Celebrating Cascadia Day 2025: A Living Culture Rooted in Place
Each year on May 18th, people across the Pacific Northwest and beyond gather to honor Cascadia Day—a celebration of bioregional identity, cultural diversity, ecological reverence, and community resilience. For me, this year’s Cascadia Day felt like a homecoming. Not just to a place, but to a purpose.
From the Salish Sea to the Columbia River Basin, from the mossy forests of the Olympic Peninsula to the volcanic slopes of Wy’east, Cascadia is more than a region—it’s a living system. It’s a bioregion defined by watersheds, not borders. It’s a culture woven through relationship, not ideology. And for those of us who live here with open eyes and rooted hearts, it’s also a deep responsibility.
This year, Cascadia Day unfolded during the 2025 Cascadia BioFi Conference at the historic Georgetown Steam Plant in Seattle. After a powerful weekend of teachings, strategy sessions, and place-based ceremony, we gathered on Saturday night to celebrate. Cascadia flags flew high above the rafters. Smoky barbecue filled the air. Paul Chiyokten Wagner opened the night with flute, story, and a call to protect the Salish Sea. Then, the Crowdsource Choir led us in song and sonic co-creation, followed by a Cascadia Poetics Lab reading featuring some of the region’s most soulful writers.
There was no stage too small and no moment too ordinary. From quiet conversations on the grass to full-throated song circles echoing in the atrium, every expression felt sacred. It was a reminder that culture doesn’t come from institutions—it comes from us. From the people who show up, year after year, with flags in our backpacks and soil on our hands, ready to celebrate the land we love.
To me, bioregionalism isn’t just about politics or sustainability—it’s about belonging. It’s about knowing the name of your river. Honoring the original stewards of your land. Supporting local food systems, mutual aid efforts, and community organizing. It’s about remembering that we are not separate from the places we live—we are the places we live.
How I Celebrated
This year, I celebrated Cascadia Day by supporting the behind-the-scenes flow of the BioFi Conference—helping with event logistics, coordinating the setup, and contributing to the energy that held the celebration together. It was a joy to help bring the vision to life alongside so many dedicated community members and culture-shapers.
For me, celebration isn’t always about performance or spotlight—it’s about presence. It’s about showing up with care, tending the details, and helping create spaces where belonging can take root. In holding the container, I witnessed the spirit of Cascadia come alive through shared intention, beauty, and deep connection to place.
But most of all, I celebrated by feeling grateful. Grateful to live in a place where mountains and rivers still guide us. Grateful for the elders who held the flame of this movement long before us. And grateful to be part of a community that is rising—slowly, steadily, and beautifully—from the ground up.
Want to Celebrate Year-Round?
You don’t have to wait for May 18th to celebrate Cascadia. You can live it every day by rooting into place and showing up in small, meaningful ways:
Take a walk along your watershed
Learn the Indigenous names of the land you call home
Support local farmers, artists, healers, and mutual aid groups
Fly a Cascadia flag or hang it in your window
Host a gathering or potluck with your neighbors
Sing to the forest, write a poem to the land, go hiking
Cook with friends and share food from your bioregion
Remember your roots—and the deep time of this land
Because Cascadia is not just a place on the map—it’s a living culture. And you are part of it.
In deep reverence for people and place,
Ashley Bonn (she/her)
Communications & Events Coodinator
🌐 ashleybonn.com | 📸 @ashley.bonn
