To increase the environmental knowledge base of the state’s kids, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the Los Angeles County Central Library Children’s Division turned to an edu-tainment experience created by Caltrans District 2 Public Information Officer Samantha O’Reilly. Picking up the project herself, O’Reilly improved the quality of literary material related to the Clean California initiative, using the Canva graphic design platform and her own imagination to craft "It’s Our Home Too!," a coloring book distributed to Los Angeles County’s 85 public libraries.
Established in 2021, Clean California invests over a billion dollars into removing litter and beautifying the state, with goals to reduce the amount of waste and debris within public spaces. In addition to projects like Dump Day events, Adopt-A-Highway and community cleanups, the educational arm of the initiative invests in increased community engagement about littering and other environmental issues. In October 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom announced $114.5 million in Clean California grants to support 60 projects revitalizing public spaces.
"The trash we see on our roadsides and public areas is completely unacceptable — Californians deserve better," Newsom said during the latest round of grant distribution. "Cleaning up public spaces will help us restore a sense of pride and a sense of community throughout the state."
California children who may not be following state news can instead be educated through the coloring book, which tells the story of Ruby Robin, a bird that is disgusted with the amount of trash in public spaces and gathers fellow animal friends to ask for assistance from parents, families and Clean California work crews. O’Reilly noted that the work is a way to entertain young minds and get them thinking about the initiative.
"Since we’re in such a specific program, I wanted to do something that had specifically to do with cleaning up California … a coloring book was more fun than what we had going on already, and I thought it would be fun to make a funny story to encourage kids to clean up their communities."
Combining Canva tools with her creative messaging, O’Reilly said "everything kind of fell into place" on the project, finishing it within two weeks. She represents District 2 of Caltrans, based in the mountainous region of Redding, where much like Santa Monica, outdoor recreational activities are a big deal.
"I thought that kids would be able to empathize with animals pretty well, and I wanted to show them how their actions might impact the environment where they wouldn’t really think about it too much if it wasn’t pointed out to them," she said.
Saying she has a 10-year-old son herself, she wants to teach him and other children "how to be a better human," including increasing environmental awareness.
"I wanted to teach kids how their actions might impact the environment, and then I also thought that getting kids involved in keeping their communities clean would help encourage their parents to get involved … hopefully, [it encourages] more people, because I think it’s easy to sort of forget how your actions impact your community and your environment without somebody pointing it out to [them]. I think a lot of people do a good job, but, we sort of forget [sometimes] because we’re so busy," O’Reilly said.
The coloring book is currently available in all Los Angeles County public libraries while supplies last, and more information can be found at cleancalifornia.dot.ca.gov
