About the Festival

This November, City Awake will unite and empower the Boston community with the second annual City Awake Festival for Social Impact. In bringing together individuals, organizations, and institutions that are invested in the growth of our city and its social impact work, this ten-day, citywide festival provides the platform to increase awareness and maximize impact of the efforts and initiatives of the for-impact community. Similar to the inaugural year, the pulse of the 2015 festival will depend upon our hundreds of existing and new partner organizations, while also featuring new elements that highlight the outcomes – and drivers – of City Awake’s 2015 programmatic initiatives.


True to its form, this festival is a genuine grass-roots effort and illustrates the capabilities of our united community: events, which will vary in topic, format, and location, with many happening simultaneously across the city, will be open to the public and designed, implemented, and hosted by the dedicated partners. While it is a celebration of the achievements of the entire for-impact community, the festival also marks the chance for reflection and future planning. Join us in solidifying Boston’s position as an impact ecosystem hub: one that leverages its constituents’ diverse expertise & networks to tackle the world’s most challenging problems.

The Festival is supported by:

Become a Supporter

Learn more about how your organization can participate in our citywide Festival and become a part of Boston's vibrant social impact movement now.

Email Us!

Download DoneGood

Download DoneGood, the official Festival app, for events, information, and more!

Events

2015 Festival FAQs

What types of events should I expect to see?
There’s not a typical event at a City Awake Festival. Expect speakers, music, hackathons, happy hours, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, dancing, all on day one. We’re sure something will peak your interest. Events vary in topic, format, and location, with many happening simultaneously across the city – and did we mention that almost every event is free?
Where is the Festival?
The Festival is citywide! From Roxbury to Somerville, exciting organizations and initiatives are happening that you don’t want to miss!
How do I sign up for events?
Check out the festival calendar
Are festival events free?
Nearly 95% of events during the 2014 Festival were free, and we anticipate the same for this year. However, since the overwhelming majority of events are organized by partner organizations, we can only encourage them to make events affordable and accessible to the public (and they usually plan on that anyway!).
Why a festival?
Boston’s social impact community is excitingly diverse, from its leaders to the initiatives. In searching for an inclusive format that would complement the community’s identity, a festival emerged as the best vehicle to drive forward City Awake’s mission. With hundreds of organizations dedicating time to make this a reality, keep in mind that this is a festival after all, so let’s celebrate the changemakers and accomplishments of Boston’s social impact community!
Who hosts events?
True to its form, this festival is a genuine grass-roots effort and illustrates the capabilities of our united community: all events taking place throughout the week are designed, implemented, and hosted by dedicated organizations, with the exception of a few City Awake-organized events in support of the social impact ecosystem.
How can I get involved with the festival?
There are lots of ways! If you represent an organization, hop over to our “2015 Festival Partners” section to learn more, or visit us here to volunteer with the City Awake Festival team.
I still have questions; whom should I contact?
Reach out to festival@cityawake.is – we’d love to hear from you!

Learn more about becoming a 2015 Festival Partner

City Awake's Coalition & Festival Partners

Submitting your event for the Festival

Important Festival Dates & Deadlines

Resources City Awake Can Provide

How Your Organization Can Participate

Psst…It’s free to be a partner!

The City Hall Talks

Charging Admission for Your Event

The Social Impact Expo

Making your event zero-waste

We’ve learned a lot in the past year, and we want to share some of those lessons with you! From marketing and communication strategies to tools and templates, your City Awake liaison will help you through the painless on-boarding process and provide resources from marketing and communication strategies to tools and templates to help you plan your organization’s Festival event.