ICAN Spotlight: Green Tangerine

Welcome to the ICAN Spotlight!  

In this series, we shine a light on our lovely members who make this community and this network what it is.  

From passionate climate advocates, to those learning and teaching sustainable living, to those just starting out with climate action, each one of our members brings unique ideas, experiences and inspiration. 

This edition of ICAN Spotlight will be focused on Green Tangerine, delving into some of their fantastic work with the Inverclyde community. Green Tangerine run events and campaigns to reduce waste, help nature and promote sustainability. Green Tangerine was started in 2022, by a group of environmentally conscious locals, looking to spread awareness and encourage change. The company incorporates Inverclyde Literati, who have coordinated litter picking teams for over 8 years. 

 

Green Tangerine’s Climate Journey 

Green Tangerine are involved with several different initiatives around Inverclyde to promote the natural beauty of the area and help protect Inverclyde against future climate impacts. 

Litter Picking 

One of Green Tangerine biggest projects is litter picking. Green Tangerine originated years ago as Inverclyde Literati, who coordinated several teams of litter pickers to help clean up Inverclyde. As their projects expanded beyond litter, the group developed into Green Tangerine, but litter picking remains one of their core activities. It is an invaluable tool to connect with the community, and it helps protect biodiversity, wildlife and marine life by keeping Inverclyde’s green spaces and shorelines as clean as possible. 

In 2025, Green Tangerine hosted 173 litter picking events with over 990 volunteers. Together they picked up 1,434 bags of rubbish weighing approximately 7.2 tonnes!  

There were a number of curios collected, including a metal arrow, laughing gas canisters, kayak, tent, lots of cones, bags of drugs, folding chair, shopping trolley, soldering mask, a variety of car parts, and a lawnmower! 

As an anchor group of Keep Scotland Beautiful, Green Tangerine supports KSB’s annual Spring Clean campaign by organising the Big Clyde Clean Up. For this campaign, they try to clean the shoreline of Inverclyde from Finlaystone Burn to Wemyss Bay. Each year the Big Clyde Clean Up has become better known and more individuals and organisations have wanted to get involved. In fact, more recently in 2026, groups on both sides of the River Clyde have adopted the campaign, which is excellent news. 

Tree Maintenance 

Green Tangerine also carry out tree maintenance in Cove Reservoir with The Conservation Volunteers (TCV).   

TCV are a charity who have been engaging in conservation work across the UK since 1959. They provide groups in the UK with tree saplings that they can plant anywhere on public land, but the young trees require some ongoing care to make sure they grow and mature.   

“It’s very satisfying work,” Green Tangerine said, “You feel like you are making a real difference to the chances of the survival of the young trees.” 

Raising Awareness 

Several of Green Tangerine’s activities revolve around spreading awareness of the climate emergency. In the run-up to Christmas, they ran a sustainability campaign called “Less Waste, More Cheer” which involved a number of community groups. They taught over 100 people new skills in upcycling and reducing waste surrounding Christmas presents and decorations. Each week they provided hints and tips on their website and social media channels, increasing the reach of this campaign.  

Additionally, one of Green Tangerine’s members is a “Climate Fresk” workshop facilitator. Here at ICAN, we cannot express enough the value of these workshops as a tool for educating people about the climate emergency and sparking conversation. Green Tangerine have hosted four of these workshops in recent months and plan to host many more in the future.  

They consider raising awareness extremely important, saying, “Increasing awareness of the impact of our activities on the climate and nature is essential for future generations in Inverclyde and beyond.” 

Reducing Plastic Pollution 

Green Tangerine is also passionate about reducing plastic pollution. In the past, the Big Lottery Fund sponsored one of Green Tangerine’s projects, “Play A Clean Game”, alongside the Scottish Football Association, promoting the use of reusable water bottles over disposable ones. Over the course of the six-month pilot study with three community football clubs, Green Tangerine estimates that they saved over 30,000 single use plastic water bottles. They now host information about how football and other sports clubs can reduce waste and save money on their website.  

Green Tangerine and ICAN 

Green Tangerine has been an invaluable member of ICAN. For the group, one of the most important aspects of being involved with ICAN has been the sense of community the network brings. Connecting with others who are working on climate action locally has opened up useful conversations, shared learning, and a comforting reminder that many people are working towards a shared goal.  

“Working on issues relating to the climate crisis can be frustrating, so it is important to know you are not a lone voice.” Green Tangerine said.  

A small seed-funding grant from ICAN has also supported Green Tangerine’s work by helping to cover the cost of their website, allowing them to continue sharing updates and resources with the wider community. Green Tangerine added that grants like these are essential as they do not prioritise fund-raising activities.  

What Have Green Tangerine Learned? 

Green Tangerine stress the importance of proper planning – having clear objectives for activities and knowing how you will measure success.  

An example they provided was the family picnics they hosted at Lunderston Bay, with the objective to involve more people, spread the word about the climate crisis and recruit members. In hindsight, they find they did not meet these objectives, despite people coming and having fun. They are now looking for alternative ways to engage people and recruit members.  

They also mention the importance of networking and collaboration – that working with other community groups is very beneficial for spreading awareness about the climate crisis and reaching different audiences.  

How Can I Get Involved? 

If you can donate an hour of your time to support any of Green Tangerine’s activities, they gladly welcome volunteers. Visit their website or contact them at chat@greentangerine.org.uk to get involved.  

What’s Next for Green Tangerine? 

First and foremost, Green Tangerine hopes to continue all of their above activities and expand to support more of the community. Their annual Big Clyde Clean Up begins this weekend on the 14th of March 2026 and will last until the 24th of April.  

Additionally, in May, they hope to host a showing of “People’s Emergency Briefing”, a 45-minute documentary that covers the key points of a Parliamentary briefing on the risks of climate change that the UK faces if we do not act soon. The film calls for a national emergency response from politicians and will hopefully spark conversation at the showing.