35 years ago, Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful was formed to foster and cultivate a community of environmental stewards to take greater responsibility to improve Gwinnett County’s water, land, air and lives. The Keep America Beautiful-affiliate organization does this through a series of efforts that include education, advocation, motivation and hands-on learning projects. After more than three decades, it’s apparent that the vision has become an effective movement. On Friday, August 21, GCB Executive Director – Connie Wiggins – revealed the results of the nonprofit organization’s efforts over the past 12 months to GCB’s 55-member board of directors.

Included among these annual results, Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful has:

• Engaged 26,698 Citizens

• Clocked 314,955 Volunteer Hours

• Educated 200,312 Adults

• Educated 141,103 Youth

• Trained 9,613 Teachers

• Fostered Relationships with 391 Community Partners

• Recycled 26,319,354 Pounds

• Removed 152,697 Pounds of Litter and Debris

• Cleaned 1,865 Miles of Road and Stream

• Planted 243 Trees, Shrubs and Food Plants

Over the course of the last 12 months, Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful has also hosted a number of eco-friendly events and contests that comprise America Recycles Day, Great American Cleanup, Great Gwinnett Wetlands, Great Days of Service and Bring One for the Chipper Christmas tree recycling. Upcoming events are Great Days of Service – Beaver Ruin Watershed Cleanup Saturday, October 24 and America Recycles Day Saturday, November 14. Other programs for which GCB is responsible include Adopt-A-Road, Adopt-A-Stream, Stormwater Protectors, Take Pride in Gwinnett, community service opportunities, Clean Air Schools, Green & Healthy Schools and more.

“Our mission is simple, we engage citizens to take action,” explained Wiggins. “Engaged citizens equal results that benefit our community as a whole. We are committed to providing visible, measurable results of our efforts. Environmental stewardship is a group effort. While one person can make an incredible impact, we have to build and sustain a network of dedicated volunteers, partner businesses and like-minded organizations in order to keep our community green, clean and beautiful. I am so thankful for the support of our wonderful board of directors, talented staff, amazing volunteers and incredible partners. We simply couldn’t do all that we do without them.”