CARE for the Cape & Islands and the Cape Cod Anti-Litter Coalition will join the Massachusetts Beverage Association at a kickoff event to launch the summer-long Take Care campaign aimed at promoting “The Three ARRRs.”
The objective of the campaign is to reduce litter and encourage reuse and recycling of items to keep public spaces litter free. This is a continuation of a campaign launched last year by the same organizations.
At the official campaign launch event for Take Care, to be held Tuesday, July 19, at 9 a.m. at Buzzards Bay Park, campaign organizers will unveil a new series of messages that depict a pirate using his sword and “pirate speak” to fight litter. These messages will compliment the Cape Cod Recycles’ messages that feature a smiling blue whale with a gull perched on its head, and a brightly colored Cape Cod Recycles flag, which were unveiled last year.
“This campaign is designed to catch people’s attention and promote a fun but important reminder to consumers that recycling as well as reducing and reusing items, plays an important role in our efforts to keep Cape Cod pristine,” said Jill Talladay, founder and Executive Director of CARE for the Cape & Islands. “The artwork will be displayed in a variety of settings, such as grocery and convenience stores, public spaces like beaches, parks and marinas, as well as through local networks including chamber visitor guidebooks to reach tourists and full-time residents alike.”
Public service signage in visible locations all over Cape Cod, as point- of-sale messages at convenience, food and other retail stores, and a digital advertising campaign using high-traffic media properties will also be part of the initiative. In all, more than one million residents and visitors to Cape Cod will be reached by the Take Care messaging this summer.
“Last year’s campaign was a good first step that received a lot of attention and we saw an opportunity to expand upon it,” Talladay said. “With the generous support of the Massachusetts Beverage Association we were able to create new artwork and digital promotion to promote reduce, reuse, recycle with a goal to positively change behavior.”
Other Take Care supporters include the Center for Coastal Studies, local and regional chambers of commerce, the Massachusetts Food Association, the New England Convenience Store and Energy Marketers Association, Chatham Recycles, the Town of Bourne and local officials and business owners.
“It’s tough to get people to understand why litter happens and why we need to take care of it. We are a tourist destination, so we need the Cape to look beautiful all the time, and we need to protect our fragile ecosystem. It’s our job to educate businesses, government officials, residents, and visitors on how we can all be part of a litter-free Cape Cod by working with the Take Care Cape Cod campaign on recycling,” said Meg Morris, co-founder and CEO of the Cape Cod Anti-Litter Coalition. “Litter is nothing more than our trash and recyclables that we haven’t disposed of properly. More recycling, less litter.”
Steve Boksanski, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Beverage Association, said the state’s leading beverage companies are committed to improving the rate of recycling of the industry-standard PET plastic bottles, which are designed to be 100 percent recyclable. Redemption rates since 2010 have declined 28 percent. MBA and its partners believe education and awareness can produce results in driving more and more plastic bottles into the recycled materials stream.
“We all work together to find solutions to problems that confront us as a society. In 2012 Mass Beverage started a campaign for recycling. Last year’s campaign was a perfect example of collaboration that we wanted to continue,” Boksanski said. “We can’t do it alone and we are asking for everyone’s help to recycle.”
