Volunteers show love to local ecosystem for Earth Week

Apr 27, 2026
| Posted in
Environment
Staff cut wire container over roots for new tree

During Earth Week, residents and local volunteers got outside to clean up litter, plant trees and foster environmental awareness in the Kansas City region.

Two brand new regional landmarks, the Rock Island Bridge in the West Bottoms, and Morton Amphitheater in Riverside, celebrated with eco-themed events for environmental and cycling advocates, respectively.

At the Rock Island Bridge, the Kansas and Missouri chapters of Sierra Club hosted members and the general public to celebrate Earth Day with live music in the upper deck event space. A Rock Island Bridge poster done in the style of classic national parks artwork, seen above, was gifted to a representative for the Rock Island Bridge, with a limited run of prints given to supporters of the event.

Bike rests against cyclist-themed welcome sign for Morton Amphitheater
Photo credit: Kathy West

Over at Morton Amphitheater, local cyclists were invited to ride the Missouri Riverfront Trail to a sneak preview party in the amphitheater's parking lot. Venue operators were familiar with the popularity of trail cycling in the area and built dozens of bike racks to receive visitors arriving from the trail.

Venue operators hope that a significant number of music-loving cyclists use the trail to get to concerts this summer and beyond, reducing parking lot congestion and vehicle emissions. "We loved seeing the cycling community turn out for our Pedal to the Party event," says Tim Burris, general manager at Morton Amphitheater. "Kansas City's regional trail network is a real asset, and being connected to it allows us to offer fans another fun and accessible way to experience our venue."

MARC staff joined several local environmental organizations for an Earth Day Fair at UMKC. 

Program staff representing the Air Quality, Water Quality, KC Foodwise and WAY TO GO initiatives spoke with students about their ideas for a cleaner community, and shared ways to get involved in protecting their local environment. Popular public messages include keeping our local waterways free from contaminants by keeping litter and chemicals off of the ground; cutting automobile emissions by ride-sharing and cycling when possible; planning ahead to cut down on food waste; and keeping our flow of recyclable materials free from disqualifying contamination by recycling better.

Visitor speaks with MARC staff at table branded for KC Foodwise initiative

MARC staff representing the organization's Green Team showed up toward the end of the week to clean up trash near the Rosedale Arch in Kansas City, Kansas.

In addition to this cleanup, the City of Kansas City, Missouri, hosted more than a dozen area volunteer cleanups. During the month, Bridging The Gap's WildLands program hosted seven invasive species work days, where volunteers worked alongside restoration experts to remove harmful invasive plants like bush honeysuckle from various locations around the city. And BTG's Heartland Tree Alliance initiative hosted 13 tree planting events (including a collaboration with the Arbor Day Foundation along Brush Creek). 

Arbor Day saw many tree plantings around the metropolitan area. Parkville, an Arbor Day Foundation-recognized "Tree City", hosted an event where city staff, volunteers and visiting representatives from the Missouri Department of Conservation dug in the dirt to provide a dozen trail-shading trees for Platte Landing Park.

Re.Use.Full coordinated another UnDumpster Day event up north across the street from City Hall for the City of North Kansas City. Public Works staff partnered with Iron Mountain and local organizations like PCs for People, Big Brothers/Big Sisters and Flourish Furniture Bank to offer a plethora of donation, reuse and recycling options for hard-to-recycle items that would otherwise make their way to a landfill. The event offered tire donation and paper shredding as well. By the end of the day, the group served over 260 cars. "Not only were 7,000 pounds of electronics, 2,300 pounds of paper, and 37 tires saved from the landfill," says Sarah Sheckells, North Kansas City public works administrator, "but over 2,000 pounds of reusable goods were donated to local charities. Our community showed up in a big way!"

Earth Week concluded with a Spring Fling family event at the Swope Park grandstand, organized by the Parks and Recreation Department for Kansas City, Missouri, and the Lakeside Nature Center.

The event featured craft activities for kids, live entertainment from Richard Renner (known for his environmentally-focused circus performance), and a Green Carpet Fashion Show with 12 local designers showing off their sustainable, upcycled and thrifted fashion.

Photo credits: KCMO Parks and Recreation
Emcee walks the green carpet runway dressed in pink flowery fashion gown
Event Emcee Ciara Barton (@thrift_the_runway on IG)

"What began as a simple "trash-ion show" quickly blossomed into an annual event," says Toni Zibert, public information officer at Kansas City Parks and Recreation. Outfits ranged from thrifted sets from the 1970s, to upcycled blankets turned into pants and soccer jerseys repurposed into statement pieces. Said Zibert, "We're happy to bring together people of all ages to celebrate sustainability, creativity and community."

Learn more about MARC environmental programs
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