The inaugural Earth Dreams event will be held Saturday, October 1, 2016, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Founders Park, downtown Johnson City. The festival is a free event for all ages, revolving around the theme of “The River Runs Through It.” Offering a variety of activities, this festival celebrates and teaches about the importance of water in sustaining our planet and all life.
Highlights for the day will include water testing (all ages can participate) of Brush Creek, a stormwater tour of Founders Park, a community mural, arts and crafts, make-your-own boats for a rain gutter regatta, demonstrations about native plants and pollinator-friendly gardens, a fly fishing workshop, outdoor theater, and short talks and demos from area experts on composting, rain barrels, aquatic ecology, and water conservation. Joe Hoffman, from Hoffman Composting, will demonstrate a micro-scale Insulated Aerated Static Pile composting unit, which will be offered as a door prize to a lucky festival attendee. Attendees of all ages will be invited to write their own dreams for the Earth using origami and other paper arts, and incorporate them into a group art installation. After the festival, the dreams will be recorded, displayed and presented to community leaders.
This collaborative volunteer-driven event brings together many community partners: Boone Watershed Partnership, the Johnson City Public Library, Southern Appalachian Plant Society, ETSU Department of Geosciences, ETSU Department of Art and Design and ETSU Slocumb Galleries, Shakespeare in the Park, Appalachian Resource Conservation and Development Council, Evergreen Terrace Apartments, other arts and environmental organizations, and downtown merchants.
The idea for an annual Earth Dreams outdoor festival event was developed by community members Sarah Davis and Nancy Fischman. According to Fischman, “With the new energy and growth in Johnson City around new parks, walking and biking trails, public art, and economic development, we are dreaming big and dreaming differently. This day is about our future as a growing, active, and sustainable community.”
This year’s festival theme of “the river runs through it” and location in Founders Park was inspired by the recent solutions for rectifying downtown Johnson City’s flooding problems that have simultaneously unearthed streams, made new public green spaces, and led to positive economic and community development.
For more information or to volunteer please visit the Earth Dreams Facebook page, and leave a message, or email . A schedule of the full day’s activities and programs can be found at All festival events are free of charge.