2025 Regional Meetings

Keep Florida Beautiful traveled the state in March to host the 2025 regional meetings. 

Regional meetings allow affiliates within the same region to collaborate and speak on various topics with their comrades in a more personal setting. Executive Directors face a variety of challenges everyday, and allowing an intimate space for discussions on their milestones, difficulties, etc. with their peers helps mitigate burnout while creating the opportunity for growth and learning. Here is what Executive Director of Keep Florida Beautiful had to say when asked about the importance of hosting these annual regional meetings “The Florida Regional Meetings offer affiliates a chance to connect in person, discover successful strategies from various communities, ask questions, and exchange ideas in a more intimate setting, all without the need for extensive travel.”

  The second regional meeting was held March 11th in St. Augustine at the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve.

In attendance were: Keep St. Johns County Beautiful, Keep Flagler Beach Beautiful, Keep Jacksonville Beautiful, Keep Brevard Beautiful, Inc.  and Clay County, FL Government. After discussions of topics such as: Funding & position cuts, supply management, derelict vessels, and board confrontation participants were able to tour the Research Reserve. GTM is 75,761 acres of conservation lands consisting of 30 protected estuarine areas. To learn more about this beautiful area and the work they are doing please visit: https://gtmnerr.org/

   The third regional meeting was held March 12th in Winter Haven at the Winter Haven Chamber of Commerce.

In attendance we had: Keep Winter Haven Clean & Beautiful, Inc., Keep Alachua County Beautiful, Keep Charlotte Beautiful Florida, Keep Pinellas Beautiful, Sarasota County Government, Keep Lee County Beautiful, and Keep Manatee Beautiful

After discussions of topics such as: Affiliate partnered programs, disaster response, budget management, among many other things. Participants were able to tour LEGOLAND Florida . Legoland allowed Keep Florida Beautiful and the affiliates to tour their site where we were shown all the sustainability efforts Legoland has implemented since opening.

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The trash receptacles and benches are made from recycled jugs.

Broken Lego bricks get recycled by being remolded.

The parking lot has large solar panels to help power the park while also providing shade for visitors.

The lights in the bathrooms are on a timer, and have LED lighting.

Plus so many more more great initiatives!

The fourth and final regional meeting was held March 13th in Broward County at the Friends of the Anne Kolb Nature Center. In attendance we had: Broward County Government, City of North Miami Beach Government, The City of West Palm Beach, and City of Coral Gables – Government. After discussions of topics such as: Working with universities, cultural awareness, creating logic models, and more- participants were able to tour the nature center. Affiliates embarked on a guided hike where Julian Davis taught everyone about the three mangrove species found at the center, critters that call them home, and about how healthy mangrove ecosystems can greatly lessen damage during major storms.

We had a fantastic time speaking with the affiliates and are so proud of the hard work they put in every day while strengthening their communities. f you’d like to contact your local affiliate, please visit:https://keepfloridabeautiful.org/affiliates/