Earth Day celebrations are sort of like a sampler for people who want to explore all the ways they might help make the world greener.

Around southern Maine this year, Earth Day events include cleanups in parks or along beaches, plus family festivals where you can learn about composting, recycling, electric buses and electric bikes. There are also films with outdoor or environmental themes, hikes and outings, and story times for kids.

Earth Day is Saturday. Here are some ways to celebrate.

FAMILY FUN

The city of Portland is hosting a free, family-friendly Earth Day celebration in Payson Park on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. There will be composting lessons, a story time from Park Ranger Liz Collado and city recycling and forestry trucks to explore. There will also be a Greater Portland METRO electric bus to climb aboard, e-bikes from local shops to test drive and electric lawn equipment demos. There will also be food trucks and face painting. For more information, go to portlandmaine.gov.

Climb inside an electric bus at Portland’s Earth Day Celebration at Payson Park. Photo courtesy of City of Portland

Ecomaine is also holding a free, family-oriented Earth Day event called Ecofest at the Wescustogo Hall and Community Center in North Yarmouth on Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Ecomaine is a regional waste management organization serving area communities, so the Ecofest themes include reducing waste, reusing materials and composting. Many groups and businesses will be on hand to talk about those issues. Besides demonstrations, there will be face painting and a visit from the Maine Celtics’ mascot, Crusher. Also people can help paint Ecomaine recycling dumpsters – with whatever designs they want – all day. The dumpsters will later be placed for use Ecomaine towns. For more information, go to ecomaine.org.

Earth Day-themed children’s stories will be performed at 10:30 a.m. Saturday during a presentation of Portland Stage’s “Play Me a Story” program at the Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth. The stories include “Grandmother Fish” by Jonathan Tweet and “Be a Tree” by Maria Gianferrari and will be followed by an interactive acting workshop. The event is recommended for ages 4-10, and the cost is $15 for a child with adult and $8 for each additional child. For more information, go to maineaudubon.org.

“Play Me a Story,” a performance of Earth Day-themed children’s stories, will take place at the Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth. Photo by Madeline Rheaume for Maine Audubon

A WALK IN THE WOODS

The South Portland Land Trust has a pretty full slate of Earth Day weekend events, including cleanups and nature walks. On Saturday at 9 a.m., people can take part in a city-wide cleanup effort by meeting at either Mill Creek Park or the South Branch Trailhead near JCPenney at the Maine Mall. Volunteers will be given supplies and directed to various areas that need cleaning up. Also on Saturday, at 2 p.m., there will be an informational walk along Trout Brook in the city’s east end, with Fred Dillon, the city’s storm water coordinator. On Sunday, there will be a nature walk at Dow’s Woods, near South Portland High School, beginning at 10 a.m., with a focus on native plants. People participating in any of the land trust’s events can take photos of themselves and enter them in an online photo contest. Prizes will be given out, from local businesses like Red’s Dairy Freeze and Broadway Gardens. For more information and to register, go to southportlandlandtrust.org. 

The Maine Chapter of the Sierra Club is hosting a hike and outing at Sebago Lake State Park on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The hike will be on wooded trails for about 3 miles and will include a tour by a park ranger. People are asked to pack food and drink and there’s a park fee of $6 per person. For more information, go to act.sierraclub.org.

An informational walk along Trout Brook will be part of the Earth Day celebration in South Portland. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

ART IMITATES LIFE

The Maine Maritime Museum in Bath is hosting an environmentally themed exhibit right now called “SeaChange: Darkness and Light in the Gulf of Maine.” The exhibit is in collaboration with Gulf of Maine EcoArts and features hundreds of components. Cashes Ledge, a remote underwater mountain range in the Gulf of Maine, is re-created through different mediums including painting, sculpture and video projection. Admission is $20 for adults and $18 for seniors and includes all museum grounds and exhibitions. Children 17 and under are free. For more information, go to mainemaritimemuseum.org.

The Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth is also hosting a conservation-themed edition of the Maine Outdoor Film Festival, Friday at 7 p.m. The program will include a half dozen or more short films focusing on a range of outdoor or environmental themes, shown outdoors in a tent, with heaters if needed. It’s a 21-plus show, and there are two complimentary drinks included. Admission is $15. For a list of films and to register, go to maineaudubon.org. 

“SeaChange: Darkness and Light in the Gulf of Maine” is on exhibit now at Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. Photo courtesy of Maine Maritime Museum