As trees and bees prepare to wind down for the winter, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful’s volunteer opportunities are kicking into overdrive. Volunteers are needed to plant 2,200 new KIB trees, complete three community greenspaces, create a milkweed-monarch sanctuary, and collect thousands of pounds of trash.
With over 30 volunteer opportunities in October, November and December there are opportunities for everyone at www.kibi.org/projects.
Join us for weekday and weekend volunteer projects. Here are a few of our favorites:
1. Tree Plantings (every Saturday morning through December)
What will large-growing, 1″ caliper shade trees do for a neighborhood? Come see for yourself as KIB and community members transform the tree lawns around the city! Trees can provide many benefits, like reduced residential heating and cooling costs and increased community gathering space. Please join us for a quick Saturday morning of significant community and environmental improvement.
- Fall Creek & 30th Street Habitat Restoration
Join KIB and Fall Creek Place neighbors in restoring a healthy habitat, by removing invasive plant species along Fall Creek. Urban landscapes free of invasive species provide native plants and wildlife much-needed space to live, grow, and thrive. KIB will provide all of the tools and training required to rid pesky plants like a non-native honeysuckle and more from the area. Be a part of the team to make quick work of opening up and transforming a beautiful section of Fall Creek just north of downtown!
- Monarch Sanctuary Planting & Habitat Restoration (Saturday, November 4, 2017)
On the heels of Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebrations, join fellow Indy residents of all ages in adding 2,800 native plants and shrubs to the White River State Park along the Indianapolis Urban Wilderness Trail. These plants – with particular attention toward those that support the endangered monarch butterfly — will create a beautiful new wildlife sanctuary.
In Latino culture Día de los Muertos is a time to remember and celebrate the lives of loved ones who have passed away. The monarch butterfly’s migratory return to Mexico symbolizes the spiritual journey of those ancestors and the cyclical nature of life.
This project will bring together several area partners focused on local waterways, wildlife, education, art, the environment, sustainability, and community improvement, such as: Reconnecting to Our Waterways, Indiana Wildlife Federation, The DaVinci Pursuit, White River State Park, Urban Wilderness Trail, and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful.
- Great Indy Cleanup (every weekend in the fall)
Join KIB on Saturday, October 21st for one of our biggest community volunteer projects of the year. It’s the October Great Indy Cleanup! Support engaged residents of the Kennedy King neighborhood – near 16th Street and College Avenue – in large-scale beautification and litter abatement efforts. Cleaner and greener streets and alleyways make happier, safer places to live. Sign up today to be a part of this high impact community and environmental improvement event.
Learn about ongoing Great Indy Cleanup opportunities at www.greatindycleanup.com.
- Ongoing volunteer opportunities: Adopt your block or become an Ambassador.
Brandish your very own KIB litter grabber by signing up to take care of your block year-round. As a block captain, you’re eligible for cleanup supplies, free native flowers and trees. Become a block captain today!
Ambassadors extend KIB’s reach and impact in the Indianapolis community through volunteer projects, outreach, event participation, and behind-the-scenes expertise. With a 10 projects per calendar year individual goal, each KIB Ambassador performs a unique combination of tasks month to month. Which of these would you be interested in? Sign up join the KIB Ambassadors.
Share your impact on social media. Show us your dirt! Whether you’re working hard to keep our streets clean or putting new trees in the ground, we want to know. Share photos with @kibiorg through social media posts with the hashtag #KeepIndianapolisBeautiful.
By Ashley Haynes
Ashley is the Director of Marketing at KIB. She works closely with the programs staff and awesome supporters to share KIB’s story all over Indianapolis—after all, the best way to engage people in the work of KIB is to make sure the community knows about it! You’re just as likely to find her drafting calendars as laying down in the gravel to snap a shot of a tool trailer backing up into an egg on a cone.
