How the Fat Joy Festival Helped Me Celebrate Fat Joy and Build Community
This Weight Stigma Awareness Week, lived experience advocate and researcher Evie Gardiner shares her experience at the very first Fat Joy Festival.
At 29, the final year of my twenties (!!!), I’ve finally discovered joy. Not just the fleeting kind that only sometimes comes into your life, but true, unconditional fat joy. The kind that happens because of my body, not despite it. And last weekend, I had the incredible honour of celebrating that joy with fellow fat folks and our wonderful allies.
On Saturday 5th July, the first ever Fat Joy Festival took place, kicking off the 11th International Weight Stigma Conference. It was an opportunity to truly celebrate fat joy and bodies before two days of research and lived experience sessions on weight stigma and weight inclusivity. The concept was dreamed up and executed by the brilliant Dr Lily O’Hara, who chaired both the conference and festival.
The Day
The festival opened with a tribute to fat joy in media and literature, starting with moving poetry readings from Charlotte Cooper (Fat Body Talk) and Alexandra Buchanan, and a montage of fat representation in traditional and social media. It was a beautiful reminder that visibility and size diversity matters; and that fat bodies can experience joy without needing to change.
This was then followed by a live panel discussion on the Radical Practice of Fat Joy, facilitated by Natasha Mitchell of ABC Radio National. I was extremely honoured to share the stage with Dani Galvin and Kalpana Prasad. Listening to their experiences and watching the audience nod along (and laugh and cry) in solidarity was a special experience I’ll never forget.
I kept thinking of my younger self and how she could never have imagined sitting on a panel for ABC Radio National, talking openly about being fat and finding joy in it. She’d probably be equal parts mortified and in awe. “You mean you’re owning up to being fat, like publicly? And you’re not trying to hide it anymore?” (Oh sweet angel, they know).
After the panel, I hosted a friendship ‘speed-dating’ session while the incredible Dani and Julia ran a craft workshop. Both were joyful chaos in the best possible way. Building connections and community with wonderful people was definitely a highlight… not to mention bedazzling a hand mirror while Taylor Swift blasted through the speakers (thanks Dani and Julia!).
Last but definitely not least, the festival closed out with a boogie sesh facilitated by Kalpana and Adam from Bring a Plate Dance. Picture this: a room full of diverse bodies learning a dance to Bootylicious by Destiny’s Child. And the best part? It wasn’t about losing weight or what we looked like. We danced because it felt good and was fun! We even closed out with a ‘catwalk’ where people hyped each other up and danced unapologetically.
The Impact
Overall, the festival was a love letter to fat bodies and joy. It wouldn’t have been possible without the joyful energy of everyone who showed up: the workshop and panel facilitators, market holders (yes, there was a flea market!), and all the amazing attendees. That’s what I loved most about the festival: it was only a success because there are people out there who want to spread and share fat joy.
And to be honest? I have struggled with the idea of joy for most of my life. As a fat person, experiences of joy are often something we have to fight for. Many joyful spaces aren’t built with diverse bodies in mind. We still have a long way to go to make joy (and the world) accessible for all sizes and abilities. But the Fat Joy Festival reignited my hope that we can get there.
If you’d like to support the festival or keep up with future events, follow @fatjoyfestival on Instagram.
Let’s keep spreading joy. Living it, sharing it, celebrating it. Fat joy is a radical act.
Lots of love,
Evie
I want to thank the incredible Fat Joy Festival organisers (Lily, Allegra and Freddie). I was lucky enough to be part of the organising crew, but the real credit goes to them for the heavy lifting. Without their dedication, the festival would not have happened. And to the wonderful sponsors, I’m endlessly grateful.
About the Author
Evie Gardiner is a fat advocate and PhD candidate at The University of Queensland, dedicated to advancing fat liberation and eliminating weight-based discrimination and oppression. Her work is driven by a vision of a world that is inclusive, supportive and accessible for people of all sizes. Through her PhD, she explores how to effectively design and implement size-inclusive approaches within public health, aiming to create a future where everyone is supported in their health and wellbeing, regardless of their shape or size.
