Creativity meets climate action at REUSE-A-PALOOZA 2026, a free outdoor festival transforming Saturday, Feb. 21 (12 to 4 p.m.) into a hands-on celebration of sustainability for all ages. The interactive program invites guests to reimagine, repair, and reuse items creatively while discovering practical ways to reduce waste. Presented by The Things Lab and Debris Free Oceans in partnership with the Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center, the event blends art, environmental awareness and collective action. RSVP tickets are recommended for each attendee, including infants, and are available online.
Admission is free; however, an RSVP ticket is recommended for each attendee, including infants. Tickets are available online.
REUSE-A-PALOOZA 2026 will feature a range of hands-on activities focused on reuse, repair and sustainability, including:
- A Things Swap to find reusable items
- A Clothing Swap for trading garments
- Creative projects using salvaged materials
- Repair Labs offering guidance on mending and fixing household items
- A performance by the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura of Paraguay
- Additional programming and activities will be available throughout the event
REUSE-A-PALOOZA will bring together local organizations dedicated to environmental sustainability and creative reuse, serving as a community gathering space centered on waste reduction and shared learning.
The Things Lab, an artist-led nonprofit, promotes creativity as a tool for resilience and sustainable community development. Debris Free Oceans leads the Zero Waste Miami coalition and has been committed to empowering Miami-Dade communities to go zero-waste since 2014. The Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center participates in Arts Resilient 305, an initiative of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs focused on sustainable facility practices.
Confirmed participants include:
- Bookleggers Library
- Bye Bye Plastic
- Clean Miami Beach
- Debris Free Oceans
- Disco Fish Boutique
- Fertile Earth Worm Farm
- Miami Climate Alliance/Catalyst Miami
- ReCircle Society
- Sneaker Impact
- The Things Lab
- The Toy Library
- VolunteerCleanup.Org
In addition to the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura (Paraguay), there will be art activations and performances led by artists/artisans Jenna Efrein, Oscar Fuentes/The Biscayne Poet, Mark Herrera, Pangea Kali Virga, T. Eliott Mansa, Andrew Otazo, Lauren Reilly/Sustainable Spin, among others. The Repair Labs will feature artists/designers/activists Robert Chambers, Dave Doebler, Tali Finestone, Luke Jenkins/In Bloom Studios, Regina Jestrow, Genesis Zenith Molina, and others teaching how to mend and fix things (such as clothes, bicycles, vacuum cleaners, etc.).
REUSE-A-PALOOZA is supported by the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners, Miami Climate Alliance/Catalyst Miami and the Town of Cutler Bay Community Fund at The Miami Foundation. The Moss Center receives partial support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Admission is free. Tickets are available at MossCenter.org.
Special hotel rates are available for visitors at the Quality Inn Miami South located 14501 S Dixie Hwy US 1, Miami, FL, 33176. For discounted rates, call 786-581-8409.
This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov.
About The Things Lab
The Things Lab is an artist-led, socially engaged participatory project and start-up non-profit created by Susan Caraballo and Kerry Phillips. The Things Lab emphasizes creativity as a resource for resiliency and adaptability centering on three complementary aspects: a collaborative, ever-changing immersive art installation/reuse center where one determines the pricing, paying what they value items to be worth within their budget; a lending library of things that meaningfully benefits the neighboring communities; and a series of arts and community workshops and events that serve as a meeting place connecting creativity, sustainability, memory, shared knowledge, and compassion. The Things Lab established REUSE-A-PALOOZA in 2024 at their original space in Little River.
About The Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center
The Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center, informally known as “The Moss Center,” is managed by the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, with funding support from the Office of the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners. The Center is dedicated to presenting and supporting arts and culture and providing access to the arts to Miami-Dade County. More information about the Center and its programs can be found at www.MossCenter.org.
About Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs
The Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council develop cultural excellence, diversity, access and participation throughout Miami-Dade County by strategically creating and promoting equitable opportunities for artists and cultural organizations, and our residents and visitors who are their audiences. The Department receives funding through the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners, The Children’s Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, the State of Florida through the Florida Department of State, Florida Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Peacock Foundation, Inc., The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation, and The Taft Foundation. Other support and services are provided by TicketWeb for the Culture Shock Miami program, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, the South Florida Cultural Consortium and the Tourist Development Council. For more information visit www.miamidadearts.org.
It is the policy of Miami-Dade County to comply with all the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The facility is accessible and assistive listening devices are available in the Main Stage Auditorium and the Black Box Theater space. To request materials in accessible format, and/or any accommodation to attend an event at the Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center, please contact Stephanie Aponte, 786-573-5314, saponte@miamidade.gov, at least five days in advance to initiate your request. TTY users may also call 711 (Florida Relay Service).
