The Commission for a Clean County has found a winning way to drive home the message on litter and recycling.

The group has worked tirelessly for more than a decade to drive home the message that litter across the county hurts of all, including the tourism economy. In addition to regular cleanups in communities across the county, the CCC advocates for policy issues and has an annual awards program honoring those with innovative ideas on everything from conservation to cleaning up.

One of the first activities of the group included writing a unit on litter and recycling that was used in the county school system. This year, the organization has augmented that with a series of assemblies in the schools that have engaged the students in a way that leaves a long-lasting impression.

The “Litter Troll” who rides in a midget car and throws trash all over the room, is a discussion starter on the subject and is a huge hit, said Stephen King, the county solid waste director. The short assemblies are designed to entertain as well as instruct.

The assemblies are encouraging in that the students understand what litter is and many even know what types of garbage can be recycled. Those who don’t pick up on the message quickly when they see their peers in action picking up the trash strewn about by the “Litter Troll.”

The lesson is a small one in the scheme of things and one not likely to appear on a standardized test or will make the difference in an end-of-course grade. Yet it is perhaps one of those “things I learned in kindergarten” type of lessons as so poignantly set forth in Robert Fulghum’s book “All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten.”

The part about “clean up your own mess” fits right in.

Hats off to the CCC for fostering a life lesson that’s imparted in a manner sure to last.