great team we have here at ILACSD.  I am consistently impressed at the volunteer turnout and environmental impact at these events. The next one, Coastal Cleanup Day, is set for Saturday, September 19th – be sure to save the date! 

Q:“When I’m not at a cleanup you can find me…”
A: San Diego has provided me with the unique opportunity to explore the world of craft beer! I love the culture and the artisanship of the craft brewing industry in San Diego, so in my free time I am often imbibing at a local brewery or experimenting with home brewing in my own kitchen. I, also, use growlers as much as possible for at-home consumption so that I am not generating so much waste with cans or bottles. 

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Outside of the office and organizing cleanups, Moriah spends her time brewing her own beer!
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Sometimes your booth gets placed in the middle of a reptile exhibit!

Q: Since joining ILACSD, what has been your most memorable moment?
A: As a Program Assistant with ILACSD, I had the opportunity to go to a lot of community fairs and events in order to tell people about our organization.  There was one event where my booth was located in the middle of the reptile exhibit at Agua Hedionda Lagoon Discovery Center. I had never touched a snake before, but within an hour I had one wrapped around my neck, and then a different one around my wrist for almost the entire day.   There was also a massive tortoise walking around the fair, as well as a bearded dragon that took residence on top of my flyers. That was definitely the most interesting community event I have attended.

If you haven’t met Moriah already, there is a good chance that you will at one of our upcoming cleanups. Stay connect on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as well as our website to learn about how to get involved!

Unique Partnership Captures Cross-Border Message

SONY DSCFor today’s blog, ILACSD’s Development & Marketing Coordinator, Sarah, collaborated with Lucy Eagleson, Program Coordinator & Media Educator from Outside the Lens (OTL) to highlight one of ILACSD’s most cherished partnerships. Read on to learn more about how we meshed digital media and environmental stewardship to bring our Kids’ Ocean Day aerial art to life!

First, a little bit of background information about OTL, Lucy and how this partnership came to be.

Lucy spends a lot of her time as a Media Educator in San Diego classrooms, helping students find their voice within and express it through digital media arts. By looking at current and historical photography and films, students come to understand that a picture is often worth a thousand words, and sometimes even more. Lucy enjoys partnering with I Love A Clean San Diego for Kids’ Ocean Day because it brings together her passion for photography and making a difference in our community.

Kids' Ocean Day 2012
Kids’ Ocean Day 2012

 

ILACSD staff have worked together with OTL for Kids’ Ocean Day for many years now, but this year we threw Lucy a curve ball – a bi-national aerial art image. Without going into too many details, a bi-national aerial art image posed some challenges for Lucy and the Corporate Helicopter team, but at the end of the day we couldn’t be happier with the end result.

Lucy Eagleson - OTL
“I believe in the power of images and the stories they tell. Images speak where words cannot, and carry within them beautiful narratives that have the momentum to move people to change.” – Lucy Eagleson, OTL

Close to 1,200 students, their teachers and volunteers from both sides of the border came together to remove harmful pieces of beach debris along Border Field State Park and Playas de Tijuana. After the cleanup, one-by-one, the students filled into the aerial art outline to form this year’s cross-border aerial art image and commemorate the first-ever bi-national Kids’ Ocean Day! Below is one of our favorite pictures of the aerial art formation coming to life!

Students filling in the aerial art formation and patiently waiting for Lucy in the helicopter to capture the art from the sky!

 

This stunning image clearly demonstrates that we all need to do our part to protect our environment and that the ocean knows no borders. The message reads “UNITE POR EL MAR” which translates to unite for the sea. This image has received an overwhelming response on social media and from local media alike, for which we are extremely grateful.

UNITE POR EL MAR!
First-ever bi-national Kids’ Ocean Day aerial art image!

It goes without saying that a special “thank you” goes out to Outside The Lens, Lucy, and the Corporate Helicopter team for capturing this powerful image!

Be sure to follow and like ILACSD and OTL on your favorite social media networks to stay connected to the great work happening year-round!

Facebook logo Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/iloveacleansd

https://www.facebook.com/OutsideTheLens

 

Twitter_logo_blueTwitter:

https://twitter.com/iloveacleansd – @ilacsd

https://twitter.com/OutsideTheLens – @OutsideTheLens

instagram logo Instagram:

https://instagram.com/iloveacleansd/

https://instagram.com/outsidethelens/

 

About Outside the Lens – Outside the Lens empowers youth to use digital media to create change within themselves, their community, and the world. Students see how the power of their photos can speak louder than words and even inspire change in the community around them. 

www.outsidethelens.org

 

Greetings from DC!

MJB-2010-photoshop-picToday’s blog comes from our Director of Development & Marketing, Morgan Justice Black, who along with another member of the ILACSD team, are in Washington DC this week for the Keep America Beautiful conference.

 

 

Hello from a chilly Washington, D.C. Even though it may only be 25 degrees outside, we are having a great time at the Keep America Beautiful National Conference learning more about how affiliates throughout the US create vibrant communities through community beautification, litter prevention, waste reduction and recycling! We made it to D.C., despite blizzard warnings and having to sprint through the Philadelphia airport to make our connection. And once we arrived…it was snowing! Quite a change for the two of us, both born and raised in San Diego! Well, the conference kicked off with a keynote address from Peter Kageyama, the man who has written two books about loving your city. How perfect, since we have a little fondness for the word “love” too! He spoke about the importance of gathering people together to interact casually in the outdoors. Can you guess where the most social place probably is in your city? The dog park!

Last night was the awards dinner, and I have to say that ILACSD certainly cleaned up! We were up and down accepting three…yep…three first place awards! And we have the pictures to prove it!

Natalie Roberts, Morgan Justice Black and Keep America Beautiful COO Becky Lyons with out awards!
Natalie Roberts, Morgan Justice Black and Keep America Beautiful COO Becky Lyons with our awards!

Our awards included first place for our Cigarette Litter Prevention Program, a program that we implement in San Diego in partnership with the Surfrider Foundation’s Hold onto your Butts program. Over the last five years, we’ve installed and maintained more than 100 ash receptacles in San Diego, helping make a dent in the amount of cigarette butts picked up during cleanups! In fact, in the areas that we’ve done this program, cigarette litter has decreased by an average 64%! This was a well deserved award for Natalie and her team in the Community Events Department!

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Natalie accepting the CLPP award from KAB staffer Bronwen Evans.

 

Next, ILACSD was the recipient of a storytelling award, and this is the first year that this award category has been offered! Keep America Beautiful judges sifted through dozens of promotional materials, media articles, social media messages and more to identify five affiliates who are doing best at telling their story of building better communities. This is a true team win for us, as every member of the ILACSD team is involved in writing blogs and contributing to our social media!

Morgan, accepting the Storyteller Award from KAB staffer Mike Rosen, who was celebrating his 3rd day on the job!
Morgan, accepting the Storyteller Award from KAB staffer Mike Rosen, who was celebrating his 3rd day on the job!

The most exciting part of last night was the final awards category, the National Affiliate Awards. ILACSD was honored to receive First Place and awarded “Affiliate of the Year”. The plaque might not fit in our suitcases, but it will make it back to San Diego eventually! This award is truly an honor, since ILACSD has been an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful since the 1970’s. In fact, at breakfast today a man came up to me and told me how proud I should be to be part of I Love A  Clean San Diego because we were (and still are) a pioneer in the environmental movement! Back in the 1970’s, there were less than 50 KAB affiliates nationally, and we were the only one in California. Now there are more than 600 affiliates, and although I am biased, I have to say that we are one of the best!

So cheers from Washington, DC and thanks to all of our supporters for being part of our success!

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Now it’s time for a nap…this three hour time difference is killer when the conference starts at 8am local time!