CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — EcoFest, the popular Cedar Rapids celebration of Earth Day, is set to return on Saturday, April 25, 2026.
The free event takes place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at NewBo City Market, 1100 Third St. SE.
Yoga and a visit from alpacas start the day, followed by RARE (Raptor Advocacy Rehabilitation & Education) exhibit with birds of prey at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., and the EcoFest GreenCR Champion Award at noon.
Also at noon, local artists and designers will show off their environmentally sustainable clothing during a fashion show, while Barnyard Discoveries will showcase goats, pigs, chickens and more from 1-3 p.m.
Activities for children include face painting and caricatures from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Events at the nearby Cherry Building, 329 10th Ave. SE, include a Pots, Plants, and Prints Artist Market; Collaborative Community Sculpture; Sustainable Makers: Artists Talks and Pottery Wheel Demonstrations, all from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Cedar County Cobras perform during EcoFest 2025. (photo/Cindy Hadish)
Live music features the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy from 11 a.m. to noon; Jessica Mar & Dad Duo from 1-2 p.m. and Cedar County Cobras from 2-3 p.m.
EcoFest also includes local foods and interactive educational activities, eco-products, and eco-practice demonstrations in how to reduce consumption of resources and fun ways to reduce and reuse household items.
The event began in 2010 with two groups providing separate Earth Day events: an art-centered festival in the New Bohemia area and an environmental based program in southwest Cedar Rapids. The two events combined in 2011 to create EcoFest.
While the weather for past EcoFest celebrations has ranged from bitter cold to balmy summer-like temperatures, the forecast for this year looks somewhere in-between.
See photos from the 2024 EcoFest.
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