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Help out in a permaculture and holistic project in the Italian Alps, Piedmont, Biella Province

  • Favourited 510 times
  • Last activity: 12 Mar 2024

Availability

  2024 

 Min stay requested: at least a week

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Details

  • Description

    Description

    This is a permacultural and holistic project located in the Italian Alps (Piedmont, Biella Province) with the aim to become an educational and retreat center in order to help people to connect in a deep way with nature and each other.

    I (Ellen) have been engaged for many years in working for a sustainable planet, particularly through being active in the Transition Towns Network and at a certain point felt the need to get my hands dirty and walk the path I was preaching. :-)
    It is an amazing location, at 1000 m altitude, with forests, creeks and spectacular views. A place with a vibrant energy and very close to wilderness. For us it was love at the first sight! We feel to be the guardians of this place and would like to enhance its beauty even more and create abundance and nourishment (in many senses).
    At the moment this dream is nurtured mainly by our family - me, Ellen (52), Lorenzo (53) and our son Jan Daniel (14).
    After having renovated the old stone farmhouse in accordance to ecodesign principles in 2013 we moved in 2014. We started to work on soil fertility and planted so far approximately 400 fruit trees and shrubs, herbs, flowers, etc. in order to favor biodiversity end an edible perennial forest. We share our life with our animal friends: 2 horses, 2 dogs, 1 cat, chickens, geese, etc. - who roam freely on the nearly 6 ha property. Quite recently we started to work with water and built several little ponds.
    We organize workshops and events and receive guests on a regular basis.

  • Types of help and learning opportunities

    Types of help and learning opportunities

    Gardening
    DIY and building projects
    General Maintenance
    Farmstay help
    Help with Eco Projects
    Help around the house
    Animal Care
    Art Projects
    Help with Computers/ Internet
    Teaching
  • UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

    UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

    UN goals
    No poverty
    Zero hunger
    Good health and well-being
    Quality education
    Gender equality
    Clean water and sanitation
    Affordable and clean energy
    Decent work and economic growth
    Industries, innovation and infrastructure
    Reduce inequality
    Sustainable cities and communities
    Responsible consumption and production
    Climate action
    Life below water
    Life on land
    Peace, justice and strong institutions
    Partnerships for the goals
  • Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    We love to experiment and look for new challenges, so both for us and visitors there would always be great learning opportunities. We host courses and workshops and this could enhance learning even more. Our library is full of books on permaculture, homesteading, holistic lifestyles, etc. And we have a well established network of friends who passionately are engaged in bringing on positive and sustainable change which is linked to our local Transition Initiative

  • Projects involving children

    Projects involving children

    This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

  • Help

    Help

    As it is an ambitious project, we need help in many ways. The house is quite big and needs cleaning and maintenance. Our gardens always need some weeding and plant control. And in the appropriate season, we continue to plant trees for the food forest. We get our energy mainly from wood and this means that wood collecting and chopping is on our agenda. We started to renovate a second building on the property, so also some skilled help with masonry and wood working would be highly appreciated. Also looking after the animals is one of the tasks we would like to share with our visitors. Our horses have just been trained and we would love to receive help from experienced horse lovers and/or trainers to work with them further. Beauty is very important for us - and we would love if some artists and decorators could help us to create some artwork and magical places (for meditation, children, etc.). Depending on the season, we also collect plants, fruits, etc. for conserves and oils.

  • Languages

    Languages spoken
    German: Fluent
    English: Fluent
    Spanish: Fluent
    French: Fluent
    Italian: Fluent

    This host offers a language exchange
    This host has indicated that they are interested in sharing their own language or learning a new language.
    You can contact them directly for more information.

  • Accommodation

    Accommodation

    Workawayers can be hosted in a little cosy room (hand decorated) or in camping facilities (we can provide equipment if necessary) during the times we have some groups for workshops, and use all the common area facilities (kitchen, common room, bathroom, etc.). We normally have breakfast around 7, lunch around 1pm, dinner around 8pm. We eat mainly vegetarian meals.

  • What else ...

    What else ...

    We would love if workawayers would get passionate and engaged in this dream and make it theirs. So personal initiative is very appreciated. Of course, we need to get things done as well, but we prefer to build our relationship on mutual trust and commitment rather than working hours. For us it is important that this becomes a fullfilling experience for everybody. The location and surrounding area is simply beautiful, so we recommend to explore it hiking. Public transport gets you approximately 5 km from our place. We drive to the town of Biella several times a week and are happy to arrange for lifts.

  • A little more information

    A little more information

    • Internet access

    • Limited internet access

      Limited internet access

    • We have pets

    • We are smokers

    • Can host families

  • Can host digital nomads

    Can host digital nomads

    We have a good wifi connection but it's not in the main building but at a 5 min walk. The space is not always heated in winter.

  • Space for parking camper vans

    Space for parking camper vans

    This host can provide space for campervans.

  • How many Workawayers can stay?

    How many Workawayers can stay?

    More than two

  • ...

    Hours expected

    Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Host ref number: 312969691892

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Accuracy of profile: (5.0)

Cultural exchange: (5.0)

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