STAFF REPORT – REGULAR AGENDA
TO: CITY COUNCIL
FROM: CHRISTABEL SORIA MENDOZA, MANAGEMENT ANALYST I
DATE: OCTOBER 30, 2024
SUBJECT: DISCUSSION AND DIRECTION REGARDING THE 2025 EARTH
DAY EVENT
RECOMMENDATION
Discuss and provide direction on the main activity for the 2025 Earth Day Event, scheduled for Sunday, April 27, 2025, with the theme "Protect Our Species."
BACKGROUND
Every year in April, the Town honors Earth Day as a community event, locally or regionally. The Environmental Programs Committee (EPC) has historically assisted staff in planning and facilitating an Earth Day Event that is designed to engage and educate the community on sustainability and climate-related topics as well as promote the goals of the Town’s Climate Action Plan (CAP). In April 2022, the EPC hosted an Earth Day Event at Holbrook-Palmer Park that included 35 vendors and over 300 attendees. Additionally, neighboring jurisdictions came together to host a We Love Earth Festival in Menlo Park which included similar activities and vendors as Atherton’s Earth Day Event.
In April 2023, the Town co-hosted the Love Our Earth Festival, a collaborative event sponsored by a coalition of Peninsula cities and community-based organizations, including Acterra, 350 Silicon Valley, Menlo Spark, and the cities of East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Palo Alto, and Atherton.
The festival took place at Menlo-Atherton High School, attracting a diverse crowd and offering a wide array of activities designed to educate attendees on climate action. The event featured a green vendor fair, electric vehicle and e-bike showcases, sustainable and vegan food vendors, and interactive exhibits for children. The festival was a significant success, emphasizing community collaboration in addressing the climate crisis.
In April 2024, the Town returned to the Park and hosted the Atherton Earth Day Festival. This event focused on celebrating the environment through educational exhibits, green technology demonstrations, and plant-based food offerings. The festival provided a platform for the community to engage with eco-friendly practices and promoted sustainable living through interactive activities and vendor showcases. The EPC played a crucial role in organizing the event.
Item No. 1
Town of Atherton
Earth Day 2025
October 30, 2024
For 2025, the Council directed that staff take the lead on event planning and organizing; and tasked the EPC with identifying the main highlighting activity for the event (e.g. animal zoo, sheep vs lawnmower, leaf blower competition and/or other family friendly activities or demonstrations).
The Council set the budget for the 2025 event at $10,000.
ANALYSIS
For the 2025 event, staff is responsible for keeping the EPC informed of event planning activities and have met with the EPC Chair, who is the sole member of the Earth Day subcommittee, to provide updates on staff’s progress and talk through ideas for the main activity. At this October check-in with the EPC Chair, a potential list of vendors was expanded in hopes of having one of the participating vendors be able to provide the main highlighting activity of the event with our support.
As of October 2024, the following pre-planning activities have been completed. - Posted a “Save the Date” in the Fall Athertonian
- Posted the event on the Town Calendar
- Drafted a Volunteers Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) - Drafted a Vendors FAQ
- Created a Vendor Interest Form
- Drafted and researched a potential list of vendors to invite to fill out our Vendor Interest Form
o Vendors will be emailed in October/November and as needed - Began discussing volunteer recruitment and management o Recruitment at Schools and on Town platforms to begin in December 2024 To ensure the success of the 2025 Earth Day Event, several key factors need to be considered, particularly around budget management, effective communication, and coordination with the EPC, as well as volunteer recruitment and management.
1. Logistical and Budget Considerations
One of the primary logistical challenges for the event is balancing the costs of the main highlight activity with the broader event budget. Staff has already initiated efforts to reserve three food trucks, which may require the Town to cover the difference if minimum sales thresholds aren’t met. The 2024 Earth Day Festival revealed issues with signage, an area where staff aims to make improvements for 2025 by allocating more of the budget towards better directional and informational signage. Ensuring that the main activity doesn’t consume a significant portion of the budget is essential to accommodate these logistical requirements, while also funding other aspects of the event such as vendor fees, volunteer support, and interactive exhibits.
2. Coordination with EPC & Identification of the Main HighlightingActivity Coordination between staff and the EPC is well underway. Monthly check-ins between staff and the EPC Chair, initiated in October 2024, provide regular updates on planning progress and allow Earth Day 2025
October 30, 2024
for discussions on the main activity and other EPC-related priorities. However, scheduling a special EPC meeting to specifically discuss the main activity has faced challenges due to quorum issues. Moving forward, maintaining regular communication will be crucial to align on key decisions and ensure that the EPC’s expectations for the main highlighting activity are met in a timely manner. At this time, the EPC as a group has not collaborated on a main activity for recommendation to the Council.
3. Volunteer Recruitment and Management
Another key part of ensuring the success of the event is effective volunteer recruitment and management. Staff has engaged an intern to assist with planning and has outlined initial plans to begin volunteer recruitment in December 2024. Recruitment strategies will focus on local schools, colleges, and universities. Although volunteer management strategies are still in the draft stage, this early engagement allows for a robust volunteer program to be developed, which is vital for the event’s execution. Given the 60+ volunteers involved in the 2024 event, careful management will be necessary to ensure similar participation and engagement levels in 2025.
4. Fostering Community Participation
Building on past successes, fostering community participation is an integral strategy for both the planning and execution phases. The community's role in promoting the event and sharing ideas is critical for its success. By involving key stakeholders and expanding the vendor list, staff and the EPC can encourage wider community support and engagement. Additionally, promoting collaboration between town partners, local vendors, and affiliated groups will enhance the event’s outreach and impact, ensuring that it continues to reflect the values of sustainability and environmental consciousness.
CONCLUSION
Careful budget management, continuous EPC coordination, effective volunteer engagement, and broad community involvement are all necessary to ensure a successful 2025 Earth Day Event. Staff has made progress on these fronts but will need to finalize certain strategies, particularly around volunteer management and EPC involvement, to ensure that the event meets its objectives.
FISCAL IMPACT
The Fiscal Year 2024/25 Budget includes funding for an Earth Day event in the amount of $10,000, inclusive of the budget amendment by the Council in September 2024.
GOAL ALIGNMENT
This Report and its contents are in alignment with the following Council Policy Goals:
• Goal F – Be Forward-Thinking, Well-Managed and Well-Planned Earth Day 2025
October 30, 2024
POLICY FOCUS
None.
PUBLIC NOTICE
Public notification was achieved by posting the agenda, with this agenda item being listed, at least 72 hours prior to the meeting in print and electronically. Information about the project is also disseminated via the Town’s electronic News Flash and Atherton Online. There are approximately 1,200 subscribers to the Town’s electronic News Flash publications. Subscribers include residents as well as stakeholders –to include, but be not limited to, media outlets, school districts, Menlo Park Fire Protection District, service provides (water, power, and sewer), and regional elected officials.
ATTACHMENTS
None.