Posted on Sep 21, 2023 | News,Press Releases
Keep Louisiana Beautiful Announces 2023-2024 Healthy Communities and Community Affiliate Grant Recipients
MANDEVILLE, La. – Keep Louisiana Beautiful (KLB) is pleased to announce the 2023-2024 Healthy Communities and Community Affiliate grant recipients. Both KLB grant programs, totaling $236,046, reduce litter and waste, educate citizens, increase recycling, and/or strengthen litter enforcement.
“The people of Louisiana don’t want to live in a dirty state,” says Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “My office is proud to support Keep Louisiana Beautiful’s grant programs, which lead to cleaner, greener communities for residents to enjoy and thrive in.”
“Since 2004, Keep Louisiana Beautiful has awarded over $4.7 million in grants for community improvement projects in Louisiana,” says Susan Russell, KLB Executive Director. “Thanks to the hard work of our grant recipients, communities throughout the state are experiencing a reduction in litter, improved recycling, and increased public awareness around the issues of litter and waste.”
The Healthy Communities Grant program has approved up to $193,066 for 31 organizations in 16 parishes. Eligible were Louisiana non-profit organizations, governmental agencies, schools and universities, and KLB Affiliates.
The Community Affiliate Grant program has approved up to $29,473 for 17 cleanup supplies grants and up to $13,507 for six program grants. Eligible for these grants were KLB’s Community Affiliates in good standing. Cleanup supply grant recipients receiving litter grabbers, trash bags, safety vests, gloves, and volunteer shirts include Abita, Baker, Bossier, DeRidder, DeSoto, Eunice, Jefferson, Livingston, Madisonville, Mandeville, New Orleans, Ouachita, Slidell, St. Mary, Tangipahoa, West Monroe, and Shreveport Green. Program grant recipients include Abita, Algiers, DeSoto, Slidell, St. James, and Shreveport Green.
Current grant opportunities include the KLB Greener Grounds Grant for outdoor events, KLB Trash Receptacle Grant, and KLB Beautification Grant. Online applications and more information can be found at keeplouisianabeautiful.org.
Information about 2023-2024 grant recipient projects and programs follows the close of the release. Contact [email protected] for more information.
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2023-24 Healthy Communities Grant Recipients by Parish:
Allen
Organization: Town of Oberlin
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Litter education program
Officials in the Town of Oberlin are launching an educational program designed to educate the public about their environmental responsibilities and how carelessness can have a direct impact on community development.
Ascension
Organization: City of Donaldsonville
Grant Amount: $5,500
Project: Litter prevention education program
The City of Donaldsonville will implement a litter prevention program for school-aged children. Youth will create “citations” or “citation books” to use when their family or friend is littering. This will promote environmental stewardship by empowering children to act as “litter law enforcement professionals.”
Assumption
Organization: Assumption ARC
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Recycling campaign
Assumption ARC will implement larger, wind-safe recycling bins throughout the parish to allow for more items to be recycled and to minimize the amount of litter that ends up around citizens’ receptacles.
Caddo
Organization: Shreveport Community Church
Grant Amount: $2,505
Project: Litter and Waste Removal
The Shreveport Community Church intends to improve and increase community involvement in its program called “I Love West Shreveport,” which is focused on trash and waste removal throughout the community. Funds will go to waste removal and litter cleanup supplies.
East Baton Rouge
Organization: CACRC
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Technological Recycling
In efforts to raise awareness for the importance of proper technology and computer disposal, the Capital Area Corporate Recycling Council is working to implement a public awareness campaign regarding E-waste via digital interstate billboards and digital surface billboards throughout the East Baton Rouge area.
Organization: City of Baker
Grant Amount: $4,000
Project: Traffic Cams for illegal dumping and Trash Receptacles
To reduce the occurrence of illegal dumping, the City of Baker will implement trap cams around areas that experience high levels of illegal dumping. The City of Baker has also recognized a need for larger trash receptacles and will implement these receptacles in various retail areas throughout the city.
Organization: City of Central
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Education and law enforcement litter program
The City of Central plans to purchase 60 signs to discourage illegal dumping and five solar-powered cameras for litter enforcement. The City of Baker also plans to launch a media campaign to stress the importance of proper trash disposal and to report on the progress of the program.
Organization: Clean Pelican
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Environmental Education Expansion
Clean Pelican plans to expand their current “Map It Clean” educational program to three additional schools in the East Baton Rouge area including Westdale Heights Academic Magnet School, Franciscan High, and the Brighton School.
Organization: Mid-City Redevelopment Alliance
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: FixUp! Program
The Mid-City Redevelopment Alliance will launch its FixUp Program to prevent surface trash and encourage residents to create and implement cleanups within their community by eliminating the financial barriers hindering people to do so.
Organization: The Greater Baton Rouge Economic Partnership
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Cleanup supplies distribution
The Greater Baton Rouge Economic Partnership is purchasing litter grabbers, gloves, vests, and contractor-sized garbage bags which will be given to businesses, schools, churches, and any individual willing to commit their time every day to pick up litter wherever they are.
Organization: The Walls Project
Grant Amount: $7,150
Project: Green Art Community Workshops
The Walls Project will be hosting a free accessible “green art” community workshop to teach participants how to reduce the environmental impact of their art practice. The Baton Roots farm staff will also be working to assist in the growth and harvesting of indigenous plants which will be processed and used as natural paint pigment.
Evangeline
Organization: Town of Mamou
Grant Amount: $2,600
Project: Custom Anti-litter signs and public relations campaign
Officials within the Town of Mamou are working to promote their anti-litter campaign with the instillation of custom anti-litter signs throughout the community. Officials are also working to launch their public relations campaign which will be focused on promoting litter abatement and beautification projects.
Jefferson
Organization: Academy of Our Lady
Grant Amount: $2,500
Project: The Penelope Composting Project
Academy of Our Lady will reduce food waste by implementing a sustainable composting program on campus led by the Environmental Science class. The Composting Network will come to the school three times a week and return composted soil back to the school garden.
Lafayette
Organization: City of Scott
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Trash trailer
The City of Scott will purchase a new trailer dedicated to litter collection for use by city personnel and volunteers for the upcoming campaign event, the “Sweep Scott Litter Campaign.”
Organization: Lafayette Consolidated Government
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Mardi Gras recycling & litter prevention campaign
Lafayette consolidated government plans to launch a marketing campaign to raise awareness of the importance of proper trash disposal and recycling during the Mardi Gras season with the goal of positively impacting the mindset of krewe members and patrons when it comes to littering.
Organization: Parish Proud
Grant Amount: $7,980
Project: Cleanup supplies
Parish Proud will purchase additional supplies for their Parish Proud Troops Litter Mitigation Program to meet the growing volunteer need for supplies. The troop bags will consist of 20 grabbers, vests, trash bags, and a retractable flag to increase volunteers’ visibility and safety.
Livingston
Organization: City of Denham Springs
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Purchase of litter collection trailer
In order to maintain clean roadways and keep up with the increasing number of people on the road resulting in increased litter, the City of Denham Springs will purchase a covered trailer to be able to collect and carry larger amounts of litter.
Organization: Keep Livingston Beautiful
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Additional litter trailer
In order to keep up with the mass influx of people on major interstates within the past years, Keep Livingston Beautiful will purchase an additional litter trailer to reduce litter and promote waste reduction within the community.
Orleans
Organization: Glassroots
Grant Amount: $6,639
Project: Glass recycling expansion and accessibility
Grassroots is opening a new glass drop-off location in the Treme/Seventh Ward area to make glass recycling more accessible to lower-income areas that do not currently have sustainable recycling options.
Organization: Grounds Krewe NOLA
Grant Amount: $6,665
Project: Litter trailer
The Grounds Krewe will purchase an enclosed cargo trailer to increase the operational efficiency of transporting its sustainable throws and recycling equipment/waste. The trailer will also serve as a “rolling advertisement” for the non-profit’s mission to provide waste prevention, recycling, and sustainable products for New Orleans events.
Organization: St. Michael Special School
Grant Amount: $3,150
Project: Bead Recycling Program
The St. Michael Special School is continuing its bead recycling program and plans to purchase two heavy-duty tilt trucks for transport. The recycled beads will be sorted, packaged, and given out to krewe members for the upcoming Mardi Gras season.
Organization: The Academy of the Sacred Heart
Grant Amount: $4,268
Project: Waste diversion and Recycling
The Academy of Sacred Heart will continue its food waste, recycling, and diversion programs, which are provided to all campus community members. Additionally, they plan on adding onsite glass recycling bins at both campuses to increase glass recycling throughout the community.
Organization: Thrive New Orleans
Grant Amount: $3,850
Project: Litter cleanups and stormwater waste reduction campaign
Thrive New Orleans will organize community cleanups to support litter/waste reduction following the Mardi Gras season with goals to reduce the amount of litter that ends up in our waterways and promote the sustainment of clean catch basins. They will also launch a media campaign to educate community members on the importance of waste reduction to stormwater management.
Ouachita
Organization: Town of Sterlington
Grant Amount: $7,500
Project: Dump trailer
The Town of Sterlington will purchase a large dump trailer for hauling litter and large debris following cleanups.
Organization: University of Louisiana at Monroe
Grant Amount: $3,167
Project: Recycling bins surrounding the campus bayou
ULM will be purchasing five recycling bins to place around the popular bayou running through the center of the university grounds. The bins will help promote recycling and keep litter out of the bayou.
Rapides
Organization: Glass Act Recycling
Grant Amount: $7,000
Project: “Bottles Up” Glass Recycling Campaign
The grant will support Glass Act Recycling in offering its commercial glass pickup program. The program will engage local businesses and restaurants in glass recycling, diverting tons of glass from landfills.
St. Landry
Organization: Schools of the Sacred Heart – Grand Coteau
Grant Amount: $2,592
Project: Recycling and landfill campaign
To improve recycling on campus and reduce landfill waste, Schools of the Sacred Heart – Grand Coteau will purchase 20 recycling receptacles and strategically place them throughout the campus. The school community will be educated on proper waste disposal and recycling practices to ensure students, faculty, and staff understand what goes in the provided bins.
St. Mary
Organization: City of Patterson
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Patterson Beautiful Inside and Out Campaign
The City of Patterson will launch “Patterson Beautiful Inside and Out,” a program dedicated to maintaining a healthy community through litter prevention education and proactive activities including a multimedia education campaign and purchase of a litter collection trailer.
St. Tammany
Organization: Recreational Fisheries Research Institute
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: Glass Recycling Project
The Recreational Fisheries Research Institute will promote its glass recycling program through community engagement and volunteer opportunities. The collected and recycled glass will be used to restore St. Tammany and Louisiana coastlines.
Organization: St. Tammany Parish Government
Grant Amount: $4,000
Project: Adopt-A-Road
St. Tammany Parish Government will be launching a new Adopt-A-Road program that will utilize community volunteers to pick up litter on local roadways throughout the parish.
Webster
Organization: Village of Dixie Inn
Grant Amount: $8,000
Project: New litter trailer
The Village of Dixie Inn will purchase a new litter trailer better equipped for taking care of their litter problem. The Village will also purchase anti-litter signage.
2023-24 Community Affiliate Grant Recipients:
Organization: Keep Abita Beautiful
Grant Amount: $2,497
Project: Recycling Initiatives
Abita will purchase containers for event recycling and pocket totes to pass out at events to reduce single-use plastic bag use.
Organization: Keep Algiers Beautiful
Grant Amount: $1,200
Project: Litter Education
Algiers will purchase car litter bags for students to take home to their parents/caregivers. In addition, they will work with school groups, teachers, and school leadership to educate students on the negative impacts of litter.
Organization: Keep DeSoto Beautiful
Grant Amount: $2,500
Project: Road Safety Campaign
DeSoto will purchase tarps, bungee cords and informational flyers to distribute to prevent roadside litter. Marketing materials will educate the public on the importance of securing their loads.
Organization: Keep Slidell Beautiful
Grant Amount: $2,500
Project: Trash Receptacles
Slidell will purchase receptacles to prevent litter along roadways and in parks. Marketing efforts will promote the use of the receptacles.
Organization: Keep St. James Beautiful
Grant Amount: $2,500
Project: Water Bottle Refill Station for Events
St. James will implement water bottle refill stations at outdoor events. Information about the harm of single-use plastic bottles will be distributed through the local paper, schools, libraries, and by volunteers.
Organization: Shreveport Green
Grant Amount: $2,310
Project: High School Litter Cleanup Program
Shreveport Green will partner with high schools to organize cleanups, analyze litter collected, and use the information to develop a comprehensive litter program to reduce litter around schools. Cleanup supplies will be purchased for participating students.
Keep Louisiana Beautiful is an anti‐litter and community improvement non-profit organization focused on achieving a clean and beautiful Louisiana through education, enforcement, public awareness, and community engagement. Keep Louisiana Beautiful is affiliated with Keep America Beautiful and is comprised of a statewide network of 43 Community Affiliates and seven University Affiliates. Learn more at www.keeplouisianabeautiful.org.
