Help a non-profit project with natural buildings in Peloponnese, Greece

Details

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  Description

  We are is a non-profit organization and an educational eco-community located on a 7.6-acre property in North East Peloponnese, just 130 km from Athens.
  It started its journey as a local eco-center focused on therapeutic work with kids and their families. Still, it survived and started to bloom when it entered the world of Erasmus+, becoming more international. Therefore, it aims to be open to the world and bring and inspire more people internationally, and through them, educate locals from rural areas on the values of the EU.
  
  Our Vision: A society with a greater community spirit and co-responsibility to social and environmental challenges and their interchange.
  
  Our Mission: To create a space where people from different backgrounds and ages could live together, learn and create together with joy and mutual respect in harmony with the natural environment.
  
  Our Values are Sustainability, Ecology, Passion, Diversity & Multiplicity at all levels, socially and environmentally.
  
  Ecology and Sustainable growth encompass the whole philosophy. We are running a space that can nourish people who are nourishing themselves through nourishing the space that is nourishing them. A key element is a dedication to learning the importance of a social cause and encouraging experience while evolving as individuals and a community. Thus, creating a spiral of positiveness and mutual enrichment, serving as catalysts for improving our broader society.
  Also, we believe in promoting and maintaining the ecosystem’s diversity at the environmental and social levels. Thus, our actions ensure that different needs, experiences, and identities can find space and place in our community.
  
  Our objectives are:
  ● Preserve and promote permaculture and environmentally friendly local cultural practices for land use.
  ● To create an inclusive lifelong learning environment based on Sustainability, Diversity & Multiplicity for mutual knowledge.
  ● To foster harmonious relationships, well-being, balance, and harmony of body and soul.
  ● To support the local community and create meaningful bridges with the European and international levels.
  
  Activities are based on four pillars: Personal Development, Community Development, Cultural Heritage, and the Environment.
  
  We propose a holistic approach that brings together our pillars while developing our activities. We use non-formal education methodologies and tools such as art therapy, outdoor and environment methodology, family consulting, and practices for well-being and personal development (community development, embodiment, meditation, disconnection from technologies, etc).
  We strongly believe in the interconnections between well-being and personal and community development with the environment around us, made by both the nature surrounding us and the cultural environment in which we are all embedded.
  By connecting with the surrounding local community we aim to create the necessary conditions for the re-discovery of traditional ways of living in deep connection with the natural environment, rooted in traditional practices at the local level. Thus, bridging greek traditional and cultural values and foreign groups of young people.
  It has been built through 10 natural building workshops (straw bale houses, layout work, etc.), and it is a paradigm of a sustainable community in practice. Also, we introduced permaculture practices in our land management to improve the sustainability of our living and enrich the learning opportunities for the people involved in our activities.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Animal Care

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  What's this?
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  The groups/projects that the place is hosting are usually young people (18-30 years old) but can also be people 18+ with no upper age limit. During the project season (April to October) we are hosting Erasmus+ projects (youth exchanges, training courses and ESC volunteering groups). The topics of these projects vary: community building, arts, employability, environment, sustainability, personal development, zero waste, LGBTQIA+.
  
  The participants of the projects are coming from all over Europe and are usually amazing company to hang out with. The intercultural exchange is terrific! Your hosts are people with tens of years of international experience and can support you on this field.
  
  The experience of your stay can give you hands-on skills on:
  - Learning from an experienced cook,
  - Cooking for a large group,
  - DIY projects.
  - land and animal care knowledge,
  - natural building construction.
  
  Soft skills you will develop:
  - Broaden your horizon,
  - Develop your intercultural skills,
  - Learn how an educational eco-center works,
  - Intercultural skills,
  - logistic/organisation skills,
  - communication skills,
  - community living.

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  Projects involving children

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

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  Help

  In general we have people around and we are happy if more people decide to come and join us for a while. We are offering space to explorea way of living in a community and nature where we can learn from each other.
  
  We believe that every person can offer different kind of skillset and contribute to our place in their own way. We are welcoming help connected with cooking, hosting, gardening, wood working, natural building constructions, land and animal care, still the range of the possibilities of how to contribute is wide.
  
  From November to March we are in so called "hybernation period" when our main focus is maintainance and development of the place.
  
  From April to October we are in the project season when we are hosting Erasmus+ and ESC volunteering team projects so the focus is more on the help with hosting the groups and still improving the place.

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  Languages spoken

  Greek: Fluent
  English: Fluent
  Italian: Fluent
  Latvian (Lettish): Fluent
  Turkish: Fluent

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  Accommodation

  From November to March, because of the cold temperature we can only host you if you can come with your own accomodation such as a van/car/etc. For that we can provide parking spot and access to the common toilets and showers.
  
  From March to October we can provide you a space for a tent which, if needed can be provided as well.
  
  It's important to know that we work with solar water heating, therefore during rainy days we cannot guarantee hot water.

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  What else ...

  During your time off, our place offers many spots to relax and have some nice time socialising with the participants of the projects we are hosting. There are always people around ready to exchange ideas and talks.
  
  If you are up for a swim or some climbing, Nafplio is easily reachable by car. There are numerous great opportunities around as well, such as archeological sites (Argos, Mykenes, Nemeia, etc.) or if you miss the big city vibes, Athens is only 100 km away.

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  Since our electricity is depending on solar panels, in rainy days it might happen that our electricity cappacity and internet access could be low.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  There is lots of space for your campervan, car or tent.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  Hours expected

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

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