BRAC’s nonprofit joining anti-litter efforts
The Greater Baton Rouge Economic Partnership, the nonprofit arm of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, will receive a grant from Keep Louisiana Beautiful for its new Take 5 Campaign.
GBREP’s Take 5 Campaign is an anti-litter initiative aiming to engage, educate and equip organizations in the region to commit to taking five minutes of their day, every day, to clean up and reduce litter.
The $8,000 Healthy Communities Grant is expected to help support the campaign. GBREP’s strategy harnesses existing anti-litter partners to create unified messaging that underscores the goal of reducing the visible litter throughout commercial corridors. The partnership’s goal is to engage hundreds of citizens in Baton Rouge for the campaign.
Organizations who pledge to “Take 5” will be given litter grabbers, safety vests, gloves and garbage bags to kickstart their own clean ups. The initiative also aims to create a cultural attitude shift and boost pride in place, as the Baton Rouge area suffers from an internal negative perception of itself.
The need for a larger cultural shift against litter was expressed by several community leaders in a recent feature on the issue in Business Report. The city has long grappled to tackle blight, litter and other visual pollution, and previous Mayors Bobby Simpson and Kip Holden repeatedly “declared war” on the issue. Read the full feature.