When Rebekah James heard about Austin City Council’s plan to add parking garages to Zilker Park, she felt unsettled. For her, these parking garages meant litter and pollution overrunning one of Austin’s beloved parks. This Austin City Limits weekend, she showcased her love for a clean Zilker by volunteering for the Austin Parks Foundation. 

The Austin Parks Foundation teamed up with ACL Music Festival 19 years ago to cultivate a sustainable and fun festival. According to the Foundation’s website, every wristband purchased contributes to the foundation’s many park sustainability initiatives. Seven years ago, the partnership introduced signature greening programs such as Rock and Recycle and Divert It!, encouraging people to play a more active role in keeping the festival clean and green as either volunteers or attendees. 

 “(Zilker) is probably one of Austin’s most well-loved parks,” said Katie Kennedy, director of marketing and communications for the Foundation. “Austinites love outdoor spaces and live music, (so) it seems like a very natural partnership.” 

The Rock and Recycle program rewards festival-goers for collecting bags of recyclables such as cans and bottles with a ACL line-up t-shirt. With a number of Rock and Recycle tents pitched on the grounds, volunteer Jude Zawaideh said she enjoys witnessing the impact of the program. 

“It’s been fun seeing the turnout of the cans and people actually wanting to keep the park clean during (ACL),” Zawaideh said. 

Attendee Jackie Bocanegra stood underneath The Big Tent holding open a large bag of recyclables for people to toss their waste into. She said the task proves easy and fun. 

“You can literally watch one artist, stand there with the bag, and it’s gonna get full,” Bocanegra said. “Even if you don’t want a free T-shirt, you’re helping save the earth, so you might as well (participate).” 

Kennedy said attendees feel the positive impact of these programs, especially the water refill stations positioned at nearly every corner of the festival. 

“Not every festival has hydration stations that let you (hydrate for free),” Kennedy said. “We take it for granted at this point. If they weren’t there, people would definitely notice. They’re really appreciated.” 

The Foundation will return to ACL next weekend, and every year after that. James said the partnership between the two combines her two favorite aspects of Austin. 

“I love Austin very much … and my favorite parts of Austin are the music and the beautiful parks,” James said. “I love that I get the opportunity to help out and also go around and see all of the people I want to see perform.”