Learn about a sustainable life, permaculture & self sufficiency

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The experience

Here you can learn more about permaculture and a sustainable, self sufficient life in nature and how to make the world a better place.
We are turning our 12 hectares into an edible landscape where tourists can camp and enjoy nature. You can help us with the animals, work on the terrain, in the garden and the food forest.
After the intro week we will discuss what more you want to learn, what you enjoy the most and how you can contribute best.


What you offer

25 hours of help per week

Building & Repairing: Help with a wide range of repairs or building.

Animal Care: Help look after and take care of animals.

Farming: Plant crops, sow seeds and help in outside tasks.

Gardening: Help grow plants and cultivate gardens

Additional fee required

Amount: € 100 One time

Fee pays for: Benefits for travelers and Donation to project

Description: This fee is for a week long course in permaculture and sustainable living. We start your 4 weeks volunteering period here with a course that will be fun and hands-on. We have developed a program with learning about sustainable and self sufficient living, how to DO that, and how social and land based permaculture is a basis for us.


What you get

2 days off per week

Private Room: You will have a bed in a private room. In other words, a room just for you.

Shared Dorm: You will have a bed in a shared room, which means you will share the same room with other travelers.

Team Dorm: You will have a bed in a shared room, which means you will share the same room with other people.

Tent: You will sleep in a tent at a camping site.

Breakfast: You are entitled to a free breakfast, every day of your stay.

Lunch: You are entitled to a free lunch, every day of your stay.

Dinner: You are entitled to a free dinner, every day of your stay.

Free Laundry: You can use our laundry room freely.

Free Hiking Tours: We’ll take you on excursions and hikes around town. For free!

Get free drinks or beverages.: Drink up! Get free and tasty drinks for yourself.

Free Events: Get free entrance for the best events in town.

Pick Up: We will pick you up when you arrive, and take you to our property.

Holistic Therapies: You can take part in any of our therapeutic activities for free.

Permaculture Course: Take part in our Permaculture course for free.

Basic Internet Access: Basic speed internet for you to work remotely


Requirements

Fluent English or Fluent Croatian

Between 18 and 80 years old

Welcomes solo volunteers, couples, and partners of volunteers


What's not included

Flights, Travel Insurance, Internal Transportation and Visa


Program Details

We live a simple, mostly self sufficient life with the land. We love to prepare delicious dishes with ingredients from the garden and our stable. We like to make our own (sourdough) bread, crackers, cookies, fruit wines, jams, syrups, sauerkraut, yogurt, mayonnaise, kimchi & kefir.
We collect various (medicinal) herbs for tea, tinctures and oils, cosmetic products, cleaning products and for the kitchen.

Your stay here starts with a week long course as an introduction to permaculture, sustainable living and self-sufficiency. These courses start every month.
Unless you already have your PDC: then your date of arrival is more flexible.

Our "rich forest" is a LAND demonstration site for the Permaculture Association Britain and Barbara has her permaculture Diploma (mentored by Looby Macnamara) also through this organisation.


Activities & Shift

You can help us (4-5 hours per day, 5 days a week) with the garden, with cleaning parts of the terrain, making the camp site more beautiful and turning the terrain into an edible landscape. We need to collect and chop winter wood, the animals need fences, the paths need wood chips mulch, we can do some pruning, taking care of the (polyculture, no dig) garden, composting and mulching with various methods, making and spreading natural fertilizers, and you can help us with everyday tasks. Like fermenting food, making jam, drying fruits, collecting seeds, hunting bugs... Maybe you can help us making videos or taking beautiful pictures, writing, designing...


Rules

We expect fun and flexibility, openness and drive. You can expect this all from us as well.
We expect you to be a responsible person with an adult attitude.

We provide you with 3 meals per day. Breakfast you have at your own time, lunch and dinner we do together.
Every morning we have a check-in to start the day.
Every Friday we close the week with an evaluation and celebration.

Although we are meat eaters, we enjoy vegetarian food as well. But veganism we do not appreciate because in our climate region that is not sustainable. So if you eat vegan please don't apply.
We don't appreciate dogma's and fixed thinking in general.

After the first introduction week, you can stay here another 3-99 weeks. Of course we discuss this, your goals and wishes, and we look at how we "match". Volunteering has to be fun for the both of us!