Press Release

Hundreds of Thousands to Participate in 5th Annual National CleanUp Day on September 18

Volunteers in every U.S. State and Territory to take part and help clean their communities

DENVER, CO, Sept. 14, 2021 — National CleanUp Day®, the annual event that takes place the third Saturday of every September, will return for year five on September 18. Organized in partnership with EARTHDAY.ORGKeep America Beautiful®, and World Cleanup Day, National CleanUp Day expects nearly one million volunteers across the country to get outside and safely clean up their neighborhoods, parks, beaches, rivers, forests and everywhere in between.

In additon to groups and individuals taking part, government leaders are also on board with National CleanUp Day’s cause. A number of community leaders are supporting their constituents to participate in the various local cleanups in their area. 

San Jose’s Mayor Sam Liccardo is excited about this weekend. “Here in San Jose we are enthusiastically in on National CleanUp Day. We’re launching a mass effort with thousands of volunteers, and partnering in new ways with members of our community.”

EARTHDAY.ORG is also getting in gear for the mass effort on September 18. Just recently, they hosted a panel on Earth Day Live titled, Adopt the Earth & Go Clean Up: Participating in World Cleanup Day and Beyond.

The session featured leading voices who have dedicated their careers to protecting the environment and keeping communities around the world clean. Featured speakers included:

  • Matthew Lefler (Moderator) — The Great Global Cleanup Coordinator, EARTHDAY.ORG 
  • Steve Jewett — Founder and President, National CleanUp Day 
  • Jennifer Tabanico — President, Action Research
  • Meg Carney — Senior Editor, CleanUp News
  • Dr. David Scott – Senior Director of Research, Monitoring & Evaluation, Keep America Beautiful

Check out Earth Day Live to hear how events like National CleanUp Day, World Cleanup Day, and EARTHDAY.ORG’s The Great Global Cleanup can make a large impact on local communities and the environment as a whole. 

Matthew Lefler, EARTHDAY.ORG’s The Great Global Cleanup Coordinator, expounded; “Cleanups can inspire every day citizens to work together with one another for a great cause and engage with their community leaders. National CleanUp Day is important not only because it helps tackle the issue of mismanaged waste across the country, but also because it can spark important policy discussions regarding waste management and plastic pollution.”

To view a map of existing cleanups, join, or even create your own, please visit nationalcleanupday.org. Every cleanup, big, small, or even individual will make a difference. 

All participants should adhere to local COVID-19 guidelines. 

About National CleanUp Day
National CleanUp Day is a call to action. National CleanUp Day is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, dedicated to keeping our nation’s urban, rural, and outdoor public spaces free of litter and trash. This year’s National CleanUpDay is supported by the number one seller of oatmilk in the US, Planet Oat and a network of environmentally conscious partners. Learn more at nationalcleanupday.org 

National CleanUp Day Content for Editorial Use: https://www.nationalcleanupday.org/media

About EARTHDAY.ORG:
EARTHDAY.ORG’s mission is to diversify, educate, and activate the environmental movement worldwide. Growing out of the first Earth Day (1970), EARTHDAY.ORG is the world’s largest recruiter to the environmental movement, working with more than 150,000 partners in nearly 192 countries to build environmental democracy. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world. Its flagship volunteer initiative, The Great Global Cleanup™ takes place in April each year and engages millions of volunteers in creating clean communities worldwide. Learn more at earthday.org.

About Keep America Beautiful 
Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s leading community improvement nonprofit organization, inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. Established in 1953, 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. The organization is driven by the work and passion of more than 650 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. Learn more at kab.org.

About World Cleanup Day 
Let’s Do It World is a global organization that unites more than 164 countries’ teams worldwide into the biggest active network to unite their efforts for the waste free World. The World Cleanup Day is the biggest event organized by LDIW and during the last three worldwide cleanups have engaged more than 50 million people from 180 countries. Let’s Do It World network is addressing numerous global and regional projects to catalyze the activities in countries for the circular economy as well for the zero waste. Learn more at worldcleanupday.org