Adopteer een straat (Adopt a street)
With Adopteer een straat (dutch for adopt a street), residents throughout Eindhoven can "adopt" parts of the public space and make streets a little greener and cleaner.
A green neighbourhood and keeping Eindhoven clean is a high priority for both the municipality and residents of Eindhoven. Yet the amount of green in the Eindhoven was still very disappointing, found initiator Kees Lepoeter, who started 'Adopteer een straat' in 2014.
With adopteer een straat, residents throughout Eindhoven can "adopt" parts of the public space and make streets a little greener and cleaner. Kees came up with the idea of greening a piece of public space himself much earlier. About 15 years ago, he "adopted" the first piece.
He received so many enthusiastic responses to this from other residents and from the municipality that "Adopt a Street" became an official volunteer initiative in Eindhoven in 2014.
Every spring, the initiative realises a campaign where Eindhoven residents can get perennials and potting soil, and in autumn there is a flower bulb campaign. Around 1,000 people throughout Eindhoven participate in each action: that means 1,000 new adopted pieces a year!
In Kees' street, many tree beds have already been adopted. This means that residents keep the area around trees clean and add plants.
It gives the street a friendly and cheerful atmosphere. It has also improved biodiversity. This is because the plants distributed during the actions are good for bees and insects. Adopt a Street can be expanded much further in the coming years. There are still many places where tree beds can be adopted or small gardens can be created. With permission from the municipality, larger places can also be 'adopted'.
What makes Adopt a Street so unique is that it is incredibly easy to get started yourself. There are no rules or large organisations. You can always adopt tree mirrors; no permission is needed. You can easily clean up litter yourself and get materials from Kees. This way, everyone in Eindhoven can contribute to a beautiful, clean and green living environment. Expats are verry welcome at Adopteer een straat, just sent Kees an e-mail and discuss what you would like to do!
Click here for the website of Adopteer een straat.