Description
2023 Spring Positions are now filled.

We are seeking community members to share a permaculture lifestyle with us at our off-grid demonstration site, Learning Center. We've been living here and developing our low-tech systems for 19 years. We host classes sometimes, we also have tours and school groups once in a while but mostly it's a place to live. After almost two decades of building some great things like solar water heaters, an earthen oven, a solar dehydrator, 3 kinds of greenhouses, solar ovens, etc, we want to share what we've got with like minded folks. We are seeking a couple (any gender combo) to enhance our community vibe. We (Andy and Amanda) are currently the only full time residents. We built the place and have a lot of experience and knowledge to share, and we are happy to do so, but we are also looking for camaraderie with like-minded folk who want to share in the joys of simple living. Our mature permaculture site (where we live off rain catchment as our sole source of water) comfortably holds four to six residents. We don't plant to build much more, but we do need community members to help maintain the place, tend the chickens, garden, compost, and help with meals and repairs and upgrades.

This is a great opportunity for those who like making food! Bake bread in the horno, make kale chips or granola in the solar dehydrator, forage a wide variety of herbs and greens. Make quiche with our fresh eggs in the solar oven!

Our center is well respected in our community and we are located in a queer friendly area full of artists and off-gridders, where fundraisers are often held for those in need. We are a couple miles from the village of Madrid, and a 40 minute drive to Santa Fe, an hour to Albuquerque.

Our reciprocity arrangements in the past have been:
Summer: work 20 hours per week, share lunch and dinner with us three times per week (food provided on collective work days). Live in a yurt or strawbale cottage, use an outdoor kitchen.
There may also be opportunities to stay through the winter.

We are hoping our new friends and community members will arrive sometime in April or May 2023, and stay for the summer. Winter residency can be discussed as well.

Look at our website, listen to our radio show, or see our videos and if this seems interesting to you, contact us! We will want to video chat with you a couple times so we are sure to find a good fit for everyone.

We also take shorter-term (month minimum) work-exchange positions during the summer months. Please contact us with questions! Housing is in either a yurt or tent camping.

Our sustainable center is an off-grid site which demonstrates sustainable systems including permaculture, land restoration, organic gardening, passive solar design, appropriate technologies, and wise water techniques. We build with natural and salvaged materials, cook with solar ovens, and rely on rain catchment. Rain is our only source of water for our entire site in this high desert climate, and we have accumulated years of experience learning how to make the most of this sacred gift.

Our project is a working demonstration site and educational center. We offer community events, classes, retreats, and residencies as well as volunteer opportunities. There is a lot to learn here, and we have a casual environment with clear expectations.

Contact us for an application! Thanks
Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre
Aide avec des éco-projets
Jardinage
Bricolage et projets de construction
S’occuper des animaux
Aide dans une ferme
Cuisine/repas pour la famille
Entretien général
Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre
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Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre
Get experience with hand crafted DIY sustainable water and solar systems and passive solar buildings made of earthen and salvaged materials. Learn about building by doing it. We will teach you how to cook with the sun. We have designed our sustainable systems to make it easy to live consciously with our resources. Our whole site is a living system in itself; plants growing, water flowing, people working, the sun heating everything we need it to. We find it a great privilege to live within this beautiful land with it's rich history of ancestral Puebloan use.

Usually people find renewal in how the essentials of life here feel so abundant. We find that it's easy to live on 3 to 5 gallons of rainwater a day. We smile with every solar cooked meal. There is a lot to gain from this lifestyle, and it requires certain attention from the residents. For example, you will need to remember to turn off lights and monitor the level of power in the photovoltaic system. This place asks of you to pay attention to what you pour down the drain. Salts, solids, and products with sodium are limited in order to keep the plants in the greywater system healthy. If you want to know what it means to live off-the-grid in a conscious way, this is a great opportunity.
Aide
We look for community-minded volunteers who can be both hard working and flexible. A sense of humor is always appreciated. Workawayers will be asked to take on responsibilities like watering garden plots, chicken care, composting, and will keep track of the timing of these tasks.

Workawayers will maintain the community kitchen and take turns with meal preparation for our small group. Community meal prep time is included in work hours. We will generally work together on building or other projects 3 or 4 mornings per week and self-directed Workawayers responsibilities will be on other days as well. While we provide bulk foods as well as produce as it is available from our small garden, we ask Workawayers to provide supplemental ingredients for their own meals and snacks.

Minimum stay is one month. Depending on the time of year, our work focus may be seedling production, or building projects.
Langues parlées
Anglais: Courant
Espagnol: Intermédiaire
Hébergement
We have a 16 foot yurt designated as a space for volunteers. We also have 4 person tents with their own campsite so folks can have their own sleeping space too. Some times a strawbale cottage or tipi may be available. Our solar powered community outdoor kitchen is equipped with solar ovens, a propane stove and fridge, and a system for re-using greywater.
Autres infos...
We ask for 20 hours of work per week which gives you time to explore our beautiful land, peruse our extensive library, hang out in the funky village of Madrid (in walking distance), or visit different parts of New Mexico. We have been teaching the essential aspects of sustainable living in this climate for 18 years and we incorporate learning opportunities into life here based on the interests of volunteers.

You will want to have your own vehicle.
Informations complémentaires
- Accès Internet
- Accès Internet limité
- Nous avons des animaux
- Nous sommes fumeurs
- Familles bienvenues
Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?
Deux
Nombre d'heures attendues
20 hours total, usually 3 or 4 mornings a week plus independant projects at other times