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ECOLOGICAL CITY – Art & Climate Solutions Action Project
Cultivating community connection, culture, resilience and environmental action.
Join us creating what is possible for a sustainable future!
Earth Celebrations applies the arts to build community, collaboration and action for ecological and social change
Earth Celebrations was founded in 1991 on the Lower East Side of New York City, to apply the arts to mobilize action on environmental issues impacting the neighborhood. The organization grew out of its Save Our Gardens project, that applied innovative cultural strategies to build a coalition effort to preserve the magnificent network of community gardens, threatened with destruction by proposed development plans. For 30 years we have applied the arts to build community, collaboration and action on climate change, water quality, river restoration, waste management, and the preservation of species, habitats, nature, gardens, parks, and a healthy urban environment. Our innovative cultural and environmental action projects provide a vital creative and collaborative platform for residents, artists, and organizations to address and amplify issues, and develop solutions to environmental and climate challenges. Earth Celebrations builds broad-based coalitions and diverse sector partnerships with local organizations, academic institutions, government agencies, schools and community residents, to work together to achieve common goals and ecological, policy and social change.
Creative Placemaking | Climate Art | Environmental Action | Community Engagement | Climate Solutions | Artistic Activism | Cultural Organizing | Collaborative Arts | Environmental Justice | Ecological Art | Sustainability | Climate Action
MISSION–LEARN MORE – EARTH CELEBRATIONS
Environmental & Arts Programs – Creative Climate Actions | Ecological Art, Performance, Pageants/Processions & Events | Public Cultural Action | Educational Art & Climate Solution Workshops | Ecological Artist Residencies | Youth Climate Leadership Internships | Civic Engagement – Urban Planning & Policy | Educational Environmental & Arts Curriculum Development | Exhibitions | Video-Media Projects | Film-Slideshow Screenings | Panel Discussions & Conferences | Environmental Advocacy Initiatives | Coalition-Partnership Building | LEARN MORE – PROGRAMS
ECOLOGICAL CITY – CLIMATE SOLUTIONS ACTION, our current project, engages community through cultural strategies to learn, explore and take action on climate solution initiatives to mitigate climate change impacts of flooding, carbon pollution and the consequences of sea-level rise throughout the network of community gardens, neighborhood and East River Park waterfront on the Lower East Side of New York City.
Gardeners, artists, residents, youth and over 50 community partner organizations collaborate through 9 months of creative engagement, environmental research and learning, partnership building, Art & Climate Solutions Workshops, and a co-created public cultural action, a procession with 21 sustainability site performances throughout the community gardens, neighborhood and East River Park waterfront.
Through the creative process, Earth Celebrations’ artists-in-residence and environmental experts, engage participants to learn about local climate solution initiatives and develop visual art and performance works addressing the climate challenges and solutions embedded within neighborhood sites. The artistic works are presented in a theatrical pageant, featuring a spectacular procession of visual art with 21 site performances of music, dance, theater and poetry, that communicates the neighborhood’s story of climate challenges and solutions.
Through cultural strategies, Ecological City deepens connection to the natural world within the urban environment, builds action on climate solutions, communicates climate science, and amplifies the importance of local efforts to city and global climate challenges.
ECOLOGICAL CITY VIDEO SUMMARY
PROGRAMS
EARTH CELEBRATIONS PROGRAMS | FALL 2024 – SPRING 2025
CLIMATE WEEK 2024 – GOVERNORS ISLAND WITH NYU
Join Earth Celebrations for an Art & Climate Solutions Workshop & Action Event
Natural Paint Workshop & Climate Solutions Costumes
Sunday May 22, 2024 12-3pm
Governors Island – Climate Church
NATURAL PAINT WORKSHOP @ LUNGS Gardens Harvest Arts Festival
Saturday September 28th @ 1-3pm
@ La Plaza Cultural Garden (9th St. Ave C SW Corner)
ARTISTS & CLIMATE ACTION 2025 — ARTISTS OPEN CALL
ART & CLIMATE – ECOLOGICAL CITY
ART & CLIMATE SOLUTIONS PANEL DISCUSSION Zoom
Ecological City Planning Meeting
Wednesday, November 6, 2024 | Wednesday, February 5, 2025 from 6:30 – 8:00pm on Zoom
Discuss local climate challenges and solutions and share ideas for visual art, performance, dance, music, and poetry exploring local climate challenges and solutions.
SIGN UP EVENTBRITE (FREE – LIMITED) TO RECEIVE ZOOM LINK
ECOLOGICAL CITY – ART & CLIMATE SOLUTIONS WORKSHOP
Collaborate creating visual art, bio-art, costumes and giant paper-cache puppets, exploring climate solution initiatives for Ecological City: Procession for Climate Solutions.
March 1 – May 7, 2025
Saturdays 12pm – 4pm
Artists-in-Residence
– Puppet workshops with artist Lucrecia Novoa
– Costume/Bio-Arts with Yohanna Roa
@ Sixth Street Community Center (638 E. 6th St btw. Ave B & C)
SIGN UP ON EVENTBRITE (Free Limited Tickets)
SIGN UP COSTUME / BIO ARTS WORKSHOPS
FREE – SIGN UP TO | LEARN MORE – WORKSHOPS
BIO ARTS WORKSHOPS
Participants learn to use natural bio materials for sculpture and costumes, growing mycelium (mushrooms root) into a structural bio-degradable material that is grown into molds in various forms. Learn how to make Kombucha (fermented mushroom tea) into a leathery textile that will be integrated into costumes for Ecological City.
SIGN UP COSTUME / BIO ARTS WORKSHOPS
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FREE – SIGN UP TO REGISTER | LEARN MORE – WORKSHOPS
MOBILE MURAL WORKSHOPS
Urban Climate Solutions with Earth Celebrations
Artist-in-Reside
April, 2025 (TBC)
Artist Katherine Freygang engages community on a Mobile Mural through workshops in April in collaboration with Earth Celebrations’ partners Lower East Side Ecology Center, Henry Street Settlement (JRC & BGR), University Settlement and Morus. The mural will be featured in the culminating Earth Celebrations’ Ecological City: Procession for Climate Solutions on Saturday, May 10, 2025, featuring spectacular visual art, giant puppets, costumes and 21 site-performances celebrating climate solution initiatives throughout the community gardens and East River Park on the Lower Side.
ART & ECOLOGY YOUTH WORKSHOPS
Earth Celebrations artists collaborate with community partner groups, schools and organizations to create arts projects exploring sustainability and climate solution initiatives. Artworks developed are presented in the culminating Ecological City: Art & Climate Solutions Pageant. To participate or engage your group to join, contact us!
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PUBLIC CULTURAL ACTION
Ecological City – Procession for Climate Solutions
Saturday, May 10, 2025 | 11am – 5pm (rain date Sunday, May 11) | Gardens to Waterfront – Lower East Side, NYC
The theatrical pageant, co-created by the Lower East Side community, artists, gardeners and residents, features a spectacular procession of visual art, giant puppet and costumes with 21 site performances exploring climate solution initiatives throughout the community gardens, neighborhood and waterfront on the Lower East Side of New York City.
Become a #ClimateSolution | LEARN MORE – ECOLOGICAL CITY| VOLUNTEER SIGN UP to wear a spectacular climate solution costume, assist with visuals, puppets and as marshals.
RECENT PRESS
RECENT INTERVIEWS WITH EARTH CELEBRATIONS DIRECTOR, Felicia Young
Read interview with Felicia Young, Director of Earth Celebrations and of the Ecological City Project, where she discusses 30 years of cultural organizing projects that generate ecological and social change.
Read the FULL INTERVIEW
Read the FULL INTERVIEW
LEARN MORE – EARTH CELEBRATIONS FOUNDER FELICIA YOUNG
PROGRAM HISTORY – ARTS MOBILIZING ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION
LEARN MORE – EARTH CELEBRATIONS HISTORY
VAIGAI RIVER RESTORATION PROJECT – Madurai, South India
Photo Credit: The Hindu
Earth Celebrations applies its strategies of arts, community engagement, and environmental action, now in a global context to mobilize an international and collaborative effort to restore the Vaigai River in Madurai, South India that is in a severe crisis due to pollution, waste dumping, and the drying effects of climate change.
LEARN MORE – VAIGAI RIVER RESTORATION
HUDSON RIVER PAGEANT – River Restoration Project
Hudson River Restoration Pageant (2009-2012) engaged residents, youth, students, schools and local river, environmental, cultural and community organizations in a creative collaboration and culminating performance action to connect community with restoration and revitalization efforts of the Hudson River Estuary and waterfront in Lower Manhattan. LEARN MORE – HUDSON RIVER PAGEANT
Documentary by Fredrik Lassenius & Karen Brucker. Watch here or click for YouTube.
SAVE OUR GARDENS – Procession and Preservation Project
Save our Gardens Social Action Art & Preservation Project (1991-2005) engaged broad-based participation of community gardeners, artists, residents, youth, community, cultural and environmental organizations, schools, churches, colleges, city officials, activists, celebrities, academics, attorneys, and inspired individuals, mobilizing a grass-roots coalition and effort which led to the preservation of hundreds of community gardens on the Lower East Side and throughout New York City.