Welcome to the eco-hamlet ! 1

Name: Welcome to the eco-hamlet ! 1
Start: 2020-06-17
End: 2020-07-02
Location: Fontanges, France

France Renovation Environment Renovation Environment Fixed dates

About the project

📝 Detailed information

🏢 About the local organisation

The association La Feina is a charming lively space and drop-in centre for youth facing social difficulties. It is a place that allows people who pass by to reconnect with nature by getting rid of the unnecessary. They disconnect one moment from society and better reconnect with nature and others. The assoication La Feina is managed by a group of people who have chosen to experience, on a daily basis, an eco-friendly way of life. The association and its eco-hamlet come to life by organising educational workshops: crafts, agriculture, environmental education. The association also welcomes groups and events on the land. Their activities are integrated respecting the local dynamics. The eco-hamlet is located in a beautiful rural mountainous areas. The activities proposed are organised taking into consideration the surrounding environment and available resources. Last year (2019), two workcamps were organised in La Feina. Volunteers helped organise an official opening celebration and started to renovate the hamlet's barn : the "GRAOUNGE". More info: www.lafeina.lautre.net

💼 What the programme involves

The workcamp's goal is to help the association to develop. You will help restore the local heritage, continue the work begun by the group of volunteers last year: You will help restore a typical barn in the area (inside and outside masonry work), which is designed to host cultural events to support the hamlet and the entire territory. Your missions will be to remove the old joints and apply new mortar to make the barn waterproof and show its original appearance! Beyond this masonry work, you will be immersed in the hamlet's life. You will help maintain the site, the vegetable garden, help with the picking and harvesting. Get ready to discover a new eco-friendly life-style and bring back home tons of new good practices!

🏠 Accommodation on site

You will be accomodated in tents (2 people per tent), in the eco-camping of the association. The tents will be provided. You will have to bring their camping equipment (ground sheet, sleeping bag, etc.). The campsite includes sanitary facilities (showers with solar-heated water, dry toilets) and a summer kitchen with a breathtaking view over the valley. You will use and do your own environmental-friendly hygiene and care products (soaps, toothpaste, laundry, etc.). You, volunteer, are actor/actress of your project ! You will manage the tasks of daily life in teams (shopping, cooking, and cleaning). You will also have the opportunity to bake your special meals in the association’s bread oven! A new experience to discover! A rotation will be organised by the campleaders to ensure the smooth running of daily life. The objective is to gain autonomy and that everyone acts individually to allow a good collective functioning! All together, you will think about how to work together, feed everyone, have fun, get around, visit the region in the most environnementaly and human-friendly way.

📍 About the location

The association is a charming drop-in center, located in a hamlet where the management group and some neighbours live together and host from time to time, holiday-makers, friends and hikers. The hamlet is composed of a cottage, several workshops, some typical stone and wooden houses, a hut, a barn, some camping sites, a vegetable garden, an orchard... The eco-hamlet is located in the medieval town of Fontanges, very rich in heritage, in a valley near the Cantal Mountains, crossed by the river Aspre. There are many walks and hikes to do. You will be able to visit the surrounding villages, discover waterfalls and observe the local fauna and flora. Close by, you will be able to visit the typical village of Salers where you can meet craftsmen and taste delicious local specialties.

ℹ️ Additional information

The hamlet is located in a beautiful, rather isolated, rural valley (15 minutes by car from the nearest village, 30 minutes by car from the nearest town). The association does not have WiFi by choice, and the mobile network is weak. But don’t worry, enjoy reconnecting with yourself, the people around you and the environment! Volunteers can access a wired internet connection and network sharing. Unfortunately, the site is not accessible by wheelchair. As you understood, sustainable development is in the heart of the project. For reasons of consistency, we encourage you to choose environmentally friendly ways to travel, and avoid planes if possible.

Interested in this project? Create your account and apply online.