Handiversité Festival

A festival born from community engagement in Savenay

The Handiversité Festival was born in 2009 from the initiative of the Association Loisirs Jeunesse (ALJ) of Savenay, which wanted to reflect on the place of children and young people with disabilities within its leisure structure. From the very first edition, the idea was to involve families in this reflection, as the issue of perceptions related to differences concerns each of us. Over the years, many partners have joined this initiative, which has grown considerably in the Estuaire et Sillon territory.

An engaged inter-municipal collective

Today, the Handiversité Festival is supported by an inter-municipal collective bringing together more than twenty partners: youth structures, sports and cultural associations, media libraries, cinemas, educational and medico-social establishments, all supported by local authorities and the Communauté de Communes Estuaire et Sillon. This collective dynamic is at the heart of the festival's identity and ensures a strong connection to the daily lives of the territory's residents.

Clear objectives to change perceptions

The Handiversité Festival pursues three fundamental objectives:

• Question our individual and collective perceptions related to differences, particularly towards people with disabilities
• Improve the welcome for people with disabilities in the leisure structures of the Estuaire et Sillon territory
• Initiate and participate in an inclusive local dynamic, uniting the territory's stakeholders around a common project

Two to three weeks of activities throughout the territory

Each edition of the festival unfolds over two to three weeks in the spring, with a rich and varied program offered in all the communes of the territory. Activities take place in media libraries (screenings, readings, exhibitions), cinemas (awareness sessions, film debates), leisure centers (workshops, games, inter-center meetings), schools (educational interventions), and sports facilities (adapted sports initiations). Partners such as Cap'Lan, medico-social establishments, and adapted sports associations actively contribute to the programming.

The highlight: a day for everyone

The festival's highlight is the "Day for All", a free event open to everyone held in a sports complex in the territory. This day offers a dense program combining adapted sports activities (wheelchair basketball, rugby league XIII, adapted climbing, motor skills course), sensory workshops (sensory area, games in the dark, blindfolded meal), shows, concerts, and cultural activities. This highlight moves from one commune to another over the editions: Savenay, Malville, Campbon, and other communes in the territory have hosted this unifying event in turn.

A festival that grows year after year

Since its creation in 2009, the Handiversité Festival has continued to grow, evolving from a local initiative by ALJ Savenay to a major inter-municipal event in the Estuaire et Sillon territory. The festival was interrupted for three years due to the health crisis related to Covid-19, before resuming with the 12th edition in 2023. In 2025, the 14th edition took place from March 29 to April 13, with a highlight on April 5 at the Campbon sports complex, offering an adapted family hike, a sensory area, wheelchair basketball, rugby league XIII, games in the dark, adapted climbing, and a mini-concert by the group "Voix sans bouches".