earthday365 is committed to providing the highest level of environmental stewardship possible at our St. Louis Earth Day Festival. We set the bar for sustainability through the following actions.

We use locally-owned businesses and vendors for our rentals, services, and product purchases whenever possible.

Merchandise sales help sustain earthday365’s year-round programs.

T-Shirts:  The 2024 volunteer and merchandise AllMade_® t-shirts are 50% recycled polyester (plastic bottles!), 25% organic cotton, and 25% Tencel modal™, and wow do they feel soft!. They are sustainably printed locally by Onetime Supply. Available for $25 at our merchandise booth or online at www.earthday-365.org after the Festival.

We also have reusable stainless steel water bottles available for purchase. We do not allow vendors to sell bottled water, so if you forget to bring yours, stop by the earthday365 merchandise tent!

Our Earth Day Challenge encourages attendees to make positive environmental behavior changes and offers raffle tickets for some great prizes. Many of the prizes have been donated by St. Louis Earth Day Festival sponsors and vendors, and emphasize experiences over more “stuff.”

Our promotional materials are printed on American-made, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified, minimum 30% post-consumer recycled paper. Our local printer, Pedro’s Planet, uses Xerox® Emulsion Aggregation (EA) toner and emission-free coatings. They hold Rainforest Alliance certification and offset 100% of their energy use through Ameren Missouri’s Pure Power® program.

For 2024, we are also offering and encouraging attendees to download an online version of the program.  Use the QR code to access it or touch it if you are already on your phone!

A lot of consideration is devoted to selecting the educational activity providers that will provide programming at the St. Louis Earth Day Festival. Event attendees can learn and engage in everything from nutrient pollution in our rivers to worm composting to planting a seed to take home. Read more about the Educational Activities.

• Recycling and compost services are available to everyone who comes to the Festival, thanks to our Recycling On the Go program, funded in part through a grant from the St. Louis Jefferson Solid Waste Management District and the Department of Natural Resources. In 2023, 95% of the waste produced at the Festival was diverted from the landfill!
• Republic Services and St. Louis Composting support this effort by hauling the waste to the right place!
• Experience our Recycling On the Go program by visiting one of the onsite Waste Stations where volunteers help you figure out what is recyclable, compostable, or headed for the landfill.
• earthday365 always reuses what it can from year to year to reduce waste and expense.
• We educate our vendors, particularly the food vendors, to reinforce our commitment to minimizing waste. Food vendors are required to use recyclable or compostable disposables and we ask vendors to limit handouts. You can do your part by recycling your Festival program as you leave.
• All left-over food is donated to a local food pantry.
• Styrofoam is so last century – that’s why we’ve banned polystyrene and all #6 plastic from the Festival and have never looked back. This material is rarely recycled and never breaks down in a landfill.
• We’ve also banned plastic bottled water because of its environmental impact. Fill up at one of the many water filling stations, located throughout the event and indicated in the program map. Bring your own refillable bottles!
• We do not allow vendors to give out single-use plastic bags and ask attendees to bring their own reusable bag.
• Our portable toilets from Johnny on the Spot use environmentally safe non-formaldehyde chemicals and all of the paper products are made from 100% post-consumer recycled content.

75% of our Food Vendor restaurants and trucks are Green Dining Alliance members.  ALL food vendors are required to use recyclable or compostable disposables and participate in the recycling/compost program. They are encouraged to use natural, organic, and local ingredients. Every vendor offers at least 1 vegan option and vegetarian options abound. All food vendors are required to submit a healthy menu for review. No food containing high-fructose corn syrup or trans-fats are allowed! We are grateful to our vendors for their commitment to the mission of earthday365! Check out the Food Vendor lineup.

Generators are donated by Green2Go, an innovative generator rental program of propane-fueled generators – a new approach to electrifying events. These generators produce nearly 75% less emissions compared to standard diesel generators. Propane is donated by Missouri Propane Gas Association.

We strongly urge Festival attendees to use alternative transportation or carpool.

We will have two FREE bike self-park stations, available for parking all day, to encourage seasoned and “green” cyclists alike. Stick around to learn how commuter cycling is viable in our region!  This also offers bike riders a way to be mindful of the earth by not locking their bikes to trees.

Thanks to the Washington University in St. Louis, a free WeDriveU shuttle service is offered from the Washington University East End parking garage. The shuttles are electric, and run every 15 minutes on the hour from 10:00 am – 6:00 pm, dropping you at the East entrance to the Festival. See the Visitors page for further details.

Riding MetroLink to the Festival?  Get off at the Forest Park station and it’s only a 1/2-mile walk to the Festival grounds!  The  shuttle also makes a stop there if you want to save your walking for the event.