A Cleaner Block, and a New Sense of Possibility
On September 12, neighbors in Washington Heights gathered to paint wooden tree guards, share lunch, and listen to music. David Clarke had spent the previous two months installing the guards and planting flowers along an entire block. He said it was the neighborhood’s first block party in 38 years—and that people have been thanking him on the street ever since.
The celebration began with a much smaller act: Clarke filming himself picking up litter near his apartment in northern Manhattan. Within days of launching his social media accounts in May, his videos were drawing attention. He began organizing group cleanups, and his effort grew into Trash Talk NYC, which he calls “New York City’s cleanup club.” In less than five months, he has raised more than $55,000 and brought together a network of volunteers.
Clarke, 24, had grown tired of waiting for someone else to care for his surroundings. As he cleared litter, he also started thinking about how to help keep it from returning. Tree pits—the patches of soil surrounding sidewalk trees—offered a place to start. After learning he could obtain a city permit to install guards around them, he built simple wooden fences and added flowers. He said he noticed less litter on the block even before the party.
Then he invited his neighbors to make the space their own. Rather than promote the event online, Clarke handed out printed flyers asking people to come paint the guards together. The resulting artwork turned his project into something the whole block could enjoy and help maintain.
That shared responsibility matters to him. The flowers are perennials, but keeping them healthy will take care from neighbors through snowy winters and everyday life. “It takes a community to make it work,” Clarke said, “but they now have this sense that they can control their environment. And that is so rare.”
A former academic tutor and 2024 Columbia University graduate, Clarke now works on Trash Talk NYC full time. He plans to keep hosting weekly cleanups and beautification events while collaborating with nonprofits, city council members, and companies. He also wants to return to filming solo litter pickups—the simple practice that started it all.
For Clarke, the message reaches beyond one New York block: people working together can make the places they call home feel cared for.
