Austin Eco Fest

Austin Eco Fest is back at Bartholomew Park on Saturday, October 17, from 10 AM to 1 PM. It's a family-friendly morning run by the Windsor Park Neighborhood Association, and the main draw is the giveaway: Tree Folks will be handing out over 700 drought-tolerant trees of various species. Austin residents are eligible for two each, and Tree Folks will be running the sign-up on-site. Along with the trees, there will be tree-planting demonstrations and free mulch.

Beyond the planting, the morning has a full program for kids and adults. There's kids' arts and crafts, tree climbing, and live music, with Congressman Lloyd Doggett making an appearance. You'll also find representatives from local environmental and climate organizations, including the Sierra Club, Austin Climate Parents, and Bat Conservation International.

The festival comes out of the association's Climate Committee, which calls itself the 'Shade Brigade.' They've been planting baby trees along Blanton Drive and staging tree-planting events as part of the neighborhood's 'Shade the streets' initiative to get more shade trees into residents' yards. The Eco Fest pairs those community activities with the distribution of the hundreds of drought-tolerant trees. It's one of several local efforts the association fronts, alongside the Tannehill Branch Clean-Up under Keep Austin Beautiful and the Rebecca Lowe Scholarship Pancake Breakfast fundraiser.

It's a free event, held at Bartholomew Park near the splash pad, 5200 Berkman Dr, Austin, TX 78723, from 10 AM to 1 PM on Saturday, October 17.