The Great American Cleanup originated as a litter cleanup initiative designed to aesthetically improve our environment by creating cleaner parks, streetscapes, and public spaces through litter removal and elimination. To this day, community cleanups remain at the very heart of this campaign.

Over the last 25 years in Cincinnati, the Great American Cleanup has engaged volunteers, community groups, and businesses to combat blight by picking up litter, planting flowers, painting buildings, remediating illegal dumpsites, landscaping, removing graffiti, and more. Annually, the program has continued to provide supplies and logistical support for thousands of volunteers participating in hundreds of cleanup and beautification projects throughout the Tri-state.

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To get involved, you can organize your own event or volunteer for an existing project. Community councils, schools, neighborhood agencies, and businesses from Cincinnati and surrounding communities are invited to organize a neighborhood cleanup event anytime between March and November. If your organization would like to host a cleanup event, please click here to register. Registered cleanup initiatives will receive logistical support (suggestions on where, community connections, and post-event trash collection for events within Cincinnati city limits) and volunteer recruitment. We also provide cleanup supplies like gloves, trash bags, recycling bags, yard waste bags, first aid kit(s), hand sanitizer, bug spray, sunblock, litter pickup sticks, and other items as we have inventory. After your event, we just ask that you submit your results by filling out this simple form.

The Great American Cleanup is open to volunteers of all ages! Our role is to help each participating community find the volunteers it needs to pick up litter, plant flowers, paint buildings, clean illegal dumpsites, landscape, remove graffiti, and more. Visit the volunteer events page to join an existing event!