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Clean Fairfax Council's Environmental Education Program

Organization Name:
Clean Fairfax Council
City & State:
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Describe your creative piece – what is it and what has it been used for, and why is it innovative?
This is a poster from a current series of three posters, all of which are also branded on our Clean Fairfax Councilgiveaways (coffee cups, water bottles and grocery bags.) We created the graphics first and had them printed on reusable items. The response was so overwhelmingly positive we created a series of posters which now hang around the County's government centers and are the base for the organization's "trade show" both materials. What makes the poster so innovative is its simplicity--you really cannot misconstrue the message. The graphic is clean, attractive and easy to understand, while the message is damning--it really makes you think.
What issue or problem were you working to address with this piece?
Clean Fairfax Council is a 28 year old small environmental education and advocacy organization that no one has ever heard of. We needed to change everything about the organization to make it more effective and the first place we started was with logos and collateral material. CFC had previously stocked hundreds of thousands of little pieces of throw-away "swag," much of it plastic, not recycled or recyclable, thus defeating the organization's very mission of litter control and recycling education. The previous logo was the name of the organization, literally, being stuffed into a garbage can. We needed to rebrand and remessage the organization and put it out there in a way that was clear, readable, and understandable by children and adults.
How has your submission successfully impacted your organization’s ability to solve this issue/problem?
Since we have distributed our messages and our reemergence as a force for good in the county, we have been able to start a conversation with the county about plastic water bottle/soda bottles/can recycling at all county parks by requiring any organization requesting a permit to use a county facility to have a recycling plan. On a smaller scale we have been able to work with county departments to reduce or eliminate disposable coffee cups in their kitchens. It may seem like small steps, but we have essentially reinvented Clean Fairfax Council and in the last year been able to get the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle message out loud and clear!