Help us with rainforest regeneration, gardening and small building projects in Upper Coopers Creek, Australia

Details

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  Description

  John, Sandra, Xavier and Xero (the dog) live on 5 acres in the Byron Bay Hinterland. We also have an adult daughter who lives closer to Byron Bay. We are fortunate to have a deep swimming hole and a beautiful strip of rainforest along a permanent creek that is home to platypus and turtles. Our valley was once farmed, but now many of our neighbours are, like us, engaged in the regeneration of the rainforest—which mostly means battling invasive weeds. We've learnt so much about the plants and wildlife of this region since we bought here six years ago, and are learning more each day. By profession we are architects and have a design studio catering for diverse clients. We designed our house and finished it two years ago, winning architecture awards for interior design and sustainability. Much of it, including a separate cabin, we built ourselves. The shift to a more physical life after desk-bound careers in academia has been amazing.
  Since joining Workaway in early 2023, we have been able to complete lots of projects, including building a bathroom for the cabin, making raised beds and planting our first vegetable garden, and setting up a separate apartment for guests and Workawayers with its own kitchen, bathroom and entrance. We still have lots of interesting projects to do alongside taking care of the forest. In 2024 we plan to demolish an old banana shed, erect a new carport, build a chicken coop and expand the orchard—currently we have more lemons, passionfruit, and bananas than we can eat, but it's hard to live on dessert alone. There is always work to do in the garden.
  For pleasure, Xavier plays piano and composes, Sandra makes art, and we all love a camp fire in winter. Like most country folk, we tend to get up early (Xavier catches the school bus just after 7am) and go to bed early.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  Our valley is bordered by national parks and its very beautiful. It is a 5 minute drive to the tourist destination of Minyon Falls and there are many other waterfalls and walks near by. You will learn about rainforest ecology firsthand and experience Australian animals and birds in the wild. You may also see pythons and frogs and glowworms, and will definitely see spiders. You will participate in the ongoing process of caring for the land, including replanting the river banks after the floods of 2022. You will meet other people who are engaged in forest regeneration.

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  Help

  We are looking for energetic people who can work with us in the garden and forest, and on small DIY build projects. We use a range of simple power tools such as drills and saws, a brush cutter and ride-on mower. It would be an advantage if you had experience in basic tool use, but we are also willing to teach you. (Most of our skills have been gained from YouTube, trial and error, and patient collaborators). There are also lots of unskilled jobs that benefit from a bit of stamina and strength, but mostly just require fearlessness in the face of leeches and mud. If you like the great outdoors, then you're a good match.

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  Languages spoken

  English: Fluent
  Japanese: Beginner

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  Accommodation

  You will have a double bedroom looking out onto the forest, and your own bathroom in an architect-designed house. The guest area is separated from ours by a courtyard and has its own entrance. It is visually private, but not acoustically private. You'll hear Xavier playing the piano and, often, the dog singing along. Likewise, we'll hear you if you break out a tune. You will have a small kitchen if you wish to use it, but most people eat with us and hang out in our living room. As we are a long way from restaurants we are used to cooking most evenings, we will cook for you--unless you wish to cook. We can cater for allergies and don't eat red meat ourselves. We have reliable internet.

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  What else ...

  We think the best place to swim in the world is in our waterhole, but should you wish to swim in the sea the closest beach is at Brunswick Heads, 35 minutes away. Having your own transport will make access to so many of Byron Bay's sights easier, since there is no public transport. Some people hitch, but we don't recommend it. Our situation is best for people with a car, but we can pick you up and drop you off after your stay in either Lismore, Mullumbimby or Byron.

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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 space to work in your room, which has a loft. We are connected to Starlink which is mostly fast and reliable and with unlimited data.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

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  Hours expected

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

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