First Annual Ethiopian Cultural Day Festival

Green Space, Park Access, and Trees

City of Los Angeles

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative

This project will seek to promote social justice and bring together a diverse group of people to spend a day outdoors in peace and harmony. The events of the past three years have awakened much of our country to how much change is necessary to take real strides toward racial equality and justice. Research shows that celebrations and festivals affect people in a positive way, making people feel physically and mentally better. After the trials of Covid and rising inflation the festival will be a welcome respite. The festival will create a safe and nurturing atmosphere to allow participants to be fully seen and respected.

The festival will allow attendees to immerse themselves in Ethiopian history, culture, art, dance, and music. It will feature learning activities, resource tables, and will have food for purchase. The highlight will be the stream of cultural dancers and musicians on the main stage. It will be a chance to celebrate together and experience part of someone's heritage, while at the same time promoting intercultural exchange and understanding. This cultural celebration will also provide our children with an understanding of their heritage which is especially important as it can help to build a solid foundation shaping their beliefs and values. Attendees will have an opportunity to learn about mental health resources available in a safe environment. Health fair screenings will be available for our underrepresented groups and educational resources will be made available. Our pro bono immigration lawyers will be on hand to disseminate timely resources. All our partner nonprofits groups will be invited to participate.

Through our collective effort we plan to offer our communities valuable opportunities for recreation and entertainment, through authentic leisure activities and unique cultural experiences. Festivals celebrate creative expression and play a major role in sustaining cultural production. All involved in creative productions will have a venue for creative business opportunities. The festival will be advertised in the Mayor's annual tourism event handbook. It will build a sense of community as we continue to hold it annually. We foresee great economic impact due to higher public expenditures and employment opportunities. Each year we anticipate scaling it up by increasing the number of attendees and by bringing in diverse art forms and talent. The festival will have a great social impact component since it will provide opportunities for social interaction, building social capital, reconfirming identities, and supporting local cultural expressions.

This will be a pilot effort. We have prepared for success by getting mentoring for sponsor acquisition through the Sponsorship Collective and by networking with various nonprofit groups. We will consider the festival a success when it registers economic growth in our community residents, and we will analyze the social and cultural impacts through scales which we will get developed by professional research marketers. Success will also be measured by deepening community engagement which will be measured by a 50% increase in our web traffic, Our goal to attract two major corporate sponsors and two more new nonprofit partners is another way we will measure success.