The Crying Indian - Iron Eyes Cody

Keep America Beautiful is an environmental organization founded in 1953. It is the largest community improvement organization in the United States, with approximately 580 affiliate organizations (similar to local chapters) and more than 17,000 participating communities in their signature annual event - the Great American Cleanup.

KAB focuses on three key issues: litter prevention, the waste hierarchy: waste reduction, reuse, recycling and community beautification (tree planting, community gardens). This is accomplished through a combination of community organizing, public education and the fostering of public/private partnerships.

In the early 1970s, a new campaign was launched with the theme “People Start Pollution, People Can Stop It,” a public service announcement featuring the now iconic “Crying Indian,” Iron Eyes Cody.

In 1975 KAB introduced its “Clean Community System” which encouraged local communities to prevent litter through a “normative change process” that included education efforts, advertising, local research and mapping of litter “hotspots,” and clean up activities. The Clean Community System evolved into KAB’s current network of Affiliates - roughly 580 local “Keep MyTown Beautiful” organizations nationwide.

In 1999 KAB introduced the “Great American Cleanup” campaign, where volunteers are organised to clean up litter and illegal dumpsites in their communities, remove graffiti, and beautify by planting trees, flowers and other greenery. In 2007, the event drew 2.8 million volunteers nationwide.

KAB is best known for the “Crying Indian” public service advertisement (PSA) which launched on Earth Day in 1971. This advertising campaign has been widely credited, including in Frank Lowenstein’s “Voices of Protest” with inspiring America’s fledgling environmental movement.

KAB was the first organization to bring littering to national attention and made “litterbug” a household word.

The Great American Cleanup, KAB’s annual signature event, organized 3 million volunteers through 30,000 events in 17,000 communities in 2008. The effort removed 86 million pounds of litter from landscapes and waterways, recycled 10 million pounds of metals, 37 million pounds of newsprint, 1.4 million tires, and 5.3 million pounds of electronics.