Photos by Ruben Salazar
On Saturday, April 18, the city of Savannah with support from Well FED Savannah, organized the annual Earth Day Festival. Earth Day is an annual event on April 22, that showcases the solidarity of people around the world to work and strive towards environmental protection.
The event took place in Forsyth Park in conjunction with the Forsyth Farmer’s Market, which is a regular feature of Savannah. There were just under 100 participants who put up exhibits and wares, all with the common theme of sustainability and environmental protection. Exhibitor sign-ups began around two months prior to the festival and there were no fees required for stalls to be put up.
Well FED is a local magazine that advocates for sustainable communities. In years past they have recurrently participated in the festival, but this is the first year that the city has officially partnered with the magazine.
Rene Teran is the Executive Director of Well FED Savannah. “Earth Day is simply the lens by which we are trying to build and bridge the community,” said Teran. “It’s very similar to another event that we put up, which is the Savannah Food Day Festival. The Food Day Festival takes place at the end of October. Food Day is very similar to Earth Day as it is part of a nationwide initiative that takes place in cities all across the United States.”
There were numerous workshops and events scheduled for the festival. The workshops dealt with subjects such as composting, recycling, sustainability and healthy home cleaning along with community building exercises such as “World Café,” which aims to create conversation within the community.
The Earth Day Festival in Savannah is a product of the city’s tax dollars working for the community. According to Teran, profits generated from utilities are being used to fund the project.
Arthur W. Taylor, a resident and businessman from Savannah, commented that the event was necessary with the present anxiety over climate change and encouraged the city of Savannah to hold more of such events, in order to show taxpayers tangible benefits of their payments.
Teran also spoke of how the city’s level of interest in the event is increasing every year. There has been a steady boost in the number of participants.
