Third International Conference on Tourism & Leisure Studies

Abstract

Transformational festivals are countercultural special events that emphasize participation and co-creativity, as well as environmentalist-driven politics, in an effort to elicit opportunities for personal growth and social change (Ruane, 2017). As such, this work provides insight into specific sustainable practices that are germane to these events (i.e., permaculture workshops, prosumption, leaving no trace, etc.). Methods used for this research include content analysis of transformational festival web sites and personal accounts from the researcher, a long-term participant in transformational festivals across the United States. The implications of this work serve to highlight sustainable practices that are being advocated for, and also carried out, with respect to transformational festival culture. This work not only expounds upon the intentions that transformational festival producers and participants have concerning co-creating a sustainable future, but it also illustrates how the contributors to these special events are bringing what they learn from the leisure environment of the festival into their working worlds and residential communities.