GREEN UP GUIDE for Town Coordinators - Green Up Vermont
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GREEN UP GUIDE
for Town Coordinators
Green Up Vermont is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to cleaning
up the state of Vermont. On the first Saturday in May annually, Green Up
Vermont sponsors a state-wide Green Up Day and Town Coordinators
organize volunteers to clean up roadside trash in their respective towns.
Green Up Vermont provides the signatur bright green bags for collection of
trash. Anyone can participate in Green Up Day including families, businesses,
youth groups, and schools. Many past participants have expressed a great
sense of pride for their town and continue to participate yearly.
The Green Up Guide is designed to explain the current practices and proud
traditions so Town Coordinators can confidently set up Green Up Day in their
towns.
Visit our website: www.greenupvermont.com
Email: greenup@greenupvermont.com
Call us: 1-800-974-3259, or 1-802-229-4586
GREEN UP VERMONT
www.greenupvermont.org
“Do you LoVermont? Well if you do, you probably
should know a little bit about Green Up Day.
Green Up Day is important because you come
together with your family and friends and support
the environment by cleaning it up. Remember, you
can pick up trash any day of the year. Just doing
these small things can make a vast difference in the
community, in Vermont, in the environment, and
the world.” -Brody Brown, Grade 6
Table of Contents
Green Up Day ........................................................................................................ 3
History ................................................................................................................... 3
Town Coordinators and their Responsibilities ................................................. 4
Where to find Volunteers .......................................................................... 5
Publicity for Green Up Day ....................................................................... 6
Our Poster .................................................................................................. 6
Social Media ................................................................................................7
Green bag ordering, distribution and disposal information ...................7
Other things that make the day special ................................................... 9
Communicating with Volunteers ....................................................................... 9
What to tell your Volunteers about Safety ....................................................... 12
General FAQs about Green Up Day .................................................................. 13
Volunteers Info Sheet ......................................................................................... 15
Town Coordinator Checklist ............................................................................. 16
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GREEN UP VERMONT
www.greenupvermont.org Green Up
Green Up Day Means
Green Up Day began in April 1970 and continues
Clean Up
today as a unique Vermont tradition, attracting
communities throughout the Green Mountain State
to remove litter and trash from roadways,
waterways, and public places. Over 22,000
volunteers come out annually to participate. Hosted
annually on the first Saturday in May, Green Up Day
is open to the public as an effective way to clean up
and protect the local environment. Green Up Day
operates by use of donations from charitable
businesses and individuals in the state of Vermont.
History
“They collected virtually every
glass bottle, every metal can,
every scrap of paper which had
been cast onto the roadside [ ]
by Saturday evening Vermont
was undoubtedly the cleanest
state in the nation.”
Senator George Aiken, 1971
Updated for 2019
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GREEN UP VERMONT www.greenupvermont.org Vermont Governor Deane Davis made national history by initiating Green Up Day in 1969, with the first official Green Up Day being held on April 18, 1970. The first Green Up Day resulted in the clearing of 2,280 miles of Vermont interstates (95%) and 6,225 miles of town roads (75%). For additional information of our history see the History Guide. Town Coordinators and their Responsibilities Town coordinators are responsible for promoting Green Up Day in their communities, filling out the coordinator report, finding volunteers, suggesting areas for cleanup, distributing bags, and counting the volunteers. Below are several sections to aid in the coordination of your towns Green Up effort. These include sections such as where to find volunteers, different ways to publicize the event, how you will receive your posters and bags, and the Facebook.com/GreenUpVermont GreenUpVermont.org #GreenUpVermont 4
GREEN UP VERMONT
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various tips to help in the planning.
Where to find Volunteers
Here are the most
common ways to find
volunteers:
Service
Organizations –
Rotary, Lions,
Kiwanis, local
conservation
commission
Businesses – employees can form teams for cleanup; they could help
invite residents or groups to come out and participate with them; they
could adopt their road frontage to keep clean year round; they could
donate prizes or gifts for Green Up
participants, or have special sales Saturday
afternoon / Sunday for participants.
Young people –
o Boy Scouts / Girl Scouts (Cubs, Tigers,
Brownies, and Daisies)
o Future Farmers of America
o 4H
o Teen centers
o JROTC
o Local teen centers
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o Church youth groups
o Schools: elementary, middle and high school classes and clubs or
individual students
o Youth sports teams (Little League, swim team, soccer team, etc.)
Other sources – Neighbors, Job corps, Police department, Home Dem
Clubs, Parents Club, PTO, Land Trust, Town Road Crew, Firefighters,
Modern Woodsmen, Fast Squad, Select Board, Athletic Association,
Neighborhood Green Up Association, local Grange
Tip – One great way to find volunteers is with Front Porch Forum.
Publicity for Green Up Day
Green Up Vermont provides generalized publicity for Green Up Day in
Vermont's newspapers. You can submit information on the specifics of what is
happening in your town to your local paper. Green Up Vermont also provides
announcements on local radio stations and printed posters showcasing the
winning design of the current year's drawing contest.
Town coordinators are encouraged to share Green Up Day details and post
pictures on their local Front Porch Forum.
Our Poster and Writing Contests
An annual poster contest is held for school children in grades K-12 with the
winning design reproduced as the promotional poster for Green Up Day and
distributed throughout Vermont. The overall winner also receives $250. An
annual writing contest is also held for grades K-12. The overall writing winner
receives $250. Guidelines for both contests are on the Poster and Writing
Contests page of the Green Up Vermont website.
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Social Media
All local coordinators and volunteers are
encouraged to post pictures and local information
about Green Up Day to Front Porch Forum, send
Tweets with #GreenUpDay and #GreenUpVermont,
and hang posters. Read the Publicity Guide for more
information.
Green bag ordering, distribution and disposal
information
Submitting your report – Submit your
coordinator’s report online with number of
volunteers and amount of trash collected; you will
receive the same number of bags and posters that
you received the previous year. To receive a
different number (less or more) please email the
Green Up Vermont with those specifics.
The Green Up Vermont office maintains a list of the
number of bags and posters previously
requested by towns. Town Clerks and
previous coordinators often have
information on how many bags were used in
previous years. We are a 501 (c) 3
organization.
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GREEN UP VERMONT www.greenupvermont.org Arrange details for trash pickup – New coordinators should contact their Town Clerk or previous coordinator for information on disposal that has been handled in the past, or contact your local hauler(s) to see if they will cover it. For Central Vermont, the solid waste district often gives a “grant” to help defer costs for member towns. Chittenden County Solid Waste District covers disposal costs, as does Lamoille Regional Solid Waste. At this time, Lamoille Regional Solid waste does not accept tires. In some areas, volunteers leave the bags along the road for pickup; in other areas they bring them to a central location. The website’s Get Involved page provides this information to the public, so please check to make sure it is accurate. Make bags available to volunteers – Decide on a location such as town hall, fire station, police station, school, town green, etc. Publicize when and where bags will be available. Bags can be handed out on Green Up Day, or prior. If you are a new coordinator, check with your Town Office to see where “I think Green Up Day is the best idea we have created here in Vermont. I think it is cool that everyone can participate in Green Up Day. I think we should keep this tradition going forever and ever!” Blake Clark, Grade 6 Facebook.com/GreenUpVermont GreenUpVermont.org #GreenUpVermont 8
GREEN UP VERMONT www.greenupvermont.org the bags are usually distributed. Other things that make the day special Refreshments are the most often item offered beyond the meeting place, bags and disposal plan. Some town officials provide this treat, in other towns businesses and organizations donate food and beverages. Barbeques are also popular. Scavenger hunts – with prizes donated by local businesses. In some towns, local banks have donated savings bonds; other businesses have donated gift certificates. “Litter bug” hunt – in Arlington, a volunteer makes litter bugs out of wood pieces, painted red, and pipe cleaner legs. The bugs are placed in clean up areas; prizes go to children that find them. Scavenger hunt Categories – create categories of different litter items, whoever finds the most wins. Categories such as Most Unusual Items, Largest Quantity of Trash Collected, Most Dangerous (keep safety in mind), Most Apparel, or a category of your own design! Communicating with Volunteers Facebook.com/GreenUpVermont GreenUpVermont.org #GreenUpVermont 9
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Please provide the following information to
volunteers in your area. Posting the details about
When, Where, and What to Wear on Front Porch
Forum is highly recommended.
Encourage volunteers to come with friends, family,
co-workers, youth group, church group, classmates,
sports team or neighbors. Anyone can volunteer to
clean up on Green Up Day!
People may want to help out, but might not be able
to clean up on Saturday. Let them know of any
opportunities to help with the day – this may be
helping with refreshments for volunteers, helping
distribute (or pick
up/hauling) bags, or
getting a bag and picking
up an area early.
When: Saturday,
May 4, 2019
o First Saturday
in May, every
year
Where: Let
volunteers know
where to get bags
What to wear:
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o Work boots (with ankle support recommended), heavy duty shoes,
or similar
o Long pants (jeans or other heavy material)
o Bright / light colored shirts
o Work gloves
o Jackets, hats, layers for weather
o Reflective items
o Sunscreen, insect repellent (Be Tick Smart!)
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What to tell Volunteers about Safety
Safety is always a concern when working alongside a busy road or
intersection. Please encourage volunteer safety when working to improve our
towns, general guidelines to be aware of are as follows:
Keep a First Aid Kit available
Work with partners or teams, one side of the road at a time
o Travel by vehicle to the other side
Keep volunteers and vehicles on the same side of the road, parking 10
feet from shoulder
Watch footing, especially on slopes
Prevent overexertion – take breaks, drink water
Contact local leader about
hazardous waste (dead
animals, needles,
suspected toxic /
hazardous materials)
Groups with children
should have two cars
o One “lead” car ahead
and one “follow” car,
with the children
working in between
Be tick smart – wear long sleeves and pants, use insect repellent, check
for ticks
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General FAQs about Green Up Day
Common questions asked by Green Up Day coordinators and volunteers.
When is Green Up day?
Green Up Day is held annually always on the first Saturday in May. This
year it will be held on Saturday, May 4th.
What time does Green Up Day start and finish?
Each town’s clean up runs independently of each other but generally they
start around 8 – 9 am and run until noon. Talk your local coordinator for
exact times, or check the website’s Get Involved page for your town’s details.
How to get in contact with a Green Up representative?
Green Up Vermont has a volunteer town coordinator in every town and city
in Vermont. Contact your town office or visit the Green Up Vermont
website’s Get Involved page to find your local representative at
www.greenupvermont.org.
Where do town coordinators get the green bags for clean up?
The signature green trash bags can be picked up at your local town office
and/or at assigned local businesses. The number of bags is based on the
previous year’s usage.
Are there other ways I can help?
Volunteer to be a town coordinator, help with the organization and
distribution of the Green Up bags, or hang posters to spread the word
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about Green Up Day. Choosing any of these suggestions is helpful
because Green Up Day is solely supported by volunteers.
Encourage people to participate in Green Up Day!
Use social media and spread awareness about the Green Up movement.
You can do so by posting on your local Front Porch Forum website or
by following us on Facebook/Instagram/Twitter and by spreading the
word to your neighbors and friends.
How can I donate?
Donations can be made through the Green Up Vermont website at
www.greenupvermont.org or choose to donate a small amount of your
Vermont Income Tax Return. Ask your tax preparer or look for the
designated line near the end of your return. These donations support Green
Up Vermont a private non-profit organization, not a state agency. See an
example below of where to find the donation line on a tax form.
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Volunteer Info Sheet
Green Up bags
First Aid kit
Work gloves, boots (highly recommended)
Jacket, hat, layers for weather
Extra clothing
Reflective clothing items
Sunscreen / insect repellent
Contact information for hazardous material (get from town
coordinator)
Be Tick Smart – Wear long clothing, use insect repellent & check
for ticks afterwards
Come with your friends, family, co-workers, youth group, church
group, classmates, sports team or neighbors. Anyone can volunteer
to clean up on Green Up Day!
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Town Coordinator Checklist
Fill out coordinator’s report with your volunteer/trash numbers
Determine pick up and drop off points
Distribute bags
Provide contact information to participants for hazardous waste
Count number of volunteers to report participation
Arrange details of any after-cleanup activities / refreshments
Collect volunteers’ email addresses for easy contact next year.
Post Green Up Day details to your town’s Facebook page.
Provide safety information to volunteers, possibly through Front
Porch Forum but also with our printable info sheet.
Publicize locally, especially on Front Porch Forum
Post in March – tell everyone how to donate on the tax form
April – tell your volunteers to mark their calendars
Early May – remind volunteers about safety and details
Just after Green Up Day – Thank all volunteers and town workers
and tell the community how many trash bags were filled.
Encourage volunteers to take selfies throughout the day and
post on our Facebook and Twitter pages. Use Hashtags
#Green UpVermont #GreenUpDay
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