Sustainable Ramona will celebrate environmental awareness and promote earth-friendly practices at its fifth annual Ramona Earth Day Festival.
The festival is set for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 25 at Begent Ranch, 18528 Highland Valley Road. Earth Day is April 22.
The family-friendly event will feature live music, food vendors and a Sustainable Treasure Hunt for kids. Exhibitors and speakers will discuss sustainability practices and provide events and opportunities, organizers said.
Vendors and nonprofit organizations interested in participating can provide sustainable products or share environmental information at the event. Nonprofit organizations can exhibit free while participating vendors will pay a $50 fee.
Applications are available at the new SustainableRamona.org website.
One of the returning Ramona Earth Day Festival participants this year will be the Ramona Municipal Water District. Their staff will hand out water conservation supplies from the San Diego County Water Authority and share information about water conservation and meter reading, said Erica Wolski, the water district’s general manager.
Michelle Sund
Sustainable Ramona promotes sustainability by offering educational forums and hosting events such as the Ramona Earth Day Festival. (Michelle Sund)
The water district will also have a separate booth to update the public on a Climate Adaptation Plan that was funded by the state, Wolski said.
The water district received a $600,000 grant from the state’s Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program to pay for the local Climate Adaptation Plan study, Wolski said. The study included emergency evacuation modeling, the creation of a virtual reality video about wildfire and heat impacts, and a wildfire assessment that focused on where vegetation should be reduced in Ramona, she said.
A survey by the water district and Barona to get feedback on the Climate Adaptation Plan was completed at last year’s Earth Day Festival, Wolski said. The survey’s topics included drought, flooding and sustainable agriculture, but the No. 1 concern among survey respondents was wildfire and safe evacuations.
“Expanding Highway 67 got the most votes,” Wolski said. “Last year we collected input and this year we’ll be sharing the results of the input.”
Wolski said the water district has been working with the Barona Band of Mission Indians to secure a portion of state bond funds approved by voters in 2024 as Proposition 4. The bond provides roughly $10 billion for projects in California that are related to climate, she said. Some of these projects include wildfire protection, safe drinking water and sustainable agriculture. Other projects include natural lands, parks and wildfire projects; coastal lands, bays and ocean protection; and clean energy.
“Since we have a completed plan, we are more positioned than other communities to get project funds,” Wolski said.
The nonprofit Sustainable Ramona fosters sustainability in Ramona via education, partnerships, projects and promotions. The grassroots group has sponsored educational forums on water conservation, waste management, worm farming, composting, electrification of houses along with renewable energy.
It has also hosted four Earth Day Festivals, a Harvest Festival and a community forum introducing the concept of an independent public utility using microgrid technology and renewable energy.
For more information about Sustainable Ramona, visit the SustainableRamona.org website or on Instagram @SustainableRamona or Facebook @SustainableRamona.