{"id":406980,"date":"2026-08-15T01:56:06","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T01:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/406980\/"},"modified":"2026-08-15T01:56:06","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T01:56:06","slug":"volunteers-work-to-expand-austins-festival-beach-food-forest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/406980\/","title":{"rendered":"Volunteers work to expand Austin’s Festival Beach Food Forest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Volunteers are helping to restore the Festival Beach Food Forest<\/a>, an Austin garden that’s open to anyone who wants to forage, starting with a 12-day campaign that’s already underway. The campaign includes a fundraising push and a free, public event to celebrate on August 20.<\/p>\n

The team that maintains the food forest calls it a “grassroots pilot project.” It is volunteer-run and experimental, with the main goal<\/a> of turning public parkland into a community space that can “nourish, educate and inspire.” The garden is located along Lady Bird Lake and offers fruits, nuts, vegetables, and herbs.<\/p>\n

Volunteers, who call themselves ATX19, hope to hit a fundraising goal of $100,000. The national community food-growing nonprofit Big Green will match donations<\/a> up to a $25,000 cap. Funds raised will go toward educational programming and developing the second phase<\/a> of the food forest, which will expand the forest from two-thirds of an acre to three-and-a-half acres. Some proceeds will also go to Big Green for use on other community gardening projects nationwide.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t just about planting trees,\u201d said ATX volunteer team captain Neil Dumra in a press release. Dumra also owns ThirdEye Cacao, a local artisanal cacao company. \u201cIt\u2019s about proving what can happen when ordinary people decide not to wait for someone else to solve a problem. A food forest isn\u2019t built for the people planting it. It\u2019s built for the families, kids, and neighbors who\u2019ll enjoy it decades from now.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to fundraising, the ATX19 team will be putting in work over hundreds of volunteer hours at Festival Beach. Their goals, according to a press release, are to expand native prairie habitat for birds and pollinators, develop new areas for growing edible plants, revitalize the community seed library, and paint benches for visitors.<\/p>\n

The campaign will also provide unrestricted funding to support future educational programming and the Phase 2 development of the Food Forest, ensuring the space continues to serve Austin residents for years to come.<\/p>\n

The food forest took a hit in January and February of 2026 when construction<\/a> for the I-35 Capital Express Central project moved onto cultivated land. Volunteers for the forest coordinated on a large “unplanting” project, where they removed 90 trees<\/a> to be replanted after construction was completed. Since then, the forest has been back to its usual programming and projects, including work days, guided walks, clothing swaps, and more.<\/p>\n

To attend the free celebration on August 20, guests need to RSVP on Eventbrite<\/a> by August 17. There will be live music by local artists, take-home sprout kids, and other ways to connect with community members who care about community gardening.<\/p>\n

Donations to the Festival Beach Food Forest for this campaign can be made through Big Green at give.biggreen.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n