One of the best Earth Day projects for the community is to come together for a park clean up. Everyone comes together and improves the park for a great year of picnics, cookouts, birthday parties, and playdates.

With everyone coming together you are bound to get a lot done and have fun at the same time. Here are some really helpful tips for organizing an Earth Day project.

Here are some really helpful tips for organizing an Earth Day project.

• Start by contacting the local parks and recreation to see if anything is already planned at your park of choice. See if they will donate any supplies for the park pick up. They will let you know if you need a permit or any other forms for your event. They may even be willing to help you promote your Earth Day park clean up.

• Find sponsors in your local community. Local grocery stores and restaurants are a great place to look for donated water and snacks for the volunteers. Not only does it help your event but it will help them grow their presence in the community and more business for them after the event.

• Pick a date and time that works well for you and your friends. If it is a time that works well for your crew, you stand a better chance of them attending which will make the day more fun for you.

• To have a great Earth Day event, advertise your clean up on Facebook events. By doing this your event will reach more people in your local area and when you share your event with friends and when your friends join their friends will see and the cycle will continue to grow your event with little to no work for you.

• Share your event on sites like Volunteermatch.org where people in your local community can find your event. You can contact your local high school about the event to help students reach required volunteer hours for graduation and scholarships.

• Tell people what to bring. For many this will be their first park clean up so in your ads list things people may want to bring such as gloves, closed toe shoes, outdoor brooms and dust pans for easy pick up, and if you will not be providing refreshments – a water bottle and a snack.

• Prepare now for anything that could go wrong. Enlist someone to assist with first aid for your event and have a well stocked first aid kit. A waiver for volunteers to sign is a good idea just in case. Provide hand sanitizer at the registration table so volunteers know it is available after they have finished.

• On the day of your Earth Day Park Clean Up arrive early and ready to go. You want to ensure good self care before the event because you are likely to be very busy. Keep organized and walk around checking on people. Have a volunteer that is less mobile take over the registration table so you can get in with everyone else and show the volunteers you care. Pick up items as you move from person to person.

• After the event, send out thank you messages. E cards are a great way to do this in mass on social media where you shared your event. Hand written letters to sponsors are a great way to make them feel appreciated and willing to help with your next big project.

Want a lot of other great activities and resources for Earth day for kids? We have go you covered. Now, go out and make a difference.