Key Biscayne, Fla. – In partnership with the American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America (ABFHA), the Florida Beverage Association (FBA) announced that Friends of Cape Florida, Inc. is its 2022 FBA Community Grant recipient.
The community grant totaling $17,500 will be used to develop an educational campaign at Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park, creating signage that reminds park visitors to recycle and help reduce litter. Along beach access points, new recycling containers and on-site educational information will be available to park attendees in addition to current resources so visitors can collect recyclables and litter as they walk the beach and then bring it back to collection stations for proper disposal. The project will also serve as a pilot program for a larger initiative by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to reduce litter and increase recycling at Florida’s state parks.
“The Florida Beverage Association is excited to expand our work to increase circularity in meaningful ways by forming strong alliances with community organizations that share our goal to preserve the health of our beautiful Florida beaches and environment,” said Liz DeWitt, president and CEO of the Florida Beverage Association. “This investment will help build on the great work that Friends of Cape Florida is already leading in our community.”
“America’s beverage companies are committed to reducing our plastic footprint and we can do just that by leveraging the power of public-private partnerships to create consumer awareness campaigns,” said Katherine Lugar, president of the American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America Board of Directors and president and CEO of American Beverage. “This partnership between American Beverage Foundation for a Health America, Florida Beverage Association and Friends of Cape Florida is an example of the work we can do together to be better stewards of our environment, strengthen circularity and drive positive change.”
Friends of Cape Florida will work with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to coordinate messages that reflect best recycling practice as well as utilize strategic placement of recycling bins to maximize their use and increase the amount of recyclables collected.
“Friends of Cape Florida and the Park staff are proud to pilot a campaign encouraging our nearly one million annual visitors to take greater environmental care, especially with the jewel of Key Biscayne,” said Nancy Levitt Davis, President of the Friends of Cape Florida, Inc. “Together we can reach our shared goal of less waste, and that’s good for Florida State Parks and our planet.”
“Thank you to our partners at the Florida Beverage Association and the American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America, and congratulations to the Friends of Cape Florida for earning this grant award,” said Chuck Hatcher, director of Florida State Parks. “Friends groups do amazing work in all our state parks. Last year, the Friends of Cape Florida organized coastal cleanups that removed more than a ton of debris from the beach. This grant award will create new ways for visitors to be good stewards of the environment and properly dispose of their trash when they are visiting the park.”
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The Florida Beverage Association is the state trade association of non-alcoholic beverage producers, marketers, bottlers, and distributors. Our companies make and sell some of the most popular non-alcoholic beverages, including regular and diet soft drinks, bottled water and water beverages, 100-percent juice and juice drinks, isotonic drinks, kombuchas, energy drinks and ready-to-drink teas. The American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America is a 501(c)(3) organization that strives to make a significant contribution to the health of local communities by providing grants to support community organizations that work to advance both the physical health of their local citizens and the environmental health of their communities. For more information on ABFHA, please visit www.beveragefoundation.org
The Friends of Cape Florida State Park Inc. is a 501(c)(3) corporation established in 2000 to support the park and to help conserve and enhance the wildlife and other resources of Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park. Donations to the Friends of Cape Florida State Park Inc. are directly used to support the park in its mission to provide quality resource-based recreation through visitor services, interpretive programs and lighthouse exhibits.
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Media Contact
Liz DeWitt, liz.dewitt@flabev.org