The Clean-Off was created by Katherine Tellock, executive director of Cleanup Club Chicago. She had the idea for an intercity contest after hosting cleanup competitions between neighborhoods in Chicago. She saw the enthusiasm from people competing against their own city and thought it would make sense to compete against a different city, too. So she reached out to Block By Block, and the Clean-Off was born.
Tellock said the competition is a fun way to bring people together during a time when they may feel lonely or isolated. She said she hopes it helps people feel like they can be a part of something positive in their community.
“It’s easy to feel like you don’t really have any power to do anything, but this is definitely one place where you do have power,” Tellock said.
Last October, almost 1,000 people volunteered and picked up 1,850 bags of trash in Philadelphia and Chicago combined. That’s about 7 tons of trash – enough to fill 12 dump trucks and equivalent to the weight of 14 horses. Organizers hope the addition of Los Angeles will bring more participants and more competition.
“Competitions between other cities are friendly and fun, but sometimes they can get a little heated. We’re planning to poke at Los Angeles and Philly,” Tellock said. “Last year, we made fun of Philly’s cheesesteaks.”
Block said she’s excited for the competition but also wants the Clean-Off to draw attention to bigger trash-related issues, particularly Philadelphia’s persistent illegal dumping problem. She said she hopes people will be more invested in keeping their neighborhood clean when they can help make it more beautiful.
“When people clean a neighborhood, they feel connected to it,” Block said. “They spend their time and their energy cleaning the space, and they feel protective because it’s part of their community and something that they did.”
Trash bagged and collected by volunteers. (Courtesy of Block by Block)