Charity project in beautiful Istria, Slovenia – sustainable rural development 🌿🏡
Location: Gračišče, Slovenia
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
We are a charity project in the beautiful Istrian coastal region, right at the border between Slovenia and Croatia. Our goals are to revitalize abandoned countryside areas and create a practical example of sustainable rural development.
Since 🔒[Verify to view address], we have hosted hundreds of volunteers from 29 countries and created an inspiring space of cooperation, creativity, and harmony among volunteers and locals.
We plan to finish the renovation of an old rectory next to the church in Hrvoji, several hundred years old and made of beautiful local stone. This will be a volunteers' home and our project's headquarters. So far, we have completed a full re-roofing, new floors and ceilings, electric wiring, inner walls, and much more inside and outside of the house. Just next to the house, we tend a hectare of organic permaculture garden with vegetables, asparagus, strawberries, and cherries. We regularly do voluntary actions to help the local community, typically picking olives, grapes, and cleaning overgrown terraces.
We have decided to dedicate most of our voluntary work to non-profit charity activities. This makes us different from most other hosts, but also means that we do not create profit to cover volunteers' costs. Therefore, we kindly ask you to contribute towards the costs of your food, natural cosmetics, and other expenses. The typical contribution that enables us to run this project is €10 per day, or €3 per meal. Part of your contribution will be used to cover all living costs for volunteers who really cannot afford to give any monetary contribution but have enthusiasm and skills that our project needs. If you are among them, please let us know in advance.
We eat three mostly organic vegetarian meals a day, and we have a communal fridge if you need to grab a snack between meals.
In our free time, after lunch and in the evenings, we share knowledge and talents, sing by the bonfire, play social games, walk on the slackline, go swimming, rock climbing, play volleyball, read, watch movies, and talk. You are welcome to share your talents, skills, and stories.
Our surroundings, Istria, are a fine region for hiking, biking, and climbing, both in the mountainous inland and along the coast. Istria is one of Europe's top locations for culinary experiences, and in a nearby village, there is an excellent and cheap local truffles restaurant.
We live in a scarcely populated area with lots of pristine nature. Nearby, there are numerous hidden waterfalls and pools where we like to swim. The Adriatic coast with its many beaches is about a 30-minute drive from us. The same distance away are the beautiful old church in Hrastovlje, the Istrian thermal resort, and the historical hilltop villages of Grožnjan and Motovun, populated by artist communities.
About an hour's drive from us are the old Venetian towns of Piran and Rovinj, the town of Pula with its Roman structures including the Arena and Forum, and the Škocjan and Postojna caves. The towns of Venice, Ljubljana, and the Julian Alps with Triglav National Park are 1.5 to 2 hours away.
🔒[Verify to view link]
Since 🔒[Verify to view address], we have hosted hundreds of volunteers from 29 countries and created an inspiring space of cooperation, creativity, and harmony among volunteers and locals.
We plan to finish the renovation of an old rectory next to the church in Hrvoji, several hundred years old and made of beautiful local stone. This will be a volunteers' home and our project's headquarters. So far, we have completed a full re-roofing, new floors and ceilings, electric wiring, inner walls, and much more inside and outside of the house. Just next to the house, we tend a hectare of organic permaculture garden with vegetables, asparagus, strawberries, and cherries. We regularly do voluntary actions to help the local community, typically picking olives, grapes, and cleaning overgrown terraces.
WORKING ARRANGEMENT
We work for about 5 hours a day. The work is varied and includes gardening, construction, renovation, and helping the local community. We are looking for people who are hands-on, flexible, and happy to contribute to different tasks. The minimum stay is 2 weeks.We have decided to dedicate most of our voluntary work to non-profit charity activities. This makes us different from most other hosts, but also means that we do not create profit to cover volunteers' costs. Therefore, we kindly ask you to contribute towards the costs of your food, natural cosmetics, and other expenses. The typical contribution that enables us to run this project is €10 per day, or €3 per meal. Part of your contribution will be used to cover all living costs for volunteers who really cannot afford to give any monetary contribution but have enthusiasm and skills that our project needs. If you are among them, please let us know in advance.
LIVING ARRANGEMENT
We have 8 beds for volunteers and a nice piece of our property reserved for tents. If you want more privacy, we suggest you bring a tent. If you don’t have one, we can arrange it for you, just let us know in advance.We eat three mostly organic vegetarian meals a day, and we have a communal fridge if you need to grab a snack between meals.
In our free time, after lunch and in the evenings, we share knowledge and talents, sing by the bonfire, play social games, walk on the slackline, go swimming, rock climbing, play volleyball, read, watch movies, and talk. You are welcome to share your talents, skills, and stories.
Our surroundings, Istria, are a fine region for hiking, biking, and climbing, both in the mountainous inland and along the coast. Istria is one of Europe's top locations for culinary experiences, and in a nearby village, there is an excellent and cheap local truffles restaurant.
We live in a scarcely populated area with lots of pristine nature. Nearby, there are numerous hidden waterfalls and pools where we like to swim. The Adriatic coast with its many beaches is about a 30-minute drive from us. The same distance away are the beautiful old church in Hrastovlje, the Istrian thermal resort, and the historical hilltop villages of Grožnjan and Motovun, populated by artist communities.
About an hour's drive from us are the old Venetian towns of Piran and Rovinj, the town of Pula with its Roman structures including the Arena and Forum, and the Škocjan and Postojna caves. The towns of Venice, Ljubljana, and the Julian Alps with Triglav National Park are 1.5 to 2 hours away.
WEBSITE
Get in Touch using our website below🔒[Verify to view link]
