This year interns at Richmond High School worked on an urban litter assessment project by monitoring litter on 23rd Street in San Pablo. This street is one of the main roads in the community. It is heavily used by vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists.
In May, Earth Team Richmond was invited to present to the San Pablo City Council about their work in the community. Interns created slides to showcase their project goals, methodology, and achievements. After the presentation the public was invited to share public comment. Several Earth Team interns spoke up and shared their concerns about litter in the community.
“To me, reducing litter is important because we are protecting our environment. For example when we do litter clean ups we are benefiting us and the wildlife by creating a cleaner, safer, healthier home for us. It’s very sad when we don’t reduce the litter in our community. We are harming everyone around us making it harder for people to live. [A polluted community] can also affect people mentally by increasing levels of stress and social anxiety, and the feeling of depression. I joined Earth Team because I wanted to be more productive, to educate myself, and to help my environment. I want my community to be safe and not just for the humans, but for our wildlife friends as well.”
-Sheilayjah Sharper, Earth Team Richmond Intern
Check out the team’s presentation slides below:
