Live in an eco-village and learn all about natural building in the central coast of NSW, Australia

Detalles

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  Descripción

  Hello! My name is Benjamin - father of two, physiologist, forager and owner-builder.
  
  We are looking for people interested in natural building to help build our family home at an ecovillage, just an hour north of Sydney on the Central Coast of NSW.
  
  We are an owner builder project for a unique home primarily using predominantly recycled materials. We have walls made of recycled timber, cob, light-straw-earth and compressed earth bricks. In time there will be earthen floors, cob rocket benches, solar panels, rainwater harvesting and creative carpentry. All our toilets will be composting and we aim to be sustained by only the water which is captured from our roof. Our windows and doors are either recycled or made on site and we will use recycled materials where possible throughout the build. There are earth tubes and we will install a thermal chimney for passive ventilation. We have designed the home to be as healthy as possible with regards to material choices, EMF's and air quality. All of these aspects you will be able to learn about whilst spending time in our beautiful valley where the Ecovillage is situated.
  
  We've been hosting workawayers for many years now. I started this build a as complete amateur and we're keen to inspire you by our journey and what we'll share along the way. If we can build a house from nothing, so can you and so can anyone!
  
  The ecovillage itself is an intergenerational community being developed with environmental, social and economic sustainability in mind and there are often interesting things going on. It's a genuinely peaceful place and most of the site is bushland. We're also surrounded by the Strickland State Forest with some great walks, some tracks for mountain biking and plenty of exploring including an old arboretum with some very special trees. There is a freshwater creek going through interesting layered bush, caves for meditation or contemplation, rocks and boulders to climb, and views all the way to Brisbane Waters from the top.

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  Tipos de ayuda y oportunidades de aprendizaje

  Ayuda en proyectos ecológicos

  Construcción y bricolaje

  Mantenimiento general
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  Intereses

  

  Artes escénicas

  

  Cuidado de plantas

  

  Música

  

  Historia

  

  Bricolaje y manualidades

  

  Libros

  

  Arte y diseño

  

  Arquitectura

  

  Cocina y alimentación

  

  Jardinería

  

  Fotografía

  

  Escritura

  

  Dibujo y pintura

  

  Animales

  

  Carpintería

  

  Yoga / bienestar

  

  Deportes de equipo

  

  Naturaleza

  

  Fitness

  

  Navegar / barcos

  

  Acampada

  

  Deportes de invierno

  

  Montaña

  

  Baile

  

  Playa

  

  Actividades al aire libre

  

  Deportes acuáticos

  

  Senderismo

  

  Ciclismo

  

  Deportes de aventura
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  Objetivos de sostenibilidad de las NU que intenta conseguir este anfitrión

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  ¿Que es esto?
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  Intercambio cultural y oportunidades de aprendizaje

  The Ecovillage is a beautiful, peaceful place with lots to see and do. We're surrounded by forest yet close to 'civilisation'.
  
  Our members are eclectic and interesting and will be interested in you too. You might be interested about how the village has evolved, what plans we have for the future, and how we make consensus-based decisions. The Village always has things on which you might like to get involved with - you might be interested to see how Sociocracy operates or join in with some plant propogation, permaculture or bush regeneration, we have occasional movie nights, community dinners, talks (perhaps you have something you might like to share?), live music, community yoga, dancing, open days, all sorts of things... the people who tend to get the most 'connected' here are the ones who get involved with village activities but you are free to make what you want of your time here.
  
  You might be interested in how to build an eco house using a combination of natural and conventional building techniques... I can share with you what I've learnt as an owner builder with regards to building a sustainable and healthy home with budget in mind and within in the parameters of Council and Building Regulation beaurocracy; and as a physiologist we've made many design considerations with a mind for healthy living. Our architect and natural builder, Will is occasionally on site as well and is a treasure trove. With potentially you on board and extra hands on deck we can collectively get things done faster whilst keeping good company and learning from each other. I'm sure you've got a lot to share as well!
  
  I'm also a keen forager - if you're into wildplants, wild food and wild medicine - let us know and I can point some things out. The site is an old horticultural research station with some interesting plants and we manage the site with organic principles, so it's great for gathering plants.
  
  There are also some unique and interesting music venues nearby, beaches, bushwalks, ancient sites and places for wild swimming - let us be your personal tourist information guide!

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  Ayuda

  We're building a house and need all the help we can muster! There are big and little tasks, both heavy and light so can adapt depending on your desires and energy.
  
  The project focus changes depending on whose help arrives and how their physical and creative energy can be harnessed. We've had workawayers who come with their own talents and some who are finding their skills where we've learnt together. Your enthusiasm would be your biggest skill - together we can teach/learn what needs to be done.
  
  Previous workawayers have done creative carpentry, house framing, turning trees/branches into furniture, work with bamboo, lime and clay-sand rendering, cob-walls including bottle walls and sculptured walls, light-straw clay walls, unusual decking, wall building, creative landscaping, restoration of old doors and windows, tiling mosaics, and plenty of other small and large jobs which need doing. Sometimes we've held workshops where we've got a bunch of people in to batch out a big task - think 'party' but building... as we're building with recycled materials there's sometimes a bit of grunt work involved. It's a constantly evolving project.
  
  We also like to learn from you. Often I have ideas of how things could be done, but i'm open to other ways. As it is such a unique build I'm often inventing it as we're creating it! And we'll make mistakes as we go, which is all part of the learning. We love when people bring their own ideas, passions and music and feel confident to share what they're into.
  
  We're looking for someone who could exchange approximately 5hrs of help/day with two days off. The daily hours can be mixed up depending on the project and what else you'd like to get out of your stay here. Many people like to work longer days whilst i'm on site and shorter days on the other days - it's up to you. Hours and days are negotiable.
  
  Arrival days/times of workawayers are important to get right, so that I can share enough on the big building days that I am there which can sometimes include weekends. The days i'm on-site are the days we're looking for help the most - and these change from time to time but we can be clear about when these are for your particular stay. All things are negotiable and if in the moment you think it's been enough we're open to dialogue. Balance is key.

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  Idiomas

  Idiomas hablados
  Inglés: Fluido

  Este anfitrión ofrece intercambio de idiomas
  Este anfitrión ha indicado que está interesado en compartir su idioma o aprender otro.
  Ponte en contacto con él para obtener más información.
  
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  Alojamiento

  We can offer simple camping accommodation within the Ecovillage which is on the doorstep of the Forest. It has a bbq, a community built outdoor kitchen and an enclosed common area with kitchen, fridge, tables, etc. There are toilets, hot showers and constant bird chatter. We can take people in vans as well.
  
  Breakfasts, lunch and dinner are supplied (let me know what you like, there are cooking facilities). There is coffee, tea and sometimes foraged herbal teas for you as well.
  
  More recently we've been sharing the cooking duties with our workawayers and this can count as some of your hours for the time taken. We'll provide the ingredients of course and there's cooking facilities at the kitchen. This is totally dependant on you as otherwise we can cook the entire time, and we'll mix it up whether we drop it down to you to enjoy with other campers or have you at our home with our young family.
  
  Depending on who else is around you may find yourself by the campfire, listening to or playing music, drumming, chatting or chilling. There are often village social events on that you can tap into.
  
  Whatever your needs are, please let us know how we could help you be comfortable.

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  Algo más...

  The Ecovillage is surrounded by the Strickland State Forest which has plenty of scope for exploration, but there are plenty of places to go on the Central Coast. The closest beach is about 25 mins away driving, and the local train station is about 20 mins walk or a short bike ride. We're less than a 10 minute drive from Gosford. On the Central Coast there are loads of very interesting places, sites, beaches, walks and local venues to explore. Let us know what you are interested in and we can point you in the right direction.
  
  As an introduction we'd like to hear what your experiences are and what you hope to gain from this exchange. Please also include the dates which you might come for and how long you might stay. Please also mention the word 'rabbits' in your introduction e-mail so I know that you've read this profile.
  
  Sorry, but we cannot accommodate dogs or other pets.

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  Un poco más de información

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    Acceso a Internet

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    Acceso a Internet limitado

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    Tenemos animales

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    Somos fumadores

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    Puede alojar familias

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  Puede acoger a nómadas digitales

  Este anfitrión ha indicado que le encanta acoger a nómadas digitales.

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  Espacio para aparcar autocaravanas

  Este anfitrión puede proporcionar un sitio para autocaravanas.

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  ¿Cuántos voluntarios puedes hospedar?

  Más de dos

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