Get involved in natural building, organic farming and establishing a food forest in Malsain village, India

Infos

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  Description

  Malsain village is a small and quiet locality of three to four houses in the Himalayas about an hour away from Pauri.
  
  It is in a beautiful location on the side of the mountain, with the forest above and spectacular views of the valley below and the mountain ranges beyond. For many years, the land was left fallow and the old buildings left unused; part of the general trend of migration from these villages. However, there is so much about this traditional lifestyle and building designs that should be preserved and valued.
  
  I came to Malsain with the goal of living a simple and sustainable life close to nature. To create a place where others can come and experience this life – to appreciate the beauty of the surroundings and to be part of exploring new and traditional ways of working with the resources that we have around us – to meet our needs and to live within our means.
  
  At this stage, the focus is on earthen and ecological building projects; establishing low impact organic farming; and creating a food forest system.
  
  I have travelled and volunteered throughout India, gaining exposure to different earthen building projects, as well as permaculture, natural farming, biodynamics, vedic philosophy, Elaine Ingham’s Soil Food Web School etc. That is, many areas that explore sustainable and holistic ways of living. With this background I started experimenting with different projects and designs, with local materials and products, in both the areas of building and food production. I am particularly concerned with exploring different techniques that are affordable and have low embodied energy.
  
  Part of our aim here is to demonstrate what is possible to achieve – to create unique and comfortable spaces and a healthy lifestyle with resourcefulness and creative design.
  
  For example, the recently completed volunteer accommodation is a mix of adobe, cob and stonework, as well as an experimental form of wattle and daub using the locally abundant pine needles as a base.
  
  Part of our philosophy is to support the local economy – to retain skills and craftsmanship within the local community (such as stone-masonry and traditional organic farming practices and produce); buy local products; to support local farmers and women’s self-help groups to package, promote and get their produce to market; and to support local employment.
  
  We are gradually building a network of like-minded people to achieve these goals, and would welcome others to come and join us, to participate and bring their ideas, enthusiasm and labour to support our efforts.

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Projets artistiques

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Jardinage

  Bricolage et construction

  Aide dans une ferme

  Cuisine/repas pour la famille

  Aide à la maison

  Entretien général

  Aide informatique/internet
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  Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre

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  Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  Travellers can learn about earthen building and stonework; ecological design and passive and low energy use infrastructure; and traditional and alternative organic farming practices. They will get an immersive experience of the local food and culture of this region.

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  Aide

  The major projects for the near future include the establishment of a food forest; earthen building and stonework – particularly making adobe bricks for the next building project; carpentry/furniture making for the volunteer accommodation; building seating and an earthen oven for an outdoor kitchen; building a compost toilet; tree planting and care; gardening and weeding; and building and maintaining fencing to protect crops from marauding wild and domestic animals.
  
  Volunteers with skills in digital and social media, video production, design, marketing, artwork, building, carpentry etc would be very welcome.
  
  Volunteers will also be expected to help with cooking and cleaning and general maintenance of the facilities.

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  Langues

  Langues parlées
  Anglais: Courant
  Hindi: Courant

  Cet hôte propose un échange linguistique
  Cet hôte a indiqué qu’il souhaitait faire partager sa propre langue ou en apprendre une nouvelle.
  Contactez-le pour en savoir plus.
  
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  Hébergement

  We have recently completed a dedicated room for volunteers to stay, which demonstrates different forms of earthen building and stonework. This could accommodate 1-3 volunteers and there is also the option of staying in tents.
  Volunteers will share kitchen and bathroom facilities with the hosts (Western and Indian style toilets and basic washing facilities. Hot water is only available if heated on the fire at this point in time).
  At this stage, we do not have the financial means to provide free food for participants. The accommodation is in exchange for 4 work hours a day and a minimum stay of one week.
  Volunteers can choose any of the following options for food
  
  1. Source their own food from the village, which is a 20-minute walk from the farm.
  
  2. They can choose to participate in daily meals (vegan/vegetarian food including rice, dal, roti, vegetable etc]. The preparation of food is shared and participants are asked to contribute $5 USD - $10 USD on a sliding scale toward daily meals.

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  Autres infos...

  There are lot of small one day hikes all around the area, as well as some longer overnight hikes and some very beautiful villages to explore.
  
  I can also organise longer, guided treks in the region for those who are interested and have the right equipment for these activities.
  
  Srinagar and Pauri are the nearest big towns. Khirsu is the closest well know tourist destination from the village. From Khirsu a shared taxi can be taken to reach the destination in 30 minutes.
  
  Volunteers are expected to respect the local culture.
  
  Any kind of intoxicants are strictly prohibited.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Espace pour garer des vans

  Cet hôte a de la place pour les vans.

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

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  Nombre d'heures attendues

  Maximum 3 hours a day, 5 days a week (food not provided)

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