Love 5280℠ is Keep Colorado Beautiful’s flagship Denver campaign and part of Keep America Beautiful’s national Love Your Happy Place℠ movement. The campaign inspires residents to care for the places they love through recycling education, neighborhood cleanups, and shared pride in local spaces.

The name reflects Denver’s identity as the Mile High City, sitting 5,280 feet above sea level, and reinforces the belief that a cleaner city is a stronger city. Similar “Love” campaigns are active in cities like San Diego, Oakland, and Austin, connecting Denver to a growing national movement focused on civic pride and environmental stewardship.

Denver is Colorado’s most visible city. Demonstrating measurable improvement in Denver establishes credibility statewide with residents, funders, agencies, and partners.

Love 5280℠ will challenge Denverites to make a positive impact on the place you call home! By committing to small daily actions, you’ll be helping to make our communities more prosperous, enhancing public safety and contributing to a healthier environment. 

The Love 5280℠ campaign will bring civic bride to Denver in 2026 through:

• Litter cleanups in high-traffic areas, parks, rivers, and neighborhoods.

• Recycling education and special collection events. 

• Partnerships with schools and youth groups for student-led cleanups.

• Tree planting, flowerbed installations, and community garden support.

• Mural and art projects to brighten neighborhoods and deter graffiti.

• Activations at Denver events.

• Traditional and digital media advertising.

Denver Faces Critical Challenges

For the City of Denver, reducing litter is not just about cleanliness, it is essential to building a healthy, safe, and prosperous city. Clean and well-cared-for streets, parks, waterways, and neighborhoods directly improve quality of life, strengthen civic pride, support local businesses and tourism, and reduce long-term public costs.

• Littered, dirty, neglected public spaces directly destroy property value, neighborhood confidence, and safety perception.

• 80% of Colorado’s landfill waste is recyclable, the Love 5280℠ campaign is reminding Denverites to reuse, recycle all they can, including organics.

• Thanks to Denver’s expanded residential curbside composting program, the city has increased the amount of organics diverted from landfills by 55%. Love 5280℠ aims to continue the momentum by reminding Denverites to compost food and yard debris. 

• Colorado’s recycling and composting rate is only 15.7%, that’s half the national average of 32%. 

• Without a high quality of life, no one would choose to live here. Shared spaces need to be improved and developed to enhance communities.  

• Kickoff Campaign: One major cleanup event to launch the program — aiming to mobilize thousands of volunteers across multiple Denver neighborhoods.

• Monthly Cleanups: At least one cleanup each month in a different part of the city, led by “Community Captains.”

• Corporate Days of Service: Partnerships with Denver-based companies to sponsor and staff cleanups.

• Signature Celebration Event: Tie the campaign into Centennial 150: Colorado’s Birthday Celebration — highlighting Colorado pride and Denver’s role as the state’s capital.

• Love 5280 will be powered by partnerships:

• City & County of Denver: aligning with Denver Parks & Recreation, Public Works, and sustainability goals.

• Schools & Universities: youth-led cleanups, contests, and ambassador programs.

• Neighborhood Associations & Faith Groups: local leadership and volunteer mobilization.

• Businesses & Sponsors: funding supplies, providing volunteers, and adopting cleanup sites.

Each month in 2026, Keep Colorado Beautiful will aim to deliver:

• Eight to twelve cleanup and beautification events

• Four hundred to six hundred volunteers engaged

• Forty to eighty five tons of litter removed

• Two to four high visibility beautification projects