The Environmental Learning Center teemed with activity as families gathered there for Lagoonapalooza, a free festival that celebrated nature, music and the Indian River Lagoon. The event drew an estimated 2,500 attendees – a significant increase from previous years.
“It was just a phenomenal event. We couldn’t have asked for anything better,” said Barbara Schlitt Ford, ELC executive director.
It was a day immersed in nature, with a variety of hands-on discovery centered around celebrating and protecting the lagoon. While the event also featured great music, food trucks and environmentally based vendors, the day was all about education and connection.
Ford explained that they designed it to let visitors set their own agenda, whether that meant taking a pontoon trip, making music in the drum circle or simply strolling the campus.
“The No. 1 reason was to provide environmental education in an immersive, fun, engaging way.
The secondary purpose is really to unite us all,” said Ford.
“Nature is something that we all have in common. We all care about where we live. Today was about leaving everything else behind and just coming out and connecting with your neighbors,” she added.
More than 30 community partners helped meet that goal in a variety of ways, from meeting the ELC’s Animal Ambassadors, including a box turtle, terrapin and snake, or engaging the little ones with story time, puppet shows and butterfly magic.
Visitors could also embrace their artistic side by participating in art-making activities or by visiting the galleries to view visual tributes to the natural world.
Little ones dipped nets and their toes into the pond to get a better look at some of the creatures that make the 64-acre nature preserve their home, while others walked along the 2 miles of walking trails, played in the nature playscape and imagination station, or paddled along the lagoon by canoe or kayak.
The ELC’s aquariums and touch tanks provided an up-close encounter with local marine life and the biodiversity of the lagoon.
As part of their Educational Speaker Series, guest presenters spoke on topics that included local wildlife and environmental wellness, lagoon dolphins and bull sharks, and the 2025 Lagoon Health Report.
Ford stressed the ELC’s commitment to accessibility, noting that anyone receiving SNAP benefits can always access the ELC for free.
“We’re just doing more and more,” she said, adding that summer camp registration is open and the campus is available for private pontoon charters and weddings.
On March 14, the ELC will host Mangroves, Moonlight and Milan, an Italian-themed evening with a family-style dinner and a keynote address by school Superintendent David Moore, who will discuss the ELC’s role as an extension of the school district. Other upcoming events include free Disney Movie Nights and a nature photography show in the Lagoon Gallery.
For more information, visit DiscoverELC.org.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
