The Audacity of Joy Lab
Using joy as a strategy for change, challenge, and celebration
A call to courage
The Audacity of Joy Lab is a learning and reflection space from Chewlin Group that invites social impact leaders and professionals to use use joy as a strategy for resilience, collective care, and sustainable change.
At a time when many feel joy is far away—or mistake it for fleeting happiness—the Lab offers grounding, education, and community to help people build resilience and collective care in their life, work, and play.
This isn’t about ignoring struggle—it’s about daring to imagine differently. It’s a movement helping changemakers rediscover joy as a tool for well-being, resilience, and healing.
“Joy is the justice we give ourselves.”
— J. Drew Lanham
Why Joy Matters Now
When burnout, disconnection, and constant change become the norm, joy can feel indulgent or impossible. But joy is not an escape—it’s essential.
Joy helps us hold both the pain and the possibility. It builds capacity for empathy, creativity, and courage. The same tools needed in leadership and changemaking. Through this Lab, participants reconnect with their sense of purpose, belonging, and agency—so they can lead without burning out.
“Joy is a companion to hope as a wellspring of resilience.
— Krista Tippett
Photos by Helen Joy
Who this is for
The Audacity of Joy Lab is for leaders, managers, and changemakers who carry the weight of care — for their teams, their communities, and the missions that matter most. It’s for those who know burnout too well, yet still believe in the possibility of something different.
For you, meaning is found in the alignment between what you believe and how you lead — and that alignment is an act of courage. Choosing joy becomes a strategy for resilient leadership and collective well-being — a way to sustain yourself and those you serve while building cultures rooted in purpose and care.
Organizations and individuals who partner with us are doing vital work — closing gaps in equity, strengthening community resilience, and creating pathways for opportunities.
Many leaders believe in the power of joy, but often need the reminder — the how, the tools, the rhythms — to keep it alive in their work and lives. The Audacity of Joy Lab is where we practice that together, building the collective courage to keep joy within reach.
The Story Behind the Lab
Photo taken by: Wanderlust Imaging
“Joy is not about ignoring pain or pretending we live in perpetual sunshine; it’s about expanding our hearts to hold all of life. When we nourish joy, even in the smallest moments, we deepen our capacity to welcome every feeling, knowing each has a place—and joy gives us the strength and spaciousness to meet what arises.”
The Audacity of Joy Lab was born from founder Jennice Chewlin’s personal journey through burnout and recovery.
In the midst of juggling work, motherhood, and the uncertainty of a global pandemic, Jennice found herself overwhelmed and full of shame for “ending up” in exhaustion. But as she began to recover, she realized the system—not just her coping strategies—played a role in her burnout.
Her healing began with curiosity—asking what she truly needed, desired, and valued.
Through creative exploration—writing, movement, laughter, community, and poetry—she began to remember joy.
A line from Mary Oliver’s The Summer Day anchored her:
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”
From that question came a profound realization: joy and pain can coexist. Joy doesn’t erase struggle; it builds the capacity to hold both.
Jennice doesn’t promise instant solutions, but she skillfully facilitates spaces where reflection and connection lead you back to joy.
The Audacity of Joy Lab carries that lesson forward—an invitation to you to reimagine joy not as fleeting happiness, but as a steady practice of resilience and leadership.
Explore the Experiences
Welcome to the Audacity of Joy book club, an online community reading experience that explores joy through literature, culture, and identity. Each gathering is a space to reflect, connect, and practice joy in real time—one story, one insight, one conversation at a time.
What We’re Reading:
📖Inciting Joy by Ross Gay
What if joy isn’t just a feeling, but a practice—especially in hard times? In Inciting Joy, poet and essayist Ross Gay invites us to explore how joy shows up in unexpected places: in grief, in skateboarding, in gardening, in caring for one another. With warmth, humor, and heart, he reminds us that joy isn’t the opposite of sorrow—it’s often braided right through it.
We kick off December 8 at 7pm online with two more sessions through the end of January.
The Audacity of Joy Podcast are Conversations with social impact changemakers, creatives, and leaders exploring how joy shows up in their work, lives, and communities.
Each episode offers real talk about burnout, recovery, and the courage to choose joy in spaces that often forget it. Listen to spark curiosity, reflection, and action.
Launching January 2026!
This podcast is for us.
Sign up to be the first to know when it goes live.
Joy as Resistance is a 5-week online peer-learning program, particularly community leaders, focusing on collective care, fostering resilience, and nurturing emotional well-being in a collaborative setting, leveraging the collective wisdom, experiences, and support of participants.
This program exists to remind us we are not alone in our efforts to foster change - and self-care!
Our cohort of 10-12 participants will meet online weekly for 90-minutes and use creative modalities like art, writing, storytelling, and movement to work through each week’s theme.
Launching Cohort 2 Spring 2026!
What is to be gained?
A deeper understanding of joy as a strategy for resilience, not just emotion.
Tools for burnout prevention and recovery and self-care.
Practices for collective care and well-being at home, work and play
Courage to imagine new possibilities for themselves and their organizations.
Words from the Community
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“The program helped me keep my head above water”
Joy as Resistance Participant
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“[…] I don’t even know how to capture how much that workshop shifted for me! Your work is magic ✨”
Summer of Joy Participant
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“It speaks to Jennice’s skills that everyone felt comfortable and connected enough to be vulnerable.Through that vulnerability came some really valuable insights and revelations.”
Reimagining Self-Care Participant
Joy can help us heal and strategize how to stay engaged in our causes and community—without burning out.
Recognizing the immense pressures and emotional toll that come with being a social changemaker, we aim to provide a sanctuary for healing and revitalization.
Introducing Joy as Resistance by Chewlin Group: A transformative experience designed for community leaders*, at the forefront of social change. This 5-week online peer-learning program is your opportunity to reconnect with joy as a tool for resilience and well-being, as you manage the challenges of being a community leader.
Overview:
Joy as Resistance is a 5-week online peer-learning program, particularly community leaders, focusing on collective care, fostering resilience, and nurturing emotional well-being in a collaborative setting, leveraging the collective wisdom, experiences, and support of participants. This program exists to remind us we are not alone in our efforts to foster change - and self-care! Our cohort of 10-12 participants will meet weekly for 90-minutes and use creative modalities like art, writing, storytelling, and movement to work through each week’s theme.
Joy as Resistance
for community leaders
What You'll Gain
Understand the powerful relationship between joy and well-being
Uncover cultural myths that influence your beliefs
Develop strategies for prioritizing physical and mental health
Reimagine self-care for the modern world
Build connections with fellow social impact changemakers
Program Highlights
Five live & interactive online sessions facilitated by Jennice Chewlin
Weekly 90-minute sessions in a virtual group setting
Collaborative setting focused on effective, meaningful discussions
Limited spots to ensure quality engagement
Topics Covered
Discover: Identify and challenge false beliefs about joy and self-care.
Dismantle: Learn to put joy at the heart of your well-being.
Dedicate: Commit to new practices that will support and sustain your physical and mental health.
Who Should register
Participants who attend are:
Curious about self-care,
Willing to embrace joy as a powerful tool in their work
Need a respite from the challenges of their work as community leaders.
Add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be the first to know exact dates for our Spring 2026 cohort.
Key Dates
Cost
Sliding pay scale of $399 - $699.
Spring 2026 waitlist is now open!
Chewlin Group is committed to equity and inclusion and strongly values the experiences of historically marginalized people and encourage them to apply for this opportunity.
*What we mean by leaders: we understand that not everyone identifies with the terms: social impact leader, changemaker, or community leader. We honor a perspective that is inclusive and empowering, recognizing leadership beyond formal titles and sectors. By broadening the definition, it embraces people who may not see themselves as "leaders" but who drive meaningful change through their actions. This approach affirms that leadership is not just about position, but about the impact one has, whether in a community, workplace, or even within a family.
Additionally, it opens the door for a diverse range of individuals to feel validated in their efforts, and it encourages people to see the value in the work they do—regardless of how it might traditionally be labeled. It's a powerful way to foster collective empowerment and motivate action across all levels of society.
Heal. Revitalize. Reclaim Joy.
Testimonials:
“[...] Joy and resistance are thought to be opposites, but it was shared that these words can work well together in order to make sense of it all and find some peace. Realizing how much JOY can be in our lives acts as a way to resist and UPLIFT ourselves into places of positivity. I will use these tools and memories in the weeks and months to come to remind myself of JOY everywhere. Thank you Jennice for your expertise, beautifully delivered message, and your friendship. ”
100%
of respondents appreciate the opportunity provided to improve their health and well-being.
100%
of respondents found this wellness presentation was valuable to attend.
Why it Matters:
When leaders invest in their own well-being, they become more effective agents of change. By prioritizing joy, we can create a ripple effect of positivity in our communities.
In a world that often feels heavy, joy is a powerful form of resistance. It’s more than just an emotion; it’s a deliberate choice to celebrate what energizes us and fuels our ability to make a difference!
Topics to be explored:
I. Discover: Unveiling false beliefs about what gets in the way of caring for your mind and body. Key Question: Where does your definition of joy come from? What are the myths about joy and self-care that could be getting in the way of our well-being?
II. Dismantle: Grow your capacity to put joy front and center of your well-being. Key Question: What do you wish to unlearn about your joy?
III. Dedicate: Commit to new practices that will support and sustain you and your role in your community. Key Question: What deliberate choices about joy are you planning and celebrating to bring into your care?
