By: Taylor Christensen | Royal Oak Review | Published May 5, 2026
ROYAL OAK — The Oakland County Earth Day Rally at the Royal Oak Farmers Market April 18 had a turnout that pleased organizers with nearly 400 people in attendance.
The event included a rally, a climate march through downtown Royal Oak and an Earth fair featuring more vendors than in past years.
“We had more people than last year, and we had the most vendors we have ever had: There were 65 sustainable local businesses and nonprofits that participated, so that was really exciting,” event organizer Hope Sherwood said. “I think there were 100 people that participated in our rally, and over 150 action takers, so people signing petitions or sending a letter to their representative.”
The event also included Oakland County leaders who spoke about climate action and change.
“This year’s theme was ‘We Can’t Afford to Wait,’ and that was really captured in our whole mission of this event. This year, we wanted to bring together people around the idea that we can’t afford to wait on climate action, on clean energy or relief from rising energy costs and utility costs,” Sherwood said. “So, this event gave people that chance to celebrate Earth Day while also taking meaningful action and spreading awareness and education and coming together as a community.”
Amanda Herzog, Royal Oak City Commissioner and member of its Environmental Advisory Board, said that the event was a success and showcased Royal Oak’s dedication to a cleaner environment.
“It is so inspirational to see how much the Earth Day event has grown over the past couple of years, and the amount of people that have come to it that are interested in learning more,” Herzog said. “We (Royal Oak) are honored to host it every year because we really take pride in leading the environmental sustainability effort in Oakland County. We want to share what we have learned with everyone in the county, and we want to collaborate, and we like this as just a great place to start those relationships.”
Sherwood said that Royal Oak is one of the leaders in the sustainability efforts in Oakland County.
“We feel like Royal Oak is kind of the heart of where people are ready to start making that change,” she said. “Oakland County works closely with the Royal Oak Environmental Advisory Board, so our roots are kind of tied.”
In 2021, the City Commission adopted a resolution to achieve a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from a 2018 baseline and begin the process for developing a plan to help the community achieve this goal.
The sustainability action plan and other ways to contribute as a community member can be found at romi.gov.
For more information on Oakland County, visit oakgov.com.