Green Spotlights

Featured Affiliate: Keep Winston-Salem Beautiful

Thanks to a grant from Keep America Beautiful, George Stiphen, Director of Keep Winston-Salem Beautiful has embarked on a journey to prevent cigarette litter, especially in the busy downtown areas of 4^th and Trade Streets.

Although cigarette butts are the most prolific item littered world-wide, it became increasing problematic when the North Carolina legislature banned smoking in all public restaurants and bars. In most cases, there was no place for smokers to properly dispose of their butts, so they ended up on the ground or in planters and landscape beds.

George established two primary goals: 1) to education the public on the problems of cigarette litter and 2) to help reduce the volume of cigarette litter in strategically targeted areas. A multifaceted media plan was developed that included a web domain, www.everybutthurts.com, which linked to additional sites addressing cigarette litter and information on how to obtain a pocket ashtray.

A 30-second PSA was created called “The Waltz of the Flying Butts” and was posted on YouTube and is accessible both at www.everybutthurts.com and www.kwsb.cityofws.org. Ads were placed on city buses and sanitation trucks promoting the website. Coasters of the domain site were distributed to downtown bars and restaurants as a tool to further disseminate the message.

A preliminary cigarette butt scan of the target areas was conducted to establish a benchmark. A total of 2,558 butts were found on the sidewalks and in the street curbs. Following placement of cigarette receptacles at 19 locations and release of the planned media blitz, a second and third scan reported 884 and 554 butts respectfully reflecting a desirable decrease in littering behavior and an increased awareness of proper disposal of cigarette litter. The success of the program has lead to an expansion in locations and the number of receptacles.

Both the program and the video received awards at the KAB 58^th national conference in November. For program details, contact George at 336-771-5161 or at georges@cityofws.org.

George has been the Executive Director of Keep Winston-Salem Beautiful for over 11 years. Prior to accepting this position, he was involved with KWSB for twenty years. Including volunteer support, he was a board member of eight years and served as president for three of those years.