Community+Technology+Wow

Date: September 16, 2026
Time: 4:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Ballroom B

Keep California Beautiful (KCB) has tools; lesson plans and resources that help engage both K-12 students, college students, municipalities and community members through participating in litter assessments using the KCB Environmental app, as a decision support tool for Municipal Storm Water (MS4) Permitees and solid waste managers. This process can track progress overtime to see if litter and illegal dumping reduction interventions are successful based on research on litter and illegal dumping. It uses technology to collect and visualize data. The visualizations can be viewed thought the Trash Rapid Assessment Data Exchange (TRADE) Dashboard. Projects at a local level develop through partnerships with agencies, schools, and community groups. This activity can be part of a community taking a step as part of the California Clean Community Designation, as completing a litter survey/ On-land Visual Trash Assessment (OVTA) is one of the criteria for the certification. This session will provide an overview of the integrated effort of Clean California, a program of Caltrans, and Keep California Beautiful to start a movement of change community by community. We are addressing litter and illegal dumping issues that are complex and vary by community statewide, but there are commonalities. Key takeaways are a framework for developing a local community/campus illegal dumping plan, litter reduction strategies and interventions, and tools to engage community members and measure progress.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will be able to:

• Participants will gain knowledge and training on how to use the app and how to begin the process of becoming a Clean California Community.
• Participants will use hands on activities to learn how to download the app to a smart device and see a sample survey.
• Classroom educators will become familiar with a variety of lesson plans and activities to support experiential learning and participatory science.
• Facility managers and administrators will become familiar with options to engage with their campus community to support sustainability initiatives and provide partnerships and activities that meet compliance goals.

Speakers:
Christine Flowers, Lecturer, Sacramento State University
Cecile Carson, Executive Team Leader, Keep California Beautiful