Festuri

FESTURI began in 1999 and has been delivered annually since; progressing from a concert-type program featuring song and dance from many different cultures, to an extremely high quality week long festival which encompasses a broad range of activities featuring local and international performers. The name "FESTURI" is not a "real" word.  It is a hybrid of common elements of the words for festival or celebration from a number of different languages.  The languages used to make this word were those of students from the Sunshine Coast Intensive English Unit in 1999 – the first year this event was staged.  It is always written in capital letters. 

FESTURI event management team has progressed over the years; starting from a community-based committee consisting of members of the NESB (Non English Speaking Background) Parents’ Support Group, teachers from Nambour schools and representatives of a number of different Sunshine Coast multicultural organizations, to an Incorporated Non-Profit Organisation - established in 2004, to reflect the move to combine with another multicultural event, the Multicultural Extravaganza, to stage a weekend long event at the University of the Sunshine Coast. This amalgamation gave rise to FESTURI 2004 a multicultural celebration attended by more than 10,000 people which, under its new name, continues to be a premier multicultural event for the Sunshine Coast and broader south east Queensland region. 

In 2006-7, the festival was expanded to include a more comprehensive Workshop Programs with more multicultural games, music and song, art, craft and interactive installations, inviting more visitor participation than in previous years, as well as developing a pilot Storytelling Tent and Sister Cities involvement.