Roadshow Grantee: Neighborhood Planning Unit P

Phase 1: Exposome Roadshow Workshop

Neighborhood Planning Unit P (NPU-P) is in the southwest corner of the city of Atlanta, bordered by three major thoroughfares (I-285, Cascade Rd, and Campcreek Parkway) and the city limits, with Campbellton Rd cutting through the middle. Residents of NPU-P are concerned about a variety of issues in their environment such as such as litter, pollution, excessive dumping, and overgrown vegetation. In particular, these state and federal thoroughfares attract large trucks that emit both air and noise pollution.

Residents seeking to address these environmental issues came together virtually with Emory HERCULES in November and December 2020 to share their environmental health concerns, learn about the exposome, and identify an environmental health priority. As a result, a group of residents committed to working together to address the sanitation and appearance of their community’s environment.

Phase 2: Planning Grant

Residents who came together in Phase 1 were awarded $1000 in January 2021 to develop an Action Plan to address the community need identified during the Roadshow:

Community Environment: Sanitation and Appearance

Phase 3: Action Grant

Community members who completed the Planning Grant (Phase 2) were awarded a $2500 Action Grant in May 2021 to put their plan into action.

Community Identified Health Priority: Excessive littering is impacting the overall sanitation, health, and appearance of the entire community.

Project Title: Pride in The Southside

Project Mission Statement: To decrease rampant littering in Neighborhood Planning Unit P through education, encouragement of individual and collective responsibility, while providing consistent and effective activities and tools to address the issue.

Project Summary and Goals: 

Pride In The Southside is a community-wide project that will address the rampant littering through clean-up activities, educational workshops on preventive techniques, available resources and tools and outreach.

Goals:

• To build a coalition of residents, business, and civic leaders, along with government entities to address littering.
• To develop and implement a litter prevention campaign.
• To advertise Pride in The Southside through the placement of signs, billboards and literature, telephone calls, newsletters, social media sites, and church bulletins.
• To encourage residents to actively participate in littering solutions.

Phase 4: Sustainability Grant

To sustain their efforts, NPU-P was awarded $2500 in May 2022.

Project Title: Pride in the Southwest Side

Project Mission Statement: To maintain a high degree of individual and collective responsibility in decreasing excessive littering throughout Neighborhood Planning Unit P neighborhoods.

Project-Specific Goals:

1. To decrease littering within NPU-P neighborhoods.
2. To combat litter at problem intersections and main arteries.
3. To control litter at school bus pickup & drop off locations & MARTA stops.
4. To educate residents on litter prevention.
5. To decrease debris around storm drains.
6. To encourage commercial entities to decrease littering on their properties.

Organizational Capacity Goals:

1. To assure that team members have a clear and concise idea of the various project components.
2. To acquire the necessary resources needed to accomplish each task.
3. To adjust in a timely manner to changes needed for successful activities.