Profile information
Host rating
80 %
Last replied
10 Jun 2025
Reply rate
75.0 %
Usually responds within 7 days
Feedback
14
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Badges (3)
Details
Description
🌱Join Us at the Community Centre – Empower, Learn, and Grow in South India with NGO
🇮🇳 We are a non-profit organization located near Madurai in Tamil Nadu, South India. Our core mission is to empower women and children through microcredit programs and learning centers, while promoting sustainable and community-based living. We are based in a beautiful ecopark which makes this place always cool and green.
🏡 We warmly welcome: Volunteers, Travelers, Digital nomads, Artists, Anyone looking for a peaceful, purposeful place to stay, rest or work.
By staying at our Community Centre, you directly support our ongoing community initiatives.
🫱🏾🫲🏽 We run a variety of social and environmental initiatives, including:
- Spirulina cultivation
- Composting projects, Plant nurseries, Banana farming
- Handcrafted fashion and accessories
- Community Centre, Women’s shelter & Training Center
- Art and slackline workshops for social and therapeutic support
🙌🏽 All of these projects are already underway – and we’re looking for motivated minds and helping hands to support, co-create, and expand them!
🌿 Current Help Needed:
- Enhancing the Ecopark (gardening, eco-construction, landscaping)
- Building and maintenance work
- Designing and running creative and educational programs for children
🛏️ Guest House – Basic Info:
- Comfortable rooms available on a donation basis
- Electric scooter rental
- Self-service laundry
- Shared kitchen with fridge
- Free Wi-Fi
- Homemade traditional vegetarian breakfast and lunch available (Monday to Saturday, local rates)
- Shops, markets, and restaurants within walking distance
- Nearby temples, hiking trails, and local sightseeing
- Friendly tuktuk driver contacts
- Located 45 mins from the airport, 30 mins from the railway/bus station, 2 hours to the ocean
👋🏼About Me
My name is Celia. I speak English, French, and a little bit of spoken Tamil 😉.
I’ve been working here since 2022, managing the volunteer program, the guest house, and our handcraft project.
While on-site, I also run art and slackline workshops with a social and therapeutic focus, especially for women and children from rural and underprivileged communities.
We are a dynamic, heart-driven team building a space that’s greener, cleaner, and more holistic – a place for women and children to learn, heal, and grow.
We’re excited to welcome you into our community!
Looking forward to hearing from you 🌼
Types of help and learning opportunities
Charity Work
Art Projects
Language practice
Help with Eco Projects
Teaching
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Farmstay help
Help around the house
Hospitality/Tourism
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
Interests
Technology
Events & social
Sustainability
Culture
Farming
Charity work
Carpentry
Cooking & food
Books
Plant care
Music
DIY & crafts
Art & design
Gardening
Languages
Writing
Drawing & painting
Team sports
Yoga / Wellness
Nature
Fitness
Dancing
Water sports
Outdoor activities
Adventure sports
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
🌏Discover the Heart of Tamil Nadu – Culture, Nature, and Authentic Connections
📍Tamil Nadu is a region rich in culture, tradition, and natural beauty. From its vernacular language and flavorful local cuisine to its lush landscapes and spiritual heritage, every corner offers something unique.
🛕The nearby city of Madurai, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, is famous for its ancient temples, particularly the Meenakshi Temple, which dates back thousands of years.
Unlike more tourist-heavy areas, this region offers a truly authentic and immersive experience, with foreign tourism still developing slowly and organically.
🫱🏾🫲🏽 Connect with Our Community
At the Campus, you’ll be part of a vibrant team of over 20 local staff members, engaging in daily cultural exchange and collaborative work.
You’ll also have the opportunity to:
- Join our animators and field team
- Visit and support our beneficiaries in nearby rural villages and slum neighborhoods
🌞 It’s more than just volunteering – it’s a chance to live and learn alongside a local community, while contributing to meaningful and sustainable social impact.
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
(1) Improving the Ecopark 🌳
- structure: paths, areas, infrastructures...
- species: more flowers, new trees...
- maintenance: watering, compost..
- create a vegetables garden
- ...
(2) Waste management organizer ♻️
His/her mission will be to manage the collection point, work on education material, contact local scrap dealer for each material, recycle on-site, and achieve a zero-waste campus.
(3) Building work 🏚️
- shared canteen painting
- yoga spot deep clean and painting
- ...
(4) Organic agriculture 🌾
We are planting trees and starting a kitchen garden with organic compost. So we would need people who have some knowledge of agriculture.
(4) Children activities at the ecopark 🪴
We have around 10'000 children visiting Ecopark each year, we need didactic boards: fun facts, quizz, science explanation..
(5) Pedagogic program for the children 🧩
- English class
- slackline and sports activity
- art activities (drawings, paintings...)
-...
(6) Fundraising 🤲🏼
- donation, networking...
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
Tamil: FluentThis 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
🏡 Welcome to our Community Centre – A Peaceful Retreat in the Heart of the Ecopark
We’ve recently transformed the old NGO offices into a cozy and welcoming Community Centre, now lovingly managed by Salini.
The unique round brick tower architecture offers a stunning view of the trees in our ecopark, while multiple balconies and terraces invite you to relax, observe the rich birdlife, and enjoy the peaceful presence of wild peacocks that roam the area.
🛌 Accommodation Options
We offer three types of comfortable, mosquito-proof rooms, all equipped with fans and cupboards:
- Shared Dormitory (1–4 people) with a shared bathroom
- Private Double Room (1–2 people) with a private bathroom
- Group Room (1–4 people) with AC and shared bathroom, balcony
🌟 Shared Spaces & Amenities
Guests have access to a variety of common areas designed for comfort, creativity, and connection:
- Ecopark, Terraces & balconies for relaxing or birdwatching
- A shared kitchen and dining space
- Cozy spots to read, write, draw, play music, meditate, or stargaze
🍛 Meals
We offer homemade, traditional vegetarian breakfast and lunch (Monday to Saturday) at local prices, available on request.
Dinner and Sunday meals are self-managed and your responsibility.
📜 Campus Guidelines - to maintain a respectful and peaceful environment for all, please note the following rules:
🚫 Alcohol and drugs are strictly forbidden
👚 Modest and respectful dress code is required inside and outside the campus
(cover shoulders, cleavage, knees, and belly; wear loose-fitting, non-tight clothing)
🔇 Quiet hours: 10 PM – 7 AM
🧼 Keep shared spaces clean and tidy: wash your dishes and clean up after use
🍽️ No food inside the rooms – please eat in the kitchen or designated common areas
Come as you are, bring your curiosity, and enjoy a peaceful, community-based experience surrounded by nature and purpose🌿
What else ...
To reach our campus, we can arrange pick up by tuktuk or guide you by train or bus.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
We would be happy to provide you a peaceful and inspiring place to focus on your work.
Space for parking camper vans
This host can provide space for campervans.
Can possibly accept pets
This host has said they are willing to accept those travelling with a pet.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Feedback (10)
First of all Mano, the NGO boss introduced me very well to their mission, and coordinated with me to develop clear educational objectives with the village and slum schools (the project… read more
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(4.7)
Cultural exchange:
(4.9)
Communication:
(4.8)
First of all Mano, the NGO boss introduced me very well to their mission, and coordinated with me to develop clear educational objectives with the village and slum schools (the project… read more
The whole team was very welcoming, open-hearted and made us part of the family as soon as we arrived.
During our stay we enjoyed a lot of freedom and trust in how we organized ourselves and the projects we developed. We were happy to receive help from the whole team whenever needed.… read more
Then they organized a treasure hunt for the children to learn about environment and global warming through games in the… read more
He stayed with us for 2 months, but it felt like 6 months because of his… read more
I arrived beginning of September 2019 and stayed two months there. As I requested, I was working on the microcredit activities : the target was to create a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan about the program. Aurélie helped me giving advice and a lot… read more
Working with Aurelié and the Eco-Park team was… read more
He worked in the plastic recycling project and completed the first workshop for the children, as well as all the graphic… read more
First she was in charge of the photography for a children summer camp we organize each year. She made a small film soon after the completion of the camp. Interested in short documentaries making, she… read more
