Now or Never: A Civic Labyrinth for Possibility
⚡️Now or Never: A Civic Labyrinth for Possibility
Related Events:
Now or Never, Saturday, July 11, 12:00-7:00, California Institute of Integral Studies – Register
Overview
Now or Never is an immersive labyrinth activation created for Festival of Us.
Built from flowers, greens, and other natural materials, the labyrinth invites participants to step out of the noise of the day and into a focused experience of reflection, memory, and choice.
This is not a maze. There are no wrong turns, dead ends, or tricks. A labyrinth offers one winding path to the center and back out again. As you walk, you’ll be invited to bring to mind a moment when change became possible because someone chose to act.
At the center, a simple prompt asks you to name one small act you can choose now.
The experience is designed to move participants from reflection into agency, offering a quiet, embodied way to consider what is possible and what small act can be chosen now.
At the end, participants may choose to publicly pin a next step as a visible record of individual agency within a shared future.
Now or Never asks:
What becomes possible when we remember that we are not powerless?
What changes when choice becomes visible?
What small act belongs to us now?
What to Expect
A temporary labyrinth made with flowers, greens, and natural materials
A quiet, self-guided walk along a single winding path
A prompt card at the entrance
A simple reflection prompt at the center
A chance to name and pin one small next step
A quiet commons for tea and conversation
A contemplative civic experience that takes approximately 60-90 minutes.
You can walk alone, with a friend nearby, or simply observe before deciding whether to enter.
Contemplation and rest space
Light refreshments
Live Musical Performances
Parking & Transportation
BART: Civic Center is 4 blocks away
MUNI: Van Ness Station is 3 blocks away
Bus lines: 14, 47, and 49 run close by
Accessibility & Considerations
The walk-through labyrinth is created on the floor with natural materials and is not wheelchair accessible. Because the path is defined visually and physically on the ground, it may also be difficult or unsafe for blind or low-vision participants to navigate as a walking experience. A tabletop/finger labyrinth will be available as an alternative seated way to participate.
Chairs and floor cushions will be available for rest and reflection. The installation uses flowers, greens, and other natural materials, so please be aware of possible fragrance, pollen, or plant sensitivities. Tea and fruit will be offered in the reflection space. Participants are welcome to pause, observe, step out, or choose the tabletop labyrinth at any time.
For access questions or accommodation requests, please contact Tida Beattie at [email protected] before attending.
About Tida Beattie
Tida Beattie is a labyrinth creator and facilitator, and the founder of The Collabyrinth. She creates impermanent organic labyrinths as frameworks for reflection, transformation, and navigating change. Her work brings together ancient labyrinth forms, natural materials, and facilitated experience to help individuals and communities slow down, listen inwardly, and reconnect with choice, courage, and possibility. For Festival of Us, she offers the labyrinth as a civic architecture for reflection: a place to pause, remember one’s agency, and consider what small act can be chosen now.
🌻Learn more: http://www.thecollabyrinth.com
🌷Follow: https://www.instagram.com/thecollabyrinth
About the Future of Us Festival
Launching on America's 250th anniversary, the inaugural Future of Us festival is a 10-day celebration of civic imagination and possibility. We're turning community-sourced, expert-crafted visions of the future into art, storytelling, and participatory experiences. With 100+ events spanning every corner of the city (floral labyrinths, speculative future worlds, dance parties with a purpose, and neighborhood meet-ups), it's a living exploration of what a more creative and generative civic culture could feel like. Organized around four themes (Green Futures, Social Futures, Science & Tech Futures, and Media Futures), Future of Us is breaking down the barriers between art, ideas, and each other, and everyone is invited to co-imagine what comes next.
⚡ Learn more: future-of-us.com
About the Future Culture Fellows Program
The Future Culture Fellowship is a yearlong program that resources the people best positioned to shape the future of civic life in San Francisco: the community builders, artists, and grassroots visionaries already rooted in neighborhoods and traditions across the Bay. Fellows design and host original, science- and arts-centered experiences that reflect their unique perspectives on what's possible, and become part of a growing Future Culture Collective dedicated to making civic life in SF more vibrant, connected, and imaginative. The event you're signing up for was dreamed up by one of the 2026 Fellows.
⚡ Meet your host: https://www.future-of-us.com/2026-fellows/tida-beattie
⚡ Learn more about the Fellows Program: future-of-us.com/collective
⚡ Follow us:
https://www.instagram.com/futures.us