COLUMBIA — After a week-long weather delay, Columbia’s 35th Annual Earth Day Festival returned to downtown on Sunday, drawing hundreds of attendees to Peace Park and The District for a celebration of sustainability, community and local enterprise.
With sunny skies overhead, the festival featured over 200 booths and vendors offering everything from upcycled clothing and handmade soap to solar-powered solutions and electric vehicle demos. Local businesses joined nonprofits and advocacy groups in encouraging environmentally conscious living through hands-on activities, educational displays, and green products.
“I like to express my love for nature through my art,” said local artist Jessa Britten. “So, I wanted to come and share my passions for animals and natures with everybody.”
Not only did the festival give a chance for people to share their passion for nature, but stories that led them to develop such a deep passion.
Ashley Bridges, local resident and owner of Higher Self Organics, said she became really passionate about toxin-free healthcare.
“Your skin is your largest organ and what you put on your body should be safe enough to eat,” Bridges said.
She said she and her son started this project originally as a passion project because he was born with a skin condition. Bridges discovered that when they used store-bought products, her son’s skin would break out into a rash, so she decided to start making her own products.
Like Bridges, Lori Becherer also started her business out of a passion to not just embrace nature, but our natural selves. She owns an embroidery business that makes art that represents both the male and female bodies.
“I have three small daughters, who I want them to be around all sizes of bodies, I want them to know that all bodies are beautiful no matter what size or shape they are,” Bercherer said.
For many in Columbia, the Earth Day Festival wasn’t just a celebration, it was a step toward lasting change, one small choice at a time.
