Gavin Newsom To Speak At Mountain Lion P-22 Festival Saturday

LOS ANGELES, CA — The annual festival in honor of mountain lion P-22 is set to take place tomorrow. "P-22's Wildlife Wonderland," which works to bring awareness to wildlife conservation efforts, will be held virtually for the first time due to the pandemic.

Organizers with #SaveLACougars launched an urbanwildlifeweek.org to host the event, which will kick off at 11 a.m. Saturday. Governor Gavin Newsom will give a speech at 11:30 to followed by performances from the Grammy-nominated Black Pumas along with an appearance from actress Julia Butters.

The festival will also feature exhibits, a kids' activity area, virtual walks and wildlife art lessons.

#SaveLACougars was formed by a partnership between the National Wildlife Federation and the Santa Monica Mountains Fund. The foundation works to protect the future of Los Angeles' cougars, which UCLA researchers say could face extinction within 50 years

As of October 23, the website has raised over $15 million to protect L.A.'s mountain lions, about 25% of its $60 million goal.

According to organizers, last year's event brought in 8,000 people.

City News Service and Kenan Draughorne contributed to this report.