Earth Day Background

​For 40 years, Friends of the Parks has coordinated park clean-ups across Chicago as part of our annual Earth Day Celebration, in partnership with the Chicago Park District and the Forest Preserves of Cook County. The 2025 event took place on Saturday, April 26. As in years past, we supported Park Advisory Councils (PACs), park partner organizations, and other volunteer groups by providing gloves, garbage bags, and an online sign-up system. We also accepted requests for mulch, woodchips, and fibar, which we directed to the Park District.
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This year’s Earth Day was a tremendous success. We saw thousands of volunteers roll up their sleeves to care for parks across the city. Thanks to their dedication, over 150 sites were refreshed and revitalised.

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Check out our interactive map to see all the parks that participated in the Earth Day 2025 Park Clean-Up! 

The Role of Site Captains

• Making a commitment to organize a cleanup crew on April 26 at a park.
• Referring to our Site Captain resources.
• Connecting and coordinating with the park’s supervisor and Park Advisory Council (PAC), if it exists. Park supervisors can assist with planning and may have access to tools or other materials. PACs are familiar with a park’s specific needs and might be able to help with organizing, promotion and recruitment.

• Promoting the volunteer signup page (provided by FOTP) through avenues such as social media, individual outreach, and posting flyers in the park, library and local businesses.

• Setting up a meeting site for Earth Day and communicating with volunteers regarding the location.

• Coordinating with FOTP staff to receive gloves and trash bags for the cleanup.

• Hosting Earth Day Clean up! Remember to take lots of photos.​

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Special thank you to our partners and sponsors for their support! Our annual Earth Day Celebration and Clean-up is a team effort and would not have been possible without them.