SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA – On Saturday, April 22, thousands of community members gathered in the sun at Lake Tahoe Community College to celebrate Earth Day. The free, family-friendly Earth Day Festival culminated Earth Week, a week of daily challenges to reduce one’s carbon footprint and protect our climate.

“On behalf of the Earth Day planning committee we’d like to thank everyone who joined us at the festival and took part in the daily activities throughout Earth Week,” said Victoria Ortiz, Community Engagement Manager with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. “This year’s theme was “invest in your planet” and it’s rewarding to see so many community members committed to doing their part. Together, our collective impact is inspiring!”

The Earth Week challenges included actions people can incorporate into their lives throughout the year. Small changes, like picking up litter and dog poop, refilling water bottles with Tahoe Tap, and riding a bike or walking instead of driving can drastically reduce one’s impact on the planet. The activities outlined in Earth Week were shared with Lake Tahoe Unified School District (LTUSD) and on social media, and are available to anyone throughout the year at https://takecaretahoe.org/earthweek2023/.

The Earth Day festival featured 41 booths that educated the public about the preservation and protection of our local and global natural resources along with food and craft vendors. Many participants chose to walk or ride to the event, and the free bike valet provided by the Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition parked over 100 bikes! The KidZone featured recycled arts and crafts activities and showcased the original artwork by 30 talented LTUSD students who submitted pieces for the Earth Day Festival poster contest. The community voted on the top five and ultimately selected a beautiful piece by Marianna Galicia Perez of South Tahoe High School to be featured on the poster distributed throughout town and online.

The event also spotlighted local talent with a great line-up of speakers and artists providing tunes and inspiration. Banda Paso Fino kept the energy high, The Living Room Allstars provided the perfect morning tunes, and Liz Broscoe led a community drum circle between remarks from local students and the City Council.

Thank you to the generous sponsors, South Tahoe Public Utility District, South Tahoe Refuse, Pay It Forward, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, Heavenly and Tahoe Water Suppliers Association, and committed organizations on the planning committee. Big thanks to Lake Tahoe Community College for hosting, and to all of South Lake Tahoe for coming together as a community to celebrate Earth Week. Mark your calendars for next year’s Earth Day festival on Saturday, April 27, 2024!

Learn more at https://southtahoeearthday.org/

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The Tahoe Earth Day Foundation, a non-profit organization, formed to educate the general public regarding the Lake Tahoe and Truckee region’s unique beauty and how to preserve and protect it. The means of providing such education include, but are not limited to, regional Earth Day festivals that include environmental and educational booths with focus areas on watershed health, forest health, water conservation, pollution prevention, alternative energy and waste management. 

Article written by Victoria Ortiz, TRPA Community Engagement Manager