Did you know that without fungus, we’d have no bread, cheese, beer, or wine? Or that anti-cholesterol medicine was developed from mushrooms? Come to the Santa Cruz Fungus Fair to learn fascinating and fun facts about beautiful and diverse species of mushrooms! This unique Santa Cruz area tradition draws thousands of visitors each January. View remarkable mushroom arts and crafts, taste unusual and exceptionally good fungal fare, and experience FFSC’s overriding mission: “We keep the fun in fungus!”

The Humanities Institute will be present at this event to promote the 2026 Deep Read, which will feature Entangled Life: How Fungi Make our Worlds, Change our Minds, and Shape our Futures by British mycologist Merlin Sheldrake. We hope you’ll join us at the Fungus Fair and for this year’s Deep Read!