A volunteer participates here for a short period of time: for a minimum of 14 days to a maximum of one year.
Period of your stay
Volunteers are welcomed here at ECOlonie from the beginning of February until the end of December.
Working schedule
You are expected to work five days a week, 8 hours a day. One day per wek you have a full day off as well as one morning and one afternoon in the course of the week.
What do we offer you?
We offer room and board. This means that meals and refreshments are provided and that you will be staying in your own tent (in summer time), caravan or room. During the telephone/email conversation before your arrival we will agree together upon your accommodation.
Insurance
ECOlonie cannot be held responsible for any illnesses or injuries occurred during your stay here. We expect you to have, or to take out, your own medical and accident insurance. A travel insurance may serve the purpose.
Work
What kind of work do we offer? One may work in the vegetable or in the herbal gardens, at the goat farm, in the guest house or kitchen, do renovation or construction work, at the sites, on the land, at the administration or reception, do cleaning or laundry jobs, work in the shop, and so on. The jobs may depend on one hand on your interests and skills and the duration of your stay and, on the other hand, on priorities, available manpower and time of year. Ultimately, after talking these things over with you, we decide what choice will be made for you.
Smoking
Smoking is prohibited on all our sites for residents, participants, and from January 2020 also for guests.
PLEASE NOTE: we expect all participants not to smoke at all. Even off our sites. The motivation for this you can find in our Letter of Introduction (PDF). This letter contains, amongst other things, a lot of practical information about your stay at ECOlonie. You will receive a printed copy upon arrival at ECOlonie, but we expect you to read it now beforehand.
How many volunteers arrive each year?
During the last five years we averaged around 180-200 visiting volunteers, of all ages and nationalities, per year. In summertime there are about 20-50 volunteers at any given time. In the remaining times it varies approximately from 12 to 20. But one never can tell! It is exciting every time someone applies for a stay at Ecolonie and what fantastic meetings take place!
Experience taught us that from every age group (18 - 25 years old, 25 - 35 years, 35 - 45 years, 45 - 55 years and over) there are usually some participants present. Besides from the Netherlands (80%), volunteers hail from Belgium (5%), France, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Spain, Rumania, Greece, the UK, Japan, Denmark, Ireland, the USA, Italy, Poland and Switzerland. Dutch is the main language spoken at ECOlonie but French, German and English are also spoken.
Background information and registration
If you are seriously thinking about coming to help us here, then please read also:
- the FAQ and
- the Letter of Introduction (PDF).
After reading that, you can apply by completing the application form.
Residents
A resident lives and works at ECOlonie permanently and has committed himself/herself to ECOlonie and its visions. These visions are described in the statutes and domestic regulations.
A resident is a member of the association and has obtained the right to vote in meetings and the right to live here permanently. Before someone becomes a resident he or she has to have spent a year at ECOlonie as a candidate resident.
Before somebody is eligible to become a candidate he or she has to have worked here for a certain period as a volunteer. The duration of this period depends on several circumstances and is determined by the person concerned and the chair board of the association.