Help us create a sustainable paradise in a little village in the remote forests of Northern Sweden

Details

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  Description

  Located in a small, rural village in the beautiful forests, we are working to establish a self-sufficient, eco-friendly, nature-based home and business. This is based around our farm where we live and thrive with Nature as our foundation, and then share this with others to take out into the world. Our farm is 5 Ha and consists of a couple of fields, small ski slope, a boat house on the lake, two barns, a vegetable garden, some chickens, a dog and plenty more potential that we need help realising.
  
  Alexander is a former London banker with deep experience of sustainability, renewable energy and the corporate world, who has now changed life direction to be a Wim Hof Instructor and to establish a self-sufficient existence for the family. Catherine is a nutritional therapist who is focused on helping people be their best selves using natural food, nutrition and lifestyle. She is also a gifted forager and cook, meaning that our meals are delicious, healthy and as local and natural as possible. Together we run nature-based and holistic health retreats combining all of our skills. We have two sons, 9 and 11, who are growing up in the natural and wild world around Borgvattnet.
  
  Cultural exchange:
  As if that isn’t enough, all our workawayers have the opportunity to participate in their very own Wim Hof Method day workshop, where we will teach you the breathwork and cold exposure techniques, and treat you to a spectacular wild ice bath experience.
  
  Specific projects:
  
  22nd June - 4 July. Need help farmsitting. Tending the garden, feeding chickens, watching our dog, etc.
  10 July - 01 August. Need help painting our house.
  18th – 24th August 2024. Foraging! We are looking for 4-6 people to help us replenish the stores for the long cold winter ahead. We will be picking berries, mushrooms and herbs and preserving them, so this is an excellent opportunity if you enjoy being outside and learning about wild and natural food. We will also be processing and storing these foods, so there is also the opportunity to learn more about how to do this in a self-sufficient model as well.
  
  We welcome individuals, couples, families and even friendly, well-behaved dogs.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Elderly Companionship

  Teaching

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Animal Care

  Farmstay help

  Babysitting and creative play

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance

  Help with Computers/ Internet
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  Staying with us and helping us realise our vision will leave a lasting legacy that will follow you back to wherever you come from. We are looking to give people experiences, skills, memories, friendships and connections that will help us all re-establish the global ecosystem of humans in Nature. It will help people realise how little they really need to live a purposeful, fulfilling and fun life and how technology should be an enabler and not the foundation. We come from urban backgrounds and only recently discovered living rurally, but instantly realised that it is the solution to many of the worlds problems... moving people out of synthetic and polluted cities back into natural and health boosting villages.
  
  Jamtland, the area of Northern Sweden we live in, is filled with history from Viking times, is fully a vast areas of Nature, is close enough to connections to get to the city or Stockholm if you want / need to and is filled with mostly nice people. Staying with us will also enable you to learn about what we know from our life experiences and we would love to learn from you. Please do not come to stay with us if you are not comfortable sharing your thoughts, opinions and views and are not willing to hear and explore others.

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  Help

  We are looking for people who are willing to help invest in a future that keeps on giving. Finding joy from traditional ways, skills and traditions are a must and, if you have these skills as well, a great bonus. We need help establishing and tending a no till permaculture garden, renovating and reinvigorating farm buildings, developing a concept that can perpetuate the sharing and learning of skills based at our 5ha farm, but with outreach across the village of Borgvattnet and beyond. We will also be building sustainable infrastructure to test a closed loop model of living which regenerates Nature and creates an abundance "Garden of Eden" environment where there is time to grow creatively, artistically, musically, consciously and beyond.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  German: Fluent
  English: Fluent
  French: Intermediate
  Swedish: Intermediate
  Spanish: Beginner

  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.
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  Accommodation

  We have a variety of accommodations options, but the base accommodation is your own bed in a lovely house with indoor plumbing and kitchen. It is very characterful, but there are also options to camp or to stay in quirky small cabins. We will look to share one meal a day together and then leave it to you to cook for yourself as you see fit. We have two young children and will still maintain our family unit in the morning at least. There will be opportunities to eat from the garden that you will help tend, source food from the local organic food network, local producers and of course if you so choose the "evil" supermarket, which we are trying to increasingly avoid.
  
  We can provide you with sheets for the beds and towels, but will leave the responsibility for keeping them washed to you.

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  What else ...

  The area has endless opportunities for fishing, swimming, hiking, camping, cycling, etc. There is the option to occassionally borrow a car subject to covering fuel costs and making a small contribution and there is much to see within a few hours drive. Depending on when you are here there are also local festivals in Ostersund and local area.

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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

  There is 4G reception in the village that is suitable for video conferencing and most general uses. If a fibre connection is required for specific purposes, we have a relationship with a co-working space that has this for a fee in Ostersund which is 75 min away and we travel to about once a week.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  There is a space suitable for anything up to a medium sized campervan.

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  Can possibly accept pets

  We have chickens and a male border collie. We would expect any owner to ensure that the animal is child friendly and is cleaned up after appropriately.

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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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