By Tricia Toney
Photo by Michael Keefe
For nearly 30 years, the Crestone Energy Fair (CEF) has relied almost entirely on volunteer labor. What began as a modest showcase of collectively built homes using unconventional materials has grown into a multi-day festival, along with year-round educational programming, requiring dozens of volunteers and a small core group of organizers coordinating logistics.
Those who work year-round to sustain the CEF and promote environmentally conscious living are reaching out to the community for additional support.
Far from its humble beginnings, recent the fairs have included expert panel discussions on topics ranging from permaculture and renewable energy to environmental legislation and ecotourism; hands-on demonstrations of alternative building methods such as hempcrete, cob, and straw bale construction; tours of off-grid homes; musical performances on two stages; wellness workshops and vendors; free yoga classes; supervised childcare; food trucks; and dozens of vendors in Town Park.
In keeping with its ecological mission, the event minimizes single-use plastics, provides recycling and composting stations, and prepares much of the volunteer food in solar-powered ovens.
Core organizers Anya Kaats, Nick Nevares, Justin Weiss, Lisa Bodey and Goldie Mariola say they need more people involved at the organizational level. At times, members of the group work more than 30 hours a week on event business. While ongoing sponsorships allow for small stipends, compensation remains far below minimum wage.
In December, organizers hosted a community discussion at the Crestone Charter School to solicit ideas for ensuring the long-term sustainability of the CEF. Kaats opened the evening with an overview of the documentary Last Stop before Chocolate Mountain, inviting attendees to consider parallels between the film’s themes and challenges facing the Crestone community.
Discussion of the film and subsequent conversation about the potential of monetizing, or otherwise supporting the needs of the energy fair did not reveal any particular “answers” to the existing challenges, but did get participants thinking about the future of the longest-running annual event in Crestone’s history.
Kaats, who also serves on the board of The Crestone Eagle and fundraises for both nonprofits, said that similar fundraising efforts generate “ten times more” revenue for The Eagle than for the CEF.
Chris Ryan noted that the event can be difficult to define. “People know what The Eagle is, and what The Eagle does,” he said. “Energy means so many things,” Bodey added, and explained that the event has expanded over the years to reflect that broad interpretation. Some participants suggested charging admission. Others proposed increasing fees for workshops and home tours.
Peter May brought up the concern of a shrinking audience, saying that the market for alternative construction has waned over the years. “Practically all of the new construction here is stick-built.”
Amelie Warner, executive director at CoSEED, the CEF’s fiscal sponsor, said “if you can figure out what you need most, let me know and I’ll see what I can do.”
According to Kaats, what the organization needs most is a small group of additional core volunteers willing to share year-round responsibilities, with little or no compensation.
After the discussion, attendees helped clean up, stacking chairs and emptying trash, before lingering to chat with neighbors. Regardless of whether any valuable guidance was gained by holding this movie night and group discussion, the organizers of the event provided yet another opportunity for the Crestone-Baca community to gather and discuss one of the long-standing nonprofits that make this area unique. And that kind of gathering is its own kind of energy fair.