Category: ~News

Cleanup Campaign Assistant

The Cleanup Campaign Assistant supports Keep Rockland Beautiful’s Great American Cleanup (GAC) Campaign which runs April – May. The GAC engages thousands of volunteers throughout the county in removing 30+ tons of debris from the environment and our communities, while providing a powerful vehicle for raising awareness about ways to reduce waste and protect our waterways.

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Cleanup Coordinator at KRB

The Cleanup Coordinator supports the promotion, planning, coordination and implementation of Keep Rockland Beautiful’s bi-annual cleanup and environmental education campaigns – the Great American Cleanup April – May & the Fall Waterways Cleanup September – November. 

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Earth B.E.A.T. in schoolyards this fall and spring!

 

We’re getting ready for another exciting year of hands-on environmental learning in schoolyards and classrooms throughout Rockland this fall and the coming spring.

In 2022, KRB brought Earth BEAT to Cottage Lane, Haverstraw, RP Connor, and Viola Elementary Schools, as well as  the Haverstraw Center and Martin Luther King Multi-Purpose Center.  Students, teachers, parents, and administrators agree – Earth BEAT is a great day of energized learning and fun that brings mindfulness to the beauty all around in the natural world and to the many ways we can all do our part to protect the health of the environment and our communities. 

Many thanks to the school staff, parent volunteers, and our partners at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Rockland and the Rockland Soil & Water Conservation District for making it all happen!

Stay tuned.  We’ll be sharing just a few of the inspired ‘public service announcements’  created by the 6th grade students at Haverstraw Elementary School following their participation in Earth BEAT.

Welcome New Board Members

We’re very proud to have recently welcomed three new Board members to the KRB family – Jennifer McCracken, Samuel Schaeffer and Paul Trujillo.  They are ready to support and promote the work of KRB far and wide!

Paul Trujillo recently showed the KRB colors atop Machu Picchu!!

Getting Ready for Rockland PLUS 2022

Workshops Begin 2/1/22!

Now in its 17th year, RPLUS (Rockland PLUS) is a powerful educational experience for local high school youth. It prepares them to make informed choices for a sustainable future and gives them a forum to think and work creatively for the collective well-being of the environment and our communities.

This year, we have even more opportunities for student input. We’re highlighting inspiring examples of the power of the youth voice, especially when it comes to addressing climate change at all levels and creating climate smart communities.

We’re back in the classroom for Rockland PLUS workshops! And we’re very excited to be able to host symposiums for each of the participating classes – though once again at a distance.

We can’t wait to share the student’s visions for local redevelopment that promotes a balance of Social connections, Economic opportunity, Environmental sensitivity, and Equitable access to natural and community resources (S.E.E.E.). Check out some from last year.

TZHS Logistics Park Project
Many thanks to People’s United Community Foundation and M&T Bank, two community-minded institutions, for providing essential support for RPLUS 2022.

Shrink Your Carbon Footprint: Small Steps for Big Impact!

KRB’s newest Earth BEAT Eco-Station Shrink Your Carbon Footprint: Small Steps for Big Impact! empowers and inspires kids to take action to make a difference in reducing air pollution affecting our health and the greenhouse gas emissions contributing to climate change and its devastating effects.

In this high-energy activity, students work in small groups to learn how they can shrink their carbon footprint by taking steps to reduce their consumption of electricity and single-use products, and consider alternatives to fossil fuel burning methods of transportation. A short skit created by each group demonstrates their chosen actions.  Their peers call out the message and then watch the giant footprint shrink.

Through their participation in this fun, hands-on activity, kids become aware of how their own behavior and choices can contribute to solutions, and how the power of their voice now and into the future can drive systemic change that addresses waste at its source.

We are proud and honored to have co-written our newest Eco-Station with Kottie-Christie Blick. Kottie is a skilled education consultant, university course instructor, award-winning classroom teacher (recently retired from Cottage Lane Elementary School), member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Planet Stewards Program, and webmaster of the popular website, KidsAgainstClimateChange.com.  Check out this great resource!

Many thanks to Maria Vega-Cabrera and her 5th grade class, as well as Jacob Tanenbaum, Abby Rudin, and the administration at Cottage Lane Elementary School, for helping us pilot Shrink Your Carbon Footprint. 

Team KRB Forging Plans

2021 KRB Board of DirectorsKRB’s Board of Directors and staff recently met on a beautiful Sunday for an energizing and productive Board Retreat.With great excitement for the year ahead, they discussed how to bring more attention to KRB’s work in the community and build on the organization’s core programs.

KRB’s hardworking Board Members are…

  • Jennifer Handelsman
  • Diane Hutt
  • Nathaniel Johns (seen Zooming in the photo)
  • Spencer Lauterbach
  • Ben Leopold
  • Irfan Sabir
  • Sara Tucker
  • Jeff Wasserman
  • Cecelia Waterman-Santiago

(Also pictured, Executive Director Sonia Cairo)