Following Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday has turned into one of the most important days of the year for nonprofit organizations. In 2020, $2.47 billion was given to nonprofits in the US, a number that has increased each year since the first Giving Tuesday in 2012.

When Waste-Free Dayton was established earlier this year as an official nonprofit organization, three focus areas were identified as critical to our mission: Reducing Plastics, Increasing Composting and Decreasing Food Waste, and Community Rejuvenation. It is that third area under which we include our monthly litter cleanup events. Organizing and mobilizing volunteers to get out into our communities is something tangible where we can see an immediate impact. It does not address the root cause of the litter - our education and awareness campaigns will hopefully help in this area - but it certainly helps with working towards healthier and safer communities. Recently, we had our largest cleanup event of the year.

Waste-Free Dayton was started in April 2020 to be an online community where members could share tips, ask questions, learn and help each other grow on our waste-free journeys. The group, and our community as a whole, has many inspiring individuals, so we are excited to launch this new feature, Humans of Waste-Free Dayton. Our first interview is with Darion, certified nature therapy guide and founder of Gem City Wild.