Under The Volcano Festival Of Art & Social Change was an activist, grassroots gathering held at Whey-Ah-Wichen Cates Park on the traditional territory of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation in North Vancouver, BC in August. Under the Volcano was Canada's largest political arts festival and was 100% volunteer produced. The festival took its name from the well-known book of the same name by Malcolm Lowry, who squatted in Cates Park in the 1940s.
The festival was started in 1990 by Vancouver social activist and artist Irwin Oostindie, and was produced by a dedicated group of volunteers until its 20th anniversary, in 2010. UTV featured a number of high-profile activists and entertainers in its 20 years of existence, including: Ward Churchill, Faith Nolan, Kinnie Starr, Paint, Kathleen Yearwood, Aztlan Underground, Tegan & Sara, Naomi Klein and Lourdes Perez.
Under the Volcano celebrated its last festival on August 8, 2010