​Each year in August, hundreds of people from across Milwaukee gather on the shore of Lake Michigan to celebrate the joy, beauty, and power of water.​

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People enjoy a wide variety of activities like making a sturgeon puppet, try their hand at printmaking, building sand castles, identifying fossils, enjoying complimentary snacks and learning simple ways to help care for our rivers, lakes, and neighborhoods.

 

In 2026, everyone joined together in a parade with the Milwaukee Hittaz drum line, then went onto the beach for a community parachute float to close the evening.

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For people discovering Milwaukee Water Commons for the first time and those who have been part of the community for years, We Are Water is a chance to celebrate the connections that water creates and the shared responsibility we all have to protect it.​