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ConFest

Coordinates: 35°08′05″S 144°09′23″E / 35.134615°S 144.156289°E / -35.134615; 144.156289
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

ConFest is an alternative bush campout festival held in the south-eastern states of Australia annually during and around Easter.[1] The name 'ConFest' is a concatenation of the words Conference and Festival.[2] ConFest was initiated in 1976, and organised by the former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, Dr. Jim Cairns, his private secretary Junie Morosi and David Ditchburn. It was and is intended to bring together the various subcultures of the alternative movement, and was billed as "An Exploration of Alternatives".

The event has been run almost continuously by the same cooperative society; The Down To Earth Co-op (DTE), based in Victoria. ConFest now hosts some 7000 participants annually for a 5-day festival over the Australia's Easter long weekend. The current ConFest Site is located to the West of Deniliquin and about 12 km from Moulamein in New South Wales. The area is open forest with the Edward River running along the southern side of the property.

Features

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Spontaneous choir Easter ConFest 2014

Confest is typically divided up in to a number of discrete "villages" situated along a tree-lined river. These villages host a number of themed "spaces" where participants host workshops that are listed on an open agenda board displayed centrally in the festival. Workshops typically include yoga, meditation, permaculture, arts, music, and sexuality.[3] However, many of the spaces are open to a range of eclectic and diverse topics. Villages also host shared kitchen spaces where communal cooking and food sharing is encouraged. The extensive Arts Village hosts many of the festivals major gathering points.[4]

Villages surround a central open paddock which hosts a food and arts marketplace. This marketplace is the only location within the festival where money is used. It also hosts a number of activities such as a spontaneous choir and informal fashion parade. Surrounding the marketplace is a dedicated area for Fire Twirling, an information tent where participants can find out about the various villages and workshops, and a silent disco space.

Villages and notable spaces (Easter Confest 2019)

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  • Acro Town
  • The Arts Village
  • Permaculture Village
  • Tranquility (Drug and Alcohol free)
  • Cause Way
  • Aboriginal and Wemba-Wemba Villages
  • Consent Cove
  • Veg Out Village
  • 'Doing it Ourselves' Village
  • Drumming Village
  • Poly Village
  • Nudies Village
  • Family Village
  • Gypsy Village
  • Rainbow Village (LGBTQIA+ focused)
  • Uncertainty Village (Science and reason focused)[5]
  • Bliss (Vegan, wheat-free communal living located in Tranquility)
  • Open Stage (acoustic, impromptu performances of the arts)
  • Marketplace (vegetarian)
  • Silent Disco
  • Gokula space
  • Presence Tent
  • Eco Village
  • Wellness
  • Holi Colour
  • Seder
  • Workshop spaces

History

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The first ConFest was held in 1976 on a property at Cotter River near Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory. It was initiated and organised by the former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, Dr. Jim Cairns, his private secretary Junie Morosi and David Ditchburn.

In the early days, the organising committee rented space from various property owners, normally on or near the Murray River. However, due to dramatically increased insurance costs, it became increasingly difficult to locate suitable locations, until in the early years of the 21st century a property became available for purchase. After an extraordinary general meeting of DTE the decision was made to purchase the property, located near Gulpa Creek, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south of Deniliquin, New South Wales. The site has outdoor camping facilities and has about 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) of river frontage and about 400 hectares (1,000 acres) of space.

Event Timeline

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Confest History[6]
Year Time of year Location Name/Notes Population estimate
1976 December Cotter River (ACT) Shaping Of Alternatives 9,000 - 10,000
1977/78 New Year Bredbo (Mt Oak, NSW) Focus for a Future 15000
1979 Autumn/Easter Berri SA (on Murray River) The Year of the Child 5,500-7,000
1980 January 25-28 French Island, Vic Cairns' event not supported by DTE 2000
1980 May Rainbow Region Gathering at Wytaliba NSW Largely rained out
1981 January 23-February 6 Glenlyon I (Daylesford) Welcoming and Exploring the New Age 3000
1982 January 28-February 1 Glenlyon II Viable Futures Through Loving Action 8000
1983/84 New Year Baringa I Wangaratta, Vic Making Alternatives Work 5000
1984/85 New Year Baringa II Peace 4000
1986 January 24-27 Glenlyon III
1986/87 New Year Glenlyon IV
1987/88 New Year Mt Oak NSW 10 year anniversary 1200
1988 Jan Permacroft (Seymour, Vic) Resurgence of the Call For a New Society
1988/89 New Year Walwa I On the Murray River 3500
1989/90 New Year Walwa II 4000
1990/91 New Year Walwa III Heal Thy Self - Thy Planet 5000
1992 Autumn/Easter Toc I (Tocumwal NSW) Continuing the Tradition.
1993 Autumn/Easter Toc II Weaving the Web.
1993/94 New Year Moama I
1994 Autumn/Easter Toc III 4000
1994/95 New Year Moama II 9000
1995/96 New Year Tocumwal Birdlands (diff site) A Birdlands Experience 9500
1996 Autumn/Easter oc IV Back to the River Harvest Festival 4000
1996/97 New Year Moama IV >6,000
1997 Autumn/Easter Moama V 5000
1997/98 New Year Gum Lodge I (Tocumwal) 6500
1998 Autumn/Easter Gum Lodge II 4000
1998/99 New Year Guilmartens I (Tocumwal) Universal Togetherness 3500
1999 Autumn/Easter Guilmartens II What's Alternative Now? 'unplugged' 2000
1999/00 New Year Guilmartens III (Tocumwal) 2500
2000 Autumn/Easter Guilmartens IV (Tocumwal) 2200
2000/01 New Year Gulpa Creek I (between Echuca & Deniliquin) Earth Odyssey 2500
2001 Autumn/Easter Gulpa Creek II (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 2500
2001/02 New Year Gulpa Creek III (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 3800
2002 Autumn/Easter Gulpa Creek IV (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 3800
2002/03 New Year Gulpa Creek Bylands I (between Echuca & Deniliquin) At 'new' DTE owned site 2500
2003 Autumn/Easter Gulpa Creek Bylands II (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 3200
2003/04 New Year Gulpa Creek Bylands III (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 2,200?
2004 Autumn/Easter Gulpa Creek Bylands IV (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 3200
2004/05 New Year Gulpa Creek Bylands V (between Echuca & Deniliquin) ????
2005 Autumn/Easter Gulpa Creek Bylands VI (between Echuca & Deniliquin) ????
2005/06 New Year Gulpa Creek Bylands VII (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 2,000?
2006 Autumn/Easter Gulpa Creek Bylands VIII (between Echuca & Deniliquin) 3000
2006/07 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill Held at a property purchased by DTE in 2005/6. 2nd property purchased, and owned by DTE 3000
2007 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 2300
2007/08 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 1500
2008 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 3000
2008/09 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 1200
2009 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 3700
2009/10 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 2500
2010 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 4000
2010/11 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 3500
2011 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2011/12 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2012 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2012/13 New Year Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2013 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2013/14 New Year Cancelled
2014 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2014/15 New Year Cancelled
2015 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill
2016 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 5857
2017 Autumn/Easter Edward River outside Moulamein, between Deniliquin and Swan Hill 6100

Climate

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The property used for the March 2019 Confest gathering was one of two owned by the Down to Earth Cooperatives for the purpose of holding Confest gatherings. It is located approximately 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south-east of the New South Wales town of Moulamein and 100 kilometres (62 mi) north-west of Deniliquin. This region generally has a warmer climate over Summer and Autumn, and a cooler climate over Winter relative to Melbourne where the highest proportion of event participants reside. The Summer Confest was cancelled and was not held for several years while fire mitigation work was carried out on the property. The Autumn Confest held over the Easter long weekend has continued while this has taken place. It is often referred to as "Easter Confest" due to its timing but is a non-denominational event with participants able to observe their own spiritual practices including candle lighting at designated events and spaces as long as there is no fire ban. In 2016 an additional Confest was organised for Spring. It was unable to go ahead due to flooding.

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In 2015 police reported that 38 of 54 people searched on the approach road to the event were found in possession of illicit substances.[7]

There have been a number of assaults throughout the festival's history by a few individuals, including sexual assaults during massages and an attempted child abduction. In some cases, this has resulted in lifetime bans from the festival and police involvement.[8][9]

References

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  1. ^ "ConFest". Regional Arts NSW. Archived from the original on 31 March 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  2. ^ Harlowe, Heather (15 April 2013). "Hippies in Paradise: ConFest". Yeahnah. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Confest". Patrick Sterlin Photography. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  4. ^ Taylor, Andrew (29 December 2012). "Nudity a drawcard for this camp out". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  5. ^ "Confest - Uncertainty Village". Archived from the original on 19 April 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Confest - History". confest.org.au. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
  7. ^ McConachie, Alex (7 April 2015). "Police target illegal drugs at Moulamein's ConFest". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  8. ^ McConachie, Alex (6 April 2015). "ConFest at Moulamein rocked by attempted abduction, alleged indecent assaults". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  9. ^ Moskovitch, Greg (7 April 2015). "Man Charged After Two Boys Indecently Assaulted At Aussie Music Festival". Tone Deaf. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
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35°08′05″S 144°09′23″E / 35.134615°S 144.156289°E / -35.134615; 144.156289