The 24th annual Wild Edible Feast fundraiser, presented by nonprofit Yampatika, will include a new opportunity this year with a “Forage for Your Feast” earlier in the week to learn about edible and medicinal plants identification and ethical foraging practices.

This year, community members can sign up to learn from Yampatika experts Karen Vail and Mary O’Brien during a three-hour foraging and education event from 12-3 p.m. May 20 with registration online at Yampatika.org. Vail and O’Brien are the authors of the book “Edible and Medicinal Plants of the Southern Rockies.”

The environmental education organization’s popular feast fundraiser with this year’s theme “Dine on the Wild Side” will take place 5-8:30 p.m. May 23 at Aurum restaurant in Steamboat Springs. Tickets are $160 online via the Yampatika website. The evening will include interactive educational demonstrations by Vail, O’Brien and Brad Christensen, owner of Routt Distillery, with information about the foraged plants and wild edibles showcased in the food and cocktails that evening.

Another educational presentation at the opening of the feast will be about the conservation science behind big cat management presented by Colorado Parks & Wildlife Biologist Eric VanNatta.

The annual Yampatika fundraiser also includes an online auction found at Yampatika.org that ends at 9 p.m. May 23. Proceeds from sales of donated auction items will be used toward the organization’s mission of environmental stewardship through education.

Established in 1992, Yampatika offers a continuum of educational services to children and adults ranging in age from pre-kindergarten to senior citizens in Routt, Moffat, Rio Blanco and Jackson counties. Each year, Yampatika’s environmental education programs reach nearly 15,000 youth and adults.

Some of the other upcoming Yampatika programs starting in June include Mineral Springs Walking Tours, Wildflower Wanders, Yampa River Walk as well as monthly special programs such as Mad Creek Geology and Historical Hikes, Wildflower Hikes and Medicinal Herb Walks.