The Green Team – Fundraising for Local Charities

Every year, Ottawa Bluesfest’s Green Team works hard to collect and sort recycling, compost, and garbage containers on-site throughout the festival. With a team of between 140 to 250 volunteers each year, the Green Team works in shifts throughout each festival day, manoeuvring through the crowds and returning recyclables to their team’s central area. Even after the shows have ended and patrons have left the site, the Green Team remains to ensure that the site is clean going into the next day. The Green Team’s work is labour intensive and physically demanding, but essential to the functioning of the festival. Not only do they ensure that the festival remains clean and green, but they run a very special initiative for a very good cause. Once they have collected the recyclables on site, Green Team volunteers will separate out the refundable items (cans and bottles) and bag them up. At the end of the festival, these bags are exchanged for money that is then donated to local charities. 

In 2014, long-time area leader John had an interaction with a staff member from another festival, ultimately leading to John, former Area Leader Assistant Renée and Senior Supervisor Curt to decide that cans and bottles would be separated from other recyclables, returned to the Beer store, and the money would be donated to one or more charities of the team’s choosing. 2014 was the first year that the initiative took place at Ottawa Bluesfest, as the serving of draft beer in plastic cups was being phased out, and beer was almost entirely being served in cans. In addition to the beer cans, the sale of wine had increased, meaning that there were more glass bottles being discarded as well. John and his team would separate the cans and bottles, counting them out and marking the tallies down on pieces of cardboard, before bagging them up. They then packed as many bags as they could into Renée’s car and she took them to the Beer Store to exchange for cash. In the first year of the initiative, the Green Team raised $8,000 from collecting cans and bottles. As time has progressed, their process has gotten more streamlined and further perfected, with more support being offered from the festival logistics team who provide a truck and return the empties to the beer store (as many as 8 trips as Green Team can pack about 160 filled bags into the truck). In 2023, the Green Team raised just under $25,000, a new record for the initiative. According to Green Team Area Leader, John, “Since 2014 Green Team has donated more than $120,000 to over 20 charities in the Ottawa/Gatineau area”. 

In the first year of the initiative, the Volunteer Coordinator at the time witnessed their can collection and counting process and approached John to inquire about what they were doing. While learning about their initiative, she asked if it would be possible to make Ottawa Bluesfest’s home charity, Blues in the Schools, one of the recipients of the initiative’s funding. From then on the Green Team has made a commitment to provide support to Blues in the Schools each year through their beer cans for charity initiative. In 2018, Ottawa Bluesfest Executive Director Mark Monahan asked John why charities were only being donated to for one year at a time. He suggested that instead there be a guarantee of a period of multiple years of funding, to provide the charity with long term support. From this conversation, it was decided that the commitment to each charity would last for 3 years, with new charities being selected at the end of each period. 

In order for a charity to be considered for the initiative, it must be local and must have a connection to a member of the Green Team. At the end of each 3 year period, team members can bring forward their charity suggestions to John and new charities will be selected. In 2023 the 3 charities that received support were the Catholic Centre for Immigrants (CCI), Somerset West Community Health Centre After School Program, and Shelter Movers. CCI offers a variety of programs, services and support for newcomers, to help them adapt to their new lives in Canada. Somerset West After School Program provides physical education, homework help, and health and wellness, free of charge for children in the community between the ages of 6-12. Shelter Movers works to help support individuals who are experiencing violence at home, with moving services and support, free of charge. All 3 of these charities are pillars of the communities that they operate in and provide invaluable support and help to people from all walks of life in the city.

We want to extend a huge thank you to the Green Team for the work that they do, not only for the festivals, but for the community as well. Their unwavering commitment to supporting Blues in the Schools and other local charities is nothing short of amazing. 

• Shelter Movers -> Shelter Movers is a national, volunteer-powered charitable organization providing moving and storage services at no cost to individuals and families fleeing abuse. The $ will help over 30 Urgent Exits, Escorted Moves & Resettlements.
• Somerset West Community Health Centre (after-school programs) -> Somerset West is a physical activity, homework help, and health & wellness program for kids in grade school – free for children 6-12. The $ will help feed the kids for the entire year (noting food security as their main challenge), and additional supplies.
• Catholic Centre for Immigrants -> CCI has been welcoming newcomers to Ottawa since 1954. They help refugees and immigrants settle and adapt to their new lives in Ottawa to feel at home and safe. CCI aids newcomers, refugees, asylum seekers, immigrants, and more.