Whanganui's La Fiesta celebrates its 12th year with packed schedule

Carla Donson says she hasn't said no to any potential events in La Fiesta's 12 year history. Photo / Bevan Conley

Whanganui women's festival La Fiesta is back in 2021 for its 12th year and organiser Carla Donson said that, thanks to the local community, the event "has just kept growing".

"We've gone from it being a week in the first year to a whole month in 2011," Donson, who runs Women's Network Whanganui, said.

"It's pretty much stayed at a month from then on, just because of the number of people who want to run events during that time.

"The dates really are decided by the community, not by me. I put an open invitation out every year and what comes back and what's in the festival all comes from the community."

The spectrum of the 2021 edition is broad, with everything from badminton lessons to an immigration law discussion on offer, and Donson said that the only criteria for putting on an event was "an acknowledgment of women in some way".

"That's however you want to interpret or shape it. I don't think there's been anything I've actually said no to in the 12 years of doing this."

Donson said it was important to have men in the programme as well, and there would be a few running or co-ordinating events and activities this year.

"When we're looking at those more political aspects around the work that we do here, and some of the challenges we still have around achieving gender equity, men are a really important part of that conversation.

"We're doing what we can to showcase some of these awesome men, and we have lots of them in this community."

People had gone on to set up businesses after holding events at La Fiesta, Donson said, and have used the festival to "solidify an entrepreneurial idea" or do market testing.

"There have been a number of people who have used it to pilot a programme, and that's gone on to become an ongoing activity.

"I love that people utilise La Fiesta for those purposes, and to have a bit of a play. The other lovely thing is that we have quite a number of women who are of retirement age, nurses, professors, teachers, and doctors, who have seen the festival as a way to reconnect with their professional self.

"They've recognised that they have some expertise and I love that they want to share their skills with other people."

Donson said the one question she was asked each year "without fail" was whether men could come along as well.

"I always get blokes calling each year asking, 'Can I come along as well?', or people who email me from a little soapbox saying, 'I can't believe men can't go'.

"Of course they can. It's an all-welcome invitation."

Donson said her goal since beginning work at Women's Network Whanganui 18 years ago was to "put it out of business".

"Ultimately, I would love for us to be able to do ourselves out of a job, and to be in a place where communities were self-sustaining and doing all those wonderful things that people do when they're given opportunities."

La Fiesta runs from February 13 to March 13. For more information, go to www.lafiestanz.com.