b'Dave BrindleyMaking the fight against litter a group effortWhen Dave BrindleyI wanted a name that conveyed ownership with a moved to Philadel- little bit of an edge, he says. Being from Philly, it phia in 2009, he sawis hard to praise anything from Texas, but I appre-a lot of trash every- ciated their Dont mess with Texas campaign. In where. It was not justthe same way, I hope that the name Not in Philly on the ground, butshows that we love our city and we will push back stuck on street poleson allowing trash in this place that we love.as well.Mr. Brindley decided to create a website where Someone wouldPhiladelphians could sign up to clean their own post a sign like Illblocks. With the help of Code for Philly, a group pay cash for yourof volunteers who help Philadelphians use tech-house, but no onenology, and Think Company, a software devel-would ever take the sign down, he says. opment company, he was able to get the Not in One day, when he went to tear down one of thesePhilly website (notinphilly.org) up and running.bandit signs, a light bulb went off in his head.By February 2020, Mr. Brindley says, 1,600 He realized that he didnt need other people topeople had signed up to spend time once a week remove litter from his neighborhood. He could dogetting litter off their blocks. it himself. Getting rid of litter does more than make a neigh-To do that, he bought a trash grabber, a pole withborhood look clean, Mr. Brindley says. When a handle on one end and claws on the other, andwe see litter on the ground, it can be a sign that began spending 15 minutes a week cleaning uppeople dont care about the neighborhood, and his block.that can make us feel bad, he says. Cleaning up his neighborhood gave him anotherTheres more. People dont like to walk in places idea. He could help the whole city by starting athat have litter, and that can affect our physical volunteer organization, called Not in Philly. Hehealth, he says. When people arent walking says he borrowed inspiration for the name from around, there can be even more crime because a sassy slogan used by Texas. people are not keeping an eye on things.8'