Photo Credit: Brian Gibbs, 2022 BONUS Contest Winner & Iowa Landscapes Honorable Mention
February 2022 Newsletter
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12th Annual Photography Contest Officially Closes After BONUS Round |
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The 12th Annual Photography Contest is now officially closed after an additional BONUS round celebrated 2nd place, 3rd place, and honorable mention images. Our newest winning photo is displayed above, captured by Brian Gibbs from Elkader.
Over $2,000 in cash prizes have been awarded to photographers. Photos were originally selected by a panel of judges and then voted on by the public on Keep Iowa Beautiful’s Facebook page. Categories included Iowa landscape, Iowa Water, Iowa Cities, Iowans in Action, and Iowa Wildlife.
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Iowa Water Third Place: “Nightfall” by David Smith from New London |
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Iowa Water Honorable Mention: “Fall over the Mississippi” by Trent Hanselmann from Dubuque |
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Iowa Cities Honorable Mention: “Christmas Past” by Jesse Streinz from West Branch |
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Keep Iowa Beautiful Program Now Open:
Host an event for Pick-Up Iowa
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Iowans are joining the Great American Cleanup’s estimated 3 million volunteers across the nation again this year with Pick-Up Iowa. Community leaders and organizations are invited to host an event to remove litter from public areas and nature reserves during Pick-Up Iowa from April 1 to July 31.
Cleanup events have a positive and lasting impact for Iowa’s landscape. Many littered items can take hundreds, thousands, or even millions of years to decompose, such as plastic bags at 500-1,000 years and glass bottles at 1-2 million years. Efforts are often focused around efforts to clean up trash along Iowa’s roadsides, neighborhoods, streets, school grounds, parks, forests, and streams.
Events held for Pick-Up Iowa are encouraged to register with Keep Iowa Beautiful. Registered events are eligible for free cleanup supplies (supplies limited) if requested by March 15. Registered events are also recognized for their contribution and commitment. Register now here.
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Iowa Cycling Community and Keep Iowa Beautiful Partner to honor John Karras during RAGBRAI XLIX Route Announcement Party |
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The Route Announcement Party for RAGBRAI XLIX had three empty chairs on January 28. It was the first such event without any of its “founders.” That shortlist includes Don Kaul, Don Benson, and, of course, John Karras.
Prior to the announcement of the overnight communities, Keep Iowa Beautiful representative Tim Lane addressed the national audience with thousands in-person and streaming.
His remarks remembered John Karras as an avid cyclist and passionate outdoorsman and highlighted the new “Karras Cart” initiative will continue his legacy. Communities across the state will receive bicycle cart attachments for easier litter removal on trails!
Adding to the excitement of an announcement, four carts were officially awarded to their communities: One new cart was donated to Des Moines’ Racoon River Trail by Iowa’s preeminent cancer physician Dr. Richard Deming. Another cart crafted by Dimond Bicycle was donated to the Parks and Recreation Department of Emmetsburg. Two more carts were donated to the Cedar Valley Cyclists and cyclists in Sac City. Those at the Iowa Events Center that night saw firsthand the growing fleet (pictured below)!
More have supported these efforts through the two RAYGUN t-shirt designs with famous Karras quotes that continue to be for sale (pictured to the right), with a portion of proceeds benefitting Keep Iowa Beautiful. More information is coming soon about future events to continue honoring Karras and placing Karras Carts throughout Iowa!
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Hometown Pride Warren County Shares 17 Ideas for Community Betterment |
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Need inspiration for new ways to engage and empower your community? Warren County shares its list of ideas, big and small! Hometown Pride is a key program of Keep Iowa Beautiful to ensure all communities have the tools and support needed for short- and long-term success.
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- Community-building events – like music in the park, block parties, bingo nights, or cook-offs
- Town welcome signs and entryway beautification
- Park upgrades – like playgrounds, landscaping or picnic tables
- Decorative banners on light poles
- Community directory or community calendar
- Yard of the month awards
- Public Art – like murals, sculptures or sidewalk art
- Veteran's memorials
- Holiday decorations on streets and in parks
- "Welcome wagon" gifts
- Trail amenities – landscaping, water fountain, or benches
- Community gardens and/or produce exchange
- Volunteer fairs
- Planting trees
- Paint makeovers for public buildings or equipment
- Community clean-up days
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Pop-up parks or pop-up art in vacant spaces
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Derelict Building Grant Program Applications Open Until February 25 |
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The Derelict Building Program is available for Iowa towns of 5,000 or fewer residents to address neglected commercial or public structures that have sat vacant for at least 6 months. Applications are due on Tuesday, February 25.
FY23 application deadline is approaching quickly for applicants who are seeking funding assistance with conducting asbestos inspections, asbestos abatement, structural engineering analysis, phase I and phase II site assessments, building deconstruction and building renovation expenses.
The DNR Derelict Building Grant Program was instituted by statute to help rural communities remove environmental hazards, improve community appearance and minimize costs by recycling and reusing building materials through deconstruction or renovation of abandoned, derelict buildings.
To learn more and start your community’s application, click here.
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Build with Bags Grant Program Applications Open Until March 30 |
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Could your community benefit from the purchase of recycled plastic playground equipment, benches and tables, and other like-items for outdoor public recreation areas? Funds are available through the Build with Bags grant due Wednesday, March 30.
The primary goal of Build with Bags is to tackle an environmental concern that has been receiving a great deal of attention – the use of plastic shopping bags.
The goals of the Build with Bags program are for Iowans to:
- Reduce the consumption of plastic bags.
- Encourage the use of reusable bags.
- Increase the amount of plastic bags recycled.
- Establish and a grant program to aid parks and schools in purchasing products made of recycled plastic bags.
By providing a monetary incentive for communities to develop their plastic bag recycling efforts, and directing grant awards to purchase products made of recycled plastic bags for their schools and parks, the fund both decreases plastic in landfills or as litter and increases demand for recycled plastic products.
The Build with Bags program is a cooperative effort of the Iowa Grocery Industry Association, Keep Iowa Beautiful, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Metro Waste Authority and Plastic Recycling of Iowa Falls.
To learn more and start your community’s application, click here.
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When you see litter happening on Iowa’s roadways from a vehicle, Call 1-888-665-4887
Please provide as much detail about the incident as possible:
- License plate number
- Time and specific location (street & city)
- What was thrown from the vehicle
- A vehicle description (color, make and model)
Call 1.888.NOLITTR (1-888-665-4887) to report littering from a vehicle.
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Social Media Submissions
Keep Iowa Beautiful wants to share your community’s good news!
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Are you proud of a completed project in your town? Do you want to show off a new mural in your downtown? Did you host a fun, exciting event for your community? We want to know about it!
Click on the button below to share short descriptions of events, projects, or news from your town! You can include pictures and captions as well. Keep Iowa Beautiful will share your post on our social media!
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Your Support Matters!
Keep Iowa Beautiful is a non-profit organization and, as such, relies on your support to ensure the success of our environmental education and community outreach programs.
Donations will help KIB's efforts to support our community. Any amount is valued and appreciated.
Donations can be made online or checks can be mailed to our office:
Keep Iowa Beautiful
2910 Westown Pkwy #302,
West Des Moines, IA 50266
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KEEP IOWA BEAUTIFUL
2910 Westown Parkway, Suite 302 | West Des Moines, IA 50266
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