Profile information
Host is looking for help immediately
Host rating
80 %
Reply rate
100.0 %
Usually responds within 1 day
Feedback
45
Email verified
Badges (2)
Details
Description
Hello! We are Charlotte (USA) and Christian (Ecuador), and we have an Ecoculturual Finca outside of Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Ecuador. The Finca is about 8 hectares of hilly jungle, filled with cacao, banana, avocado, papaya, coffee, and other tropical fruit trees. Christian started this project in 2012 to create a community of people who want to live consciously and in harmony with the natural world. We believe sustainability has an environmental component (we eat vegetarian, use composting toilets, minimize waste, use resources we have on the finca, etc), but that it also has a cultural component; infusing art, cultural exchange, genuine connection, music, intergenerational sharing, and creative problem solving into daily life is important to living sustainably! The hope is that by starting small, by living well on the finca, we can spread an environmental consciousness to our surrounding community, and hopefully beyond.
We welcome volunteers to come participate in this community exchange, and to help us on our various projects.
Our goal is to be 100% self sustaining, but we are not quite there yet.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Due to the inaccessibility to markets, shops, and restaurants, as well as limited kitchen resources, we have come to find it easiest for the flow of activity and harmony at the finca if volunteers voluntarily contribute $7 per day for communal food that will be prepared and shared together. Volunteers are welcome to source their own food elsewhere if they do not want to contribute towards your meals.
......................................................................................................................................................................................................
¡Hola! Somos Charlotte (EE. UU.) Y Christian (Ecuador), y tenemos una Finca Ecocultural fuera de Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Ecuador. La finca es de aproximadamente 8 hectáreas de selva montañosa, llena de cacao, plátano, aguacate, papaya, café y otros árboles frutales tropicales. Christian comenzó este proyecto en 2012 para crear una comunidad de personas que desean vivir conscientemente y en armonía con el mundo natural. Creemos que la sostenibilidad tiene un componente ambiental (comemos comida vegetariana, usamos baños secos, minimizamos el desperdicio, utilizamos los recursos que tenemos en la finca, etc.), pero que también tiene un componente cultural; ¡Infundir arte, intercambio cultural, conexión genuina, música, intercambio intergeneracional y resolución creativa de problemas en la vida diaria es importante para vivir de manera sostenible! La esperanza es que al comenzar de a poco, viviendo bien en la finca, podamos difundir una conciencia ambiental a nuestra comunidad circundante, y con suerte más allá.
Damos la bienvenida a voluntarios para que participen en este intercambio comunitario y nos ayuden en nuestros diversos proyectos.
Nuestro objetivo es ser 100% autosuficientes, pero todavía no estamos allí.
NOTA IMPORTANTE: Debido a la inaccesibilidad a restaurantes, mercados y tiendas, y recursos de cocina limitados, hemos descubierto que es más fácil para el flujo de actividad y armonía en la finca si los voluntarios contribuyen voluntariamente con $7 por día para la comida comunitaria que preparamos y compartimos juntos. Los voluntarios pueden obtener su propia comida en otro lugar si no quieren contribuir con sus comidas.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Art Projects
Help with Eco Projects
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Farmstay help
Babysitting and creative play
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
UN sustainablity goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
We host volunteers from all over the world, every moment and every day is a cultural exchange! The Finca tends to attract people who are interested in living a more intentional lifestyle; people seeking environmental, social, and spiritual consciousness often find their way to us here, which keeps the conversations interesting!
Note: If you are looking for a traditional Ecuadorian family homestay, we are not a good fit for that. We are a multicultural community combining to create a new culture.
......................................................................................................................................................................................................
Recibimos voluntarios de todo el mundo, ¡cada momento y cada día es un intercambio cultural! La Finca tiende a atraer a personas interesadas en vivir un estilo de vida más intencional; ¡Las personas que buscan conciencia ambiental, social y espiritual a menudo encuentran su camino hacia nosotros aquí, lo que mantiene las conversaciones interesantes!
Nota: Si estás buscando una experiencia en casa de familia tradicional ecuatoriana, no somos adecuados para eso. Somos una comunidad multicultural que se combina para crear una nueva cultura.
Help
Volunteers typically work 3 hours a day, 5 days a week, although there is some flexibility there. We are especially excited to accept volunteers with building experience, skill in art or music, folks who are adept in social media/web experience, photographers/videographers, and great cooks--but if those things aren't your forte, we are happy with a positive attitude and good work ethic.
The tasks to be done on the finca is varied and ever-changing. Some constants are preparing meals for the community at the finca (we take turns cooking the meals that we will enjoy communally), cleaning shared spaces, and maintaining pathways. There is often a construction project underway, and volunteers can participate in whatever step of the process we are in. We build with guadua (big bamboo) and wood, and the activity could be anything from harvesting (or cleaning to carrying or cutting) bamboo to putting the finishing touches on a huge, double story multiuse structure.
We are also constantly doing art projects to infuse beauty and creativity around the finca! We love having volunteers paint any available surface to surround ourselves with art!
In the recent past we started a music program for the kids of the neighborhood, and we would like to breathe life back into that project. The hope is to expand this program to include art classes, seed-to-table gardening and cooking classes--anything creative--to give back to our community and culturally nurture the upcoming generation. Volunteers with a passion for art or music, working with kids, and skills in website management are super welcome! Note: To engage with this project it's most doable with longer term volunteers
......................................................................................................................................................................................................
Los voluntarios suelen trabajar 3 horas al día, 5 días a la semana, aunque hay cierta flexibilidad allí. Estamos especialmente entusiasmados de aceptar voluntarios con experiencia en construcción, habilidad en el arte o la música, personas que son expertas en las redes sociales / experiencia web, fotógrafos / camarógrafos y grandes cocineros, pero si esas cosas no son su fuerte, estamos felices con actitud positiva y buena ética de trabajo.
Las tareas a realizar en la finca son variadas y siempre cambiantes. Algunas constantes están preparando comidas para la comunidad en la finca (nos turnamos para cocinar las comidas que disfrutaremos comunalmente), limpiando espacios compartidos y manteniendo caminos. Casi siempre está ocurriendo un proyecto de construcción. Construimos con guadua (bambú grande) y madera, y podría ser cualquier cosa, desde construir una gran estructura multi-uso de múltiples pisos hasta reconstruir la ducha al aire libre, de construir muebles creativos a hacer un nuevo inodoro para el baño seco. También estamos constantemente haciendo proyectos de arte para infundir belleza y creatividad en todas partes de la finca.
En el pasado reciente, comenzamos un programa de música para los niños del vecindario, y nos gustaría revivir ese proyecto. La meta es incluir talleres de arte, de horticultura, de cocinar--de todo creativo--para servir a la comunidad y nutrir culturalmente a la generación que viene. ¡Los voluntarios con pasión por el arte y/o la música, trabajar con niños y habilidades en la gestión de sitios web son súper bienvenidos! Nota: es más posible realizar talleres con voluntarios que pasan algunas semanas con nosotros.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
Accommodation
Volunteers stay in tents on a large bamboo structure. We have a few tents with foam mattresses and blankets that are available for volunteers, but if you have your own gear that's even better!
Food is cooked and shared communally; we are a vegetarian community, and enjoy three delicious meals (and often snacks in between) throughout the day. Not all who visit or live here are vegetarians, but all food that is cooked here is meat and egg free. Preparing and food together is a big part of our daily focus, and we love when volunteers share dishes from their home countries!
There is no electricity or internet on the Finca!! We love how being unplugged encourages everyone to interact more. There is access to Wifi in a recreation/chill space that we built, about a 10 min walk from the Finca. And don't worry, we have a campfire, solar lights, and candles, so the darkness is not a problem.
......................................................................................................................................................................................................
Los voluntarios duermen en carpas en una gran estructura de bambú. Tenemos algunas carpas con colchones y cobijas disponibles para voluntarios, pero si tienes tu propio equipo, ¡eso es aún mejor!
La comida se cocina y se comparte comunalmente; Somos una comunidad vegetariana y disfrutamos de tres deliciosas comidas (y a menudo snacks intermedios) durante todo el día. No todos los que visitan o viven aquí son vegetarianos, pero toda la comida que se cocina aquí no contiene carne ni huevo.
¡No hay electricidad ni internet en la Finca! Nos encanta estar desconectado de la tecnología, se alimenta a la conversación y interacciones en el presente. Hay acceso a Wifi en una tienda / restaurante que hemos construido, a unos 5-10 minutos a pie de la Finca. La tienda no está activada actualmente, es más como un área de reunión por ahora. Y no se preocupe, tenemos luces solares y velas para usar en la finca durante la noche.
What else ...
We are located on the outskirts of Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Ecuador. Our neighborhood is becoming more popular on weekends thanks to a bike path that leads to a river with beautiful swim spots (we go during the week to avoid crowds), but at the Finca we are protected from the hustle and bustle of the city. Santo Domingo is a ten minute bus ride from where we are, it's 3 hours from Quito, and 2.5 hours to the coast.
We thoroughly enjoy the fruits of our labor (literally, there is so much fruit here) when we aren't working. Harvesting, processing, and eating/drinking cacao and coffee, utilizing various medicinal plants and sediments we have here for therapies, holding Temazcal (sweat lodge) ceremonies, using plants as paints and dyes or to make baskets, and taking dips in the natural spring on our property are some of the ways we enjoy the land in our free time.
......................................................................................................................................................................................................
Estamos ubicados en las afueras de Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Ecuador. Nuestro vecindario se está volviendo más popular los fines de semana gracias a un ciclovía que conduce a un río con hermosos lugares para nadar (vamos durante la semana para evitar multitudes), pero en la Finca estamos protegidos del ajetreo y el bullicio de la ciudad. Santo Domingo está a diez minutos en autobús de donde estamos, a 3 horas de Quito y a 2.5 horas de la costa.
Disfrutamos mucho los frutos de nuestro trabajo (literalmente, hay tanta fruta aquí) cuando no estamos trabajando. Cosechando, procesando y comiendo cacao y cafe, utilizando varias plantas medicinales y sedimentos que tenemos aquí para terapias, celebrando ceremonias de Temazcal, usando plantas como pinturas y tintes o para hacer canastas, y sumergirnos en el pósito natural de nuestra propiedad son algunas de las formas en que disfrutamos la tierra en nuestro tiempo libre.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
Maximum 3 hours a day, 5 days a week
Feedback (32)
The food was all the time incredible, the installations was really nice, comfy and the landscapes with the sunsets always beautiful
We had the opportunity to do the Temazcal guided by Christian we… read more
A warm place where time feels different, I enjoyed my week with Christian, doing different stuff from the cooking to building.
A really great energy combined with a special place in the selva.
Gracias Christian :)
I learned a lot and had fun learning to cook with local ingredients.
I found the space to be comfortable for sleeping… read more
Feedback
These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.
Accuracy of profile:
(4.8)
Cultural exchange:
(4.6)
Communication:
(4.9)
The food was all the time incredible, the installations was really nice, comfy and the landscapes with the sunsets always beautiful
We had the opportunity to do the Temazcal guided by Christian we… read more
A warm place where time feels different, I enjoyed my week with Christian, doing different stuff from the cooking to building.
A really great energy combined with a special place in the selva.
Gracias Christian :)
I learned a lot and had fun learning to cook with local ingredients.
I found the space to be comfortable for sleeping… read more
We are delighted with the very natural way of carrying out the work on the farm of Cristhian and Charlotte, they live and feel nature, every morning the mountain tells them… read more
From the very first communication we felt very positively about the two of them. They generously offered to bring a number of handmade flutes to donate to a local orphanage, providing music lessons for the students who received the donation. The… read more
Especially Charlot was very… read more
Charlotte and Christian were really nice hosts, they… read more
I wouldn’t call work what I did in finca, it’s living in community and sharing task and helping each other. I also learn a lot, how… read more
Words cannot describe how much we have enjoyed this WorkAway.
It’s a beautiful and artistic place surrounded by stunning nature.
If you are considering staying at the finca, we will definitely recommend… read more
5 estrallas para la comida
al inverso no estabamos la bienvenida, no nos hablamos, no han explicado nada a nosotras, en 3 dias hemos hecho solo limpieza…
Que pena porque no esperamos eso, que raro de hacer un workaway sin quierer compartir
Øystein is a person who makes the environment he is in feel better than it actually is. He can make the most boring task feel less tedius because he brings such an engaging conversation to the table (somehow at once silly and thought provoking). His humor and… read more
She is extremely talented in all things creative--she painted a beautiful mural for us, she made an enormous macrame, and she was often coming up with delicious experiments in the kitchen. I only wish we had more time with her to explore what other ways she can beautify her… read more
They're amazing warm people and the place that they're creating is so beautiful!
I didn't want to leave the first time so I came back for my last 2 days. They were hosting an eco-event with amazing music and a small street fair.
Before I came to the finca, the communication was… read more
I was lucky… read more
Wow, it was so amazing, I can't describe with words what a nice time I had.
The finca is located in the middle of dschungle, you will feel so close to the nature. It doesn't matter that you won't have any internet or electricity because in real you will… read more
He is everything that we could ask for: positive, excited to learn, flexible, reliable, hard worker, self starter, funny, a joy to be around. Jake is a person who is actively engaged in life, and he gives 100% to everything he does.
Thank you for your energy and presence with us!
Our experience with Katharina was so positive that it is hard not to gush about how much we love her, but I'll try to keep it simple.
We hosted Katharina for more than a month, but she became indispensible to us after just a few short days. A self starter and a creative problem solver, Katherina quickly established… read more
I'm so grateful for the amazing time I had living with you in this beautiful magical place.
I was learning so many interesting new things, from processing cacao and coffee to sewing curtains and painting a sign to cleaning the mountain, planting anchochas, cooking for eight people, making… read more
If you want to get back in touch with nature, learn new things, get back to roots and EAT WELL this is the place to go.
Charlotte and Christian provided that feeling for me, and I believe all who have been a part of the Finca.
They are so many wonderful things I want to say about this place...the people, the… read more
The enthusiasm and hard work they brought every day was energizing, and their creativity with art as well as their own side projects was truly inspiring. They were always up early and working even before we were, they would start washing the… read more
We cannot express how delicious and creative the food was, every day really revolves… read more
While Josema was with us he did everything from manual labor, to… read more
Food couldn't be any fresher because it was almost literally falling from the tree onto your plate. Not without some amazing cooking before.
One can take part in all different activities,… read more
