Bears Bees + Brews: Celebrating Wildlife and Wilderness in WNC Written by Rosa Linda Fallon
Local Asheville resident Roni Hidalgo moved to Asheville eight years ago when she fell in love with the beautiful natural surroundings of Western North Carolina. Soon after, she noticed heated discussions on local social network groups between established wildlife lovers and new residents calling bears and wildlife a nuisance, and witnessed entire forests being cut down for new development. She felt an urgency to raise awareness about coexisting with wildlife and to get the community involved in sustaining and protecting the region’s biodiversity.
So Hidalgo started the family-friendly Bears Bees + Brews Festival. “Raising awareness is key,” Hidalgo says. “But doing it in fun and creative ways helps people get inspired to take action. Kids love our events, and often remind parents of the things they learn here. They know they want a future with wildlife, and they share that passion and the knowledge they get here."
Bears Bees + Brews events help educate the public about wildlife, pollinator, and wilderness conservation by inviting them to engage with local and regional organizations in an entertaining, stimulating environment with art, music, contests, edutainment, expert speakers, and display booths from the many contributing organizations, providing local communities with access to policy makers and wildlife experts so they can learn more about protecting forests and wildlife.
Every organization, business and volunteer involved recognizes how important it is to celebrate conservation and protect Western North Carolina's forests and wild creatures. The intention is to make these wildlife and wilderness events a go-to place for expert information.
To make these events possible, Hidalgo partners with environmentally-conscious business owners. “We are so grateful to local businesses like Rabbit Rabbit, this year's festival host, for recognizing the urgency of protecting Asheville's wildlife and wilderness spaces. We appreciate our partners so much — without them, we could not do any of this!”
For a list of participating organizations, visit BearsBeesBrews.com. Additional experts are invited to join, and interactively educate and entertain guests.
Save the date -- Bears Bees + Brews Festival II takes place at Rabbit Rabbit in the heart of downtown Asheville on Saturday, October 1, 2022.
To learn more, visit BearsBeesBrews.com and follow @bearsbeesbrews on Facebook and Instagram. As a creative, festival founder Roni Hidalgo is always brainstorming ways to make events stand out. This year, she is calling out to artist woodworkers to help her create a festival centerpiece: a modular educational installation for kids. If you or your business would like to support this effort, please contact Roni Hidalgo at roni@bearsbeesbrews.com.