Get ready - Auckland’s biggest annual environmental festival is kicking into gear this weekend. From 16 March to 14 April 2019, EcoMatters Environment Trust will partner with the Western local boards to put on EcoWest Festival, featuring more than 120 events that celebrate our stunning environment and what we can do to care for it.

The festival launches on opening night with Cycle-Powered Cinema on Saturday 16 March at 6pm, which will bring live music, food trucks and pedal-powered screenings of local short films to the Avondale town centre at twilight. Attendees who bring their own mug to this free event will even receive a complimentary hot chocolate.

A diverse range of events in six event categories mean that there are experiences, exhibitions and workshops to cater for all ages and interests. EcoWest Festival offers the perfect opportunity to pick up new skills at workshops like Harakeke - from Harvest to Basket, explore scenic cycling routes with Bike Henderson’s Bike Rides and to find new tricks for zero waste living at events such as One Family, One Year, One Bin.

Enjoy our natural environment with a Forest Therapy Walk or venture out in the dark with A Night in the Bufferzone. Learn about Butterflies or Geckos, Skinks, Lizards and Wetas or go out on the water on Matuku Link’s VIP Kayak Day. Or, you could upskill in conservation and lend a hand in caring for our favourite places out West, such as at a Love Your Stream Day or with Stream and Bush Care in Laingholm.

This year, the festival introduces a new category, Arts for Climate Change, which explores our greatest environmental challenge from the perspective of artists and other creatives. Enjoy graphic artist Damon Keen’s series The Lotus Eaters at the Avondale town centre, listen to Spoken Word 4 Planet Earth at The Falls Carpark, or enter your work in Art Comp!

To find out more and see full details of all EcoWest Festival events, visit www.ecowest.org.nz.

The Festival is organised by EcoMatters Environment Trust and hosted by a range of West Auckland organisations, with funding support from Waitākere Ranges Local Board, Henderson-Massey Local Board, Whau Local Board and Panuku Development Auckland.

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