For over 50 years, Keep Texas Beautiful has been committed to making Texas communities better places to live, work and play.
Overview
Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB) is a non-profit organization dedicated to making Texas the best place to live, work, and play! Our mission is to inspire and empower Texans to make their communities clean and beautiful. We provide resources for community improvement projects, clean-ups, and youth engagement efforts across the state. Our Keep Texas Recycling program provides technical assistance, education, and access to markets to increase recycling in rural and underserved communities.
Everything we do is focused on mobilizing volunteers to take action by providing them with tools, resources, and training. Our fieldwork includes research on best practices for litter reduction along with the development of community programs to prevent the flow of litter to the Gulf of Mexico.
Founded in 1967, Keep Texas Beautiful’s work is driven by its network of affiliate members, communities, volunteers, and supporters that span the state, and reach 17 million Texans annually.
Our Mission
To inspire and empower Texans to keep our communities clean and beautiful.
Our Vision
To make Texas the cleanest, most beautiful state in the nation.
Core Values
- We promote clean and beautiful communities by keeping them litter-free and preserving our natural environment.
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2. We empower residents to take initiative at the local level to beautify their hometowns.
3. We partner with public and private sector organizations and individuals who are similarly committed to our mission.
4. Education is at the core of our work and we provide tools and resources to the general public, affiliates, and volunteers to strengthen their capacity.
5. Throughout our work, we support what makes our communities unique, including race, ethnicity, culture, socio-economic background, gender, sexual orientation, age, and physical ability. We commit to aligning our culture and operations to be a beacon of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.
History
History
Our history dates back to 1967, when Texas was preparing for the 1968 HemisFair in San Antonio and more than 16 million tourists were expected to descend upon the state.
A variety of representatives from diverse entities, including the State Department of Highways and Public Transportation, decided that Texas cities and highways should be given a “facelift” so visitors would see a clean, beautiful state. To accomplish this goal, the group created a non-profit educational corporation, supported totally by membership dues, known as the Beautify Texas Council.
Realizing the importance of what had been accomplished via local volunteers and their love of their communities, the Beautify Texas Council continued to support communities in their beautification efforts even after HemisFair. By 1968, the Council had supplied almost every Texas town with information on how to improve their city’s appearance. In response to enthusiastic efforts from dedicated volunteers across the state, the Council eventually increased its focus to highway beautification, environmental education and public awareness, procurement and distribution of funding and support to local volunteers, and creating and maintaining valuable relationships with state officials and agencies.
In 1985, the Beautify Texas Council officially became Keep Texas Beautiful, Inc., and a state affiliate of Keep America Beautiful. Since that time, we have won top honors as an outstanding KAB state affiliate and have grown by creating an extensive affiliate program. Keep Texas Beautiful now has the largest environmental and community improvement network in the state.
Meet Our Team
Now, as a student at UT Austin, she is passionately pursuing a BA in Sustainability Studies with a minor in Hydrology.She is dedicated to making a positive impact on the environment and society. She enjoys crocheting, reading, and her dog Amaya in her free time!
Meet Our Board Members
Emeritus Directors
Emeritus Directors In Memoriam
- Ebby Halliday Acers
Dallas - Ed Davis
San Antonio - Ruthe Jackson
Grand Prairie - Steve Perry
Austin - Stan Weik
San Saba
2023 Impact
Great American Cleanup & Fall Sweep
The data in this following infographic includes Great American Cleanup (March 1-May 31) and Fall Sweep (Sept 11-Nov 20) cleanup activities reported in 2023.
Our programs address beautification, litter prevention, waste reduction, recycling and more. There are many ways to volunteer and make an impact. With the support of our community we can make a real difference for generations to come.