Ecological education and the arts on our family farm, Virginia, USA

  • Letzte Aktivität : 15 Apr. 2025

Verfügbarkeit

  2025 

 Geforderte Mindest-Aufenthaltsdauer:  mindestens 1 Woche

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  • Beschreibung

    Beschreibung

    Hi travelers!
    We are an off-grid homestead and education center in rural Virginia focusing on permaculture and creative expression. Our family consists of Ella and Gil, our 12 yr old son, our 3 yr old daughter, and our 6 month old daughter (as of March 2025). We've been hosting workawayers/ WWOOFers and volunteers in various formats for the past 14 years (10 years on this property). At the moment, we are working to schedule several volunteers (3-4) at the same time for two-three week periods, to allow a sense of community and the opportunity for volunteers to meet and work with each other as well as our family. Along with our volunteers we also work closely with the local intentional communities, and have a labor exchange system set up for mutual help. In workawaying here, you will also have the opportunity to meet and work with folks from the local ICs.

    Our major projects:
    Education:
    We're developing an outdoor museum throughout our forest trails that is focused on interactive, scientific models of sustainability. We are developing a self-guided tour throughout our community and are looking for more signage, illustrations, and beautification. We also work with university student interns both teaching and mentoring research projects in many different areas. In past years, we've hosted a number of workshops and programs for both children and adults, and will continue to in the future. This year, we're focused more on the museum and research.

    Tiny house construction:
    We have had a very successful winter of building a tiny house (which we already sold) that turned out fabulous. We are going to continue building more of them using trees from our forest. This is a lengthy process that includes felling, milling, stacking, drying, and sanding boards, and then at some point putting them together to make another house.

    Garden:
    We plan to have a large garden this year. We could really use help in planting, weeding, harvesting, cooking, eating, preserving and seed processing. We are growing primarily for our own consumption, as well as to continue to research and select better and more pest and disease resistant varieties. There is also opportunity to help out a local seed grower to see the process of seed production.

    There are three communes within 15 min drive, with whom we have a work exchange relationship, so there will be opportunities to connect with lots of other people in the area, through work and social gatherings.

    Our homestead is nestled amidst beautiful countryside, and is about 10 min. from a town and about 30-45min. to cities (Richmond and Charlottesville). The ocean and the mountains are both a day trip away.

  • Arten von Hilfe und Lernmöglichkeiten

    Arten von Hilfe und Lernmöglichkeiten

    Kunstprojekte
    Hilfe bei Ökoprojekten
    Unterrichten
    Gartenarbeiten
    Heimwerker- und Bauarbeiten
    Betreuung von Tieren
    Mithilfe auf einem Bauernhof
    Zubereiten / Kochen von Mahlzeiten für die Familie
    Hausarbeiten
    Handwerkliche Arbeiten
    Hilfe mit Computer /Internet
  • UNO-Ziele für nachhaltige Entwicklung, die dieser Gastgeber verfolgt

    UNO-Ziele für nachhaltige Entwicklung, die dieser Gastgeber verfolgt

    UNO-Ziele
    Keine Armut
    Kein Hunger
    Gesundheit und Wohlergehen
    Hochwertige Bildung
    Geschlechtergleichstellung
    Sauberes Wasser und Sanitärversorgung
    Bezahlbare und saubere Energie
    Menschenwürdige Arbeit und Wirtschaftswachstum
    Industrie, Innovation und Infrastruktur
    Weniger Ungleichheiten
    Nachhaltige Städte und Gemeinden
    Nachhaltige Konsum- und Produktionsmuster sicherstellen
    Maßnahmen zum Klimaschutz
    Leben unter Wasser
    Leben an Land
    Frieden, Gerechtigkeit und starke Institutionen
    Partnerschaften zur Erreichung der Ziele
  • Kultureller Austausch und Lernmöglichkeiten

    Kultureller Austausch und Lernmöglichkeiten

    This is an immersive experience in a homestead that is highly integrated into a network of egalitarian income-sharing communes that are weaving the new paradigm, spreading the seed of the revolution, or at least recipes for vegan snacks. The local communes attract guests and members from all over the world, opening surprising cultural exchange opportunities that you would not typically see in a rural area.

  • Projekte mit Kindern

    Projekte mit Kindern

    Dieses Projekt schließt möglicherweise den Umgang mit Kindern ein. Mehr Informationen findest du in unseren Verhaltensregeln und Tipps hier.

  • Arbeit

    Arbeit

    1. We are looking for people who want to learn! As an education center, we focus a little less on hard monotonous work and more on teaching, experimenting, and offering new experiences. We hold some classes and discussions, and rely on each other to continue learning and researching topics for continuing to contribute to the project and for personal growth.
    2. On the other hand, we are also looking for folks that are self-motivated and maybe already have some skills in farming, building, childcare, and education. Workawayers are not asked or expected to do any childcare, but we are looking for folks comfortable with children, as they are very involved in our lives here.
    4. We are working on an Outdoor Sustainability Museum! We are revamping our outdoor museum, adding new elements that model ecological processes, model human impact on our planet, and explore solutions.
    5. Forestry: We harvest timber from our forest for building materials and for firewood. We need help with felling, limbing and debarking, mostly using hand-tools.
    6. Natural Building: We often have natural building projects. Currently the next project is refinishing our earthen floor, and building cob rocket stoves for cooking.
    7. Playground: beyond the zipline and swings we currently have, we are working on creating new activities and an obstacle course in the forest.
    8. Off-grid solar tech: we need help with developing and testing our solar system towards our ultimate grid independence. this includes solar power, electric car conversion, building experimental solar technology, and working with the rhythms of the sun and the clouds.

    In addition to all the exciting projects, there is still always a fair bit of domestic work to do, including cooking, cleaning, laundry, taking out the compost, stoking the wood-fired hot tub, cleaning the pond, gardening, etc. We sign up for chores and take turns cooking meals.

    Our Daily Schedule:
    On Friday afternoons we have a weekly meeting in which we determine the schedule for the week. We have a guideline of 24 hours of work per adult per week. This includes any communal domestic work. There will always be the option of signing up for work shifts with other members of the community, which is recommended during the first week or two of a workaway experience. This ensures you know how the community work functions and that you are properly trained in the different areas you want to work. When you are comfortable, it is possible to work on your own time (as opposed to work shifts) but this varies a lot from person to person. During our Friday meeting everyone in the community (members and workawayers and guests) are expected to present to the group what they have worked on the past week. Then we prioritize projects for the following week and make a schedule. There's a big white board where you can see what each person is working on each day, so you can help out or coordinate during the week.
    Meals:
    Breakfast is on your own. There's plenty of granola, soymilk, bread, eggs, etc.
    Lunch is cooked by whoever signs up, and a bell is rung when it's ready. Often people sit and eat together, but is not a formal meal.
    Dinner is cooked by whoever signs up and is a time we expect most of the community to get together to eat, socialize, and share gratitude.
    All communal meals are vegan (plus our chicken eggs). Any meat or dairy must be kept privately.
    Saturdays is our communal day off. No communal meals or work plans are made.

  • Sprachen

    Gesprochene Sprachen
    Englisch: Fließend
    Hebrew: Fließend
    Sign language (American): Grundkenntnisse

    Dieser Gastgeber bietet Sprachaustausch an
    Dieser Gastgeber gibt an, dass er dir gern seine Muttersprache beibringt oder selbst eine Sprache lernen möchte.
    Bitte wende dich direkt an ihn, um weitere Auskünfte zu erhalten.

  • Unterkunft

    Unterkunft

    We have various places to sleep: some houses, barn, vintage airstream trailer, sailboat. 15 acres of forest are available for you to play or camp in. We have two showers, composting toilets, running water, hot tub, bathing pond, some electricity (mostly solar). There is no indoor bathroom, no flush toilet or indoor shower. All of your food will be provided here. We stick to a vegan/vegetarian diet. We accept and accommodate people with various diets, including gluten free, etc.

  • Was noch ...

    Was noch ...

    Although we are a family homestead, we expect to host multiple workawayers at a time, and you should expect to be well integrated into the social sphere. please be willing to have open and honest communication with the people around you. We expect that volunteers will fully participate in the culture here. We do not have a culture of partying; excessive alcohol or drug use will not be tolerated. We expect all volunteers and members to keep the common spaces tidy and personal belongings in personal spaces.

    Here on the property or within walking distance, we have places to swim, play in the forest, hike, camp, and create. The surrounding communities host regular social events like dancing, singing, happy hour, potlucks, and parties. You could hike in the blue ridge mountains, which is only about an hour away, and the ocean is only two hours from us. There are local commune shuttles that you can use to get around as well.

  • Etwas mehr Information

    Etwas mehr Information

    • Internet Zugang

    • Eingeschränkter Internet Zugang

      Eingeschränkter Internet Zugang

    • Wir besitzen Tiere

    • Wir sind Raucher

    • Familien möglich

  • Platz zum Abstellen von Camper Vans

    Platz zum Abstellen von Camper Vans

    we have plenty of space, no problems there. but you can't drive into the forest, there's only walking paths, so you can't really park in a secluded spot.

  • Hier sind Haustiere in der Regel willkommen

    Hier sind Haustiere in der Regel willkommen

    no one likes to think that their dog could possibly cause any trouble, but some dogs do and some dogs don't. we can't really specify, but we'll just say that we have free ranging poultry, cats, kids, gardens, pond, and a peaceful lifestyle. can your dog respect that? Cats and smaller animals are generally welcome.

  • Kapazität - wie viele Workawayer maximal

    Kapazität - wie viele Workawayer maximal

    mehr als zwei

Gastgeber Ref-Nr.: 399371782671

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Weitere Bilder

Das Bild zeigt eine Gruppe von Menschen, die gemeinsam einen Baum in einem Waldgebiet fällen, umgeben von gefallenen Blättern und Bäumen.
Das Bild zeigt ein gemütliches Schlafzimmer mit einem großen Bett, das mit einer weißen Bettdecke mit roten Blumen geschmückt ist, in einem hölzernen Raum mit einem Fenster, das einen ruhigen Blick ins Freie bietet.
Das Bild zeigt eine unaufgeräumte Küche mit Esstisch, Spüle und verschiedenen Gegenständen, die überall verstreut sind, mit einem Fenster und einer Tür im Hintergrund.
Das Bild zeigt eine rustikale Holzhütte mit Veranda, die von Bäumen umgeben ist, mit Hängematte, Leiter und Feuerholz vor einer ruhigen Naturkulisse.
Das Bild zeigt eine ruhige Umgebung im Freien mit einer Frau und einem Mann, die an einer rustikalen Kochstelle stehen, umgeben von Bäumen und heruntergefallenen Blättern, die ein Gefühl der Ruhe ausstrahlen.
Das Bild zeigt ein kleines, verwittertes Haus mit einem abgenutzten Äußeren, umgeben von üppigem Grün und einem Steinweg, der zum Eingang führt.
Das Bild zeigt eine Gruppe von Menschen, die sich in einem gemütlichen Raum versammelt haben, umgeben von Musikinstrumenten und eklektischem Dekor, mit einem Gefühl der Kameradschaft und gemeinsamen Freude.
Das Bild zeigt eine Picknick-Szene mit einer roten Decke, verschiedenen Lebensmitteln und Menschenbeinen vor einem grasbewachsenen Hintergrund an einem sonnigen Tag.
Das Bild zeigt eine Gruppe von Menschen, die sich in einem Waldgebiet auf einer Holzkonstruktion versammelt haben, wahrscheinlich ein im Bau befindliches Gebäude, wobei einige Personen an den Balken sitzen oder hängen.
Das Bild zeigt eine Gruppe von Menschen, die in einem Kreis sitzen, umgeben von einem Holzzaun, mit einem Gewässer und Bäumen im Hintergrund, die ein Gefühl von Gemeinschaft und Verbundenheit hervorrufen.
Das Bild zeigt vier Personen, drei Männer ohne Hemd und eine Frau, die in einer Küche stehen, von der Kamera abgewandt und mit dem Rücken zur Kamera.
Das Bild zeigt eine Frau und ein Kind auf einer Holzterrasse, umgeben von üppigem Grün und einem kleinen Teich, der ein Gefühl der Ruhe ausstrahlt.

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