Volunteers can learn about sea turtle nesting and help clean up Miami Beach shoreline at a free guided event Sunday, Aug. 30, at 68th Street Beach.

The Flip the Switch Sea Turtle Beach Cleanup runs from 9 a.m. to noon. Participants start with a guided turtle walk covering nesting behavior, nest protection efforts and coastal conservation practices, then fan out for a beach cleanup.

Miami Beach Rising Above, MORAES of South Florida and 1 Hotel South Beach are organizing the event, which the City of Miami Beach promoted in its biweekly newsletter and on social media.

The Aug. 30 cleanup is part of an ongoing series that rotates locations along the beach. Earlier sessions took place at 24th Street Beach on July 15 and 1st Street Beach on Aug. 13.

The series falls during Miami Beach's sea turtle nesting season, which runs April 1 through Oct. 31. The city's shoreline is a nesting habitat for three protected species: loggerhead, green and leatherback turtles. Only about one in every 1,000 hatchlings survives to adulthood, according to city data.

The broader Flip the Switch campaign focuses on reducing artificial lighting that disorients hatchlings trying to reach the ocean. In May 2025, Miami Beach received its second grant from the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate Grant Program to expand the effort. Phase II targets 12 oceanfront properties and the city's beach concessionaires. Nine hotels are participating, including 1 Hotel, Loews Miami Beach Hotel, Nobu/Eden Roc and The Setai.

The City Commission updated its Turtle Nesting Protection Ordinance in October 2024 to cover lights visible from the beach, adding interior lighting standards for hotels and commercial properties and limiting fireworks to barges.

What to bring: Closed-toed shoes, a hat, sunglasses and insect repellent. Buckets, garbage bags and gloves will be provided. Organizers ask participants to arrive a few minutes early for check-in.

The nesting season continues through Oct. 31, and additional cleanups are expected to be scheduled through the fall.