Seemingly small initiatives can make a big impact when it comes to making festivals greener — a point Oregon’s Cascade Equinox Festival is demonstrating with its ongoing sustainability program.
The festival’s third edition happened Sep. 19-21 in Redmond, Oregon, with organizers once again implementing a program they say has helped plant hundreds of trees and protect thousands of acres of rainforest in the event’s first three years.
The program is designed around the “Eco-Band initiative,” which allows attendees to upgrade their passes to include a 100% hemp wristband for $20. A representative for the event reports that this year’s program raised enough money to plant 394 trees in Oregon forests and to protect roughly 511 acres of land in Ecuador. Another roughly $700 raised through donations on the festival’s website went to the protection of another 177 acres of the same Ecuadorian land, which is home to jaguars and Andean bears.
Since Cascade Equinox’s 2023 debut, the hemp wristband program has raised funds to plant 601 trees in the local Willamette National Forest and to protect 1,665 acres of Amazon rainforest. The latter initiative has been done in partnership with SAVIMBO, an organization founded by Indigenous leaders in the Colombian Amazon that pays Indigenous peoples and subsistence farmers in tropical forests to preserve these ecosystems. The festival’s project has specifically worked with the Cofán Indigenous Community in Chandia Na’en, Ecuador.
The hemp wristband program was executed in partnership with Green Disco, an organization composed of promoters, producers and environmental experts who consult on live events, along with Earthwin.org, which works to expand education on mindful living for global well-being.
“Sustainability is a core principle for Cascade Equinox, and in leading by example we hope that other festivals notice and make similar efforts and improvements,” festival organizer Josh Pollack tells Billboard. “We’re thrilled to have planted over 600 native trees locally in Oregon and preserved over 1,600 acres of Amazon rainforest in Ecuador over three years. Big thanks to Earthwin and Green Disco for being incredible partners and sharing our vision for music festivals making a positive ecological impact both locally and globally.”
The 2025 edition of Cascade Equinox Festival featured artists including Sylvan Esso, Disclosure, Big Gigantic, TroyBoi and Chromeo. The next event is slated for Sept. 18-20, 2026.
Billboard‘s Live Music Summit will be held in Los Angeles on Nov. 3. For tickets and more information, visit https://www.billboardlivemusicsummit.com/2025/home-launch.
