The Festival of the St̓əč̓as is a community event centered around Squaxin culture and connection to the area, public education, estuary restoration, environmental stewardship, and envisioning the future of a restored Deschutes Estuary. We will include a thoughtful educational and outreach area featuring organizations doing meaningful work throughout the Deschutes Watershed and South Sound region, as well as live cultural performances and local vendors.

Our freshwater resources in the Deschutes Watershed face serious large-scale issues, from climate change to population growth. Responsible solutions to these issues must be organized at a watershed-scale and enacted systemically. DERT's first workshop in the 2026 CEDE series will allow our community to engage with speakers from the Squaxin Island Tribe, the LOTT Alliance, Thurston County, and Conservation Northwest.