By Whitney Harder

(March 30, 2015) — A beautiful campus and a litter-free campus go hand-in-hand, and groups at the University of Kentucky will be able to care for their own piece of Wildcat country during the month of April. A new element of the Pick It Up campaign, the Adopt-a-Spot program encourages registered UK student organizations, UK offices and other groups to participate in weekly clean-ups to eliminate litter at UK.

During the month of April, groups that adopt a spot are responsible for making their defined zone litter-free once a week and documenting their efforts. A photo of the litter collected each week with the front page of that day's Kentucky Kernel newspaper must be sent to pickitup@uky.edu. 

Groups can sign up for Adopt-a-Spot by emailing pickitup@uky.edu by Wednesday, April 8.

Gloves, bags and up to 10 T-shirts, while supplies last, will be provided to each group, and two yard signs will be placed in each zone throughout the month recognizing the participating group.

Registered UK student organizations will also have the opportunity to earn up to $200. For each week that the student organization successfully completes Adopt a Spot tasks, they will earn $50. Funds will be available fall semester of 2015 and can be used to reimburse members for conference travel, or for organization events, recruitment efforts, or other relevant purchases (refreshments, printing costs, etc.).

The University of Kentucky Student Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects is excited to adopt the area surrounding the E.S. Good Barn.

"It not only provides us a way to keep our area of campus litter free, but also provides time to socialize outside of our studio while being constructive campus citizens," said Christopher Sass, president of the chapter. "We as a chapter and profession are mindful regarding sustainable practices and the environment and this opportunity provides another outlet to demonstrate our dedication to those entities."

Adopt a Spot is part of the Pick It Up campaign, developed by a group of campus partners and funded by the Office of the Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration. The campaign was launched in September and urges participation from the entire UK community to make a difference on campus by picking up litter, and recycling it when appropriate.