Meadowlark Festival tickets go on sale Saturday
Tickets for the 20th anniversary Meadowlark Nature Festival taking place May 18-22 are on sale beginning Saturday at 10 a.m.
Showcasing the best of the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys’ natural environments, Meadowlark Festival is the flagship public event presented by the Okanagan Similkameen Conservation Alliance.
This year the festival offers 79 tours including hiking, cycling, horseback riding, canoeing, geology tours, astronomy events, children’s programs, film screenings, art exhibitions, Aboriginal events, and photography, painting and writing workshops.
“Our 20th anniversary roster of events includes some old favourites, as well as some really exciting new tours we’ve added this year,” festival coordinator Jayme Friedt said. “What’s really great about all Meadowlark tours though, is that participants have the opportunity to engage with experts in their fields, including biologists, botanists, historians, traditional knowledge keepers, herpetologists, naturalists and artists, and really learn about the environments they’re exploring.”
This year’s keynote speaker, Tzeporah Berman, is one of Canada’s most influential environmentalists. In her early 20s, Berman faced nearly 1,000 criminal charges and six years in prison for her role organizing blockades in Canada’s rainforest. Today, she is an adjunct professor at York University in Toronto and works as a strategic advisor on climate and energy issues to a number of First Nations, environmental organizations and philanthropic foundations.
“Tzeporah Berman has been instrumental in shaping the modern environmental movement. She’s been profiled as one of 50 visionaries changing the world in Utne Reader and was included in the BC Royal Museum permanent exhibit of one of 150 people who have changed the face of British Columbia,” said Friedt.
In celebration of the 20th anniversary, the festival is presenting a founders’ gala taking place Saturday, May 20 at the Penticton Golf and Country Club. Founders Richard Cannings, who is now the South Okanagan-West Kootenay MP, Doreen Olson and Lisa Scott will be recognized for their role in launching the festival in 1998.
Both online and in-person ticket sales begin at 10 a.m. Saturday. Online tickets can be purchased at the website using any major credit card via PayPal. In person ticket sales take place from 10 a.m. to noon at the Penticton Community Centre.
From April 11 to May 16, in person ticket sales take place every Tuesday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Penticton Visitors Centre, located at the South Okanagan Events Centre parking lot.