↠ daily schedule ↞

6.00am

Morning meditation practice

6.45am

Breakfast

7.30am to 11.30am

Karma Yoga / Devotional service

11.30 to 12.00pm

River Swim / Free time

12.00pm to 12.30pm

Lunch

12.30pm to 2.30pm

Siesta

3.00pm to 4.00pm

Spending time in nature

4:00pm to 5.30pm

Afternoon tea and community connection

5:30pm to 6:30pm

Evening meditation

6:30PM to 7:30PM

Community connection and sharing

7:30pm on wards

Free time for study & contemplation before sleep

↠ we provide ↞

• Accommodation in our comfortable bungalows

• Delicious homecooked meals

• Daily guided meditation practice

• Time & space to renew your connection with nature

• Friends & companionship on the spiritual path

↠ practical skills ↞

It’s important to know what you can offer to the community as a short-term volunteer. We have a wide range of roles available for volunteers to serve in, so if you have experience in one or more of the below skillsets please let us know as part of your inquiry to us

• Organic gardening, permaculture or syntropic agroforestry

• Off-grid systems management (solar and micro-hydro power, water supply)

• Vehicle maintenance (electric/diesel)

• Carpentry, furniture-making and joinery

• Cooking and food preparation

• Housekeeping, tidying, and domestic management

• Childcare, homeschooling and early learning

• Repairs, mending, sewing or crafts

• Publicity, digital media and communications

• Videography and filmmaking

  ↞Let us know any other skills you can bring to our projects ↠

↠ living in community ↞

If you have not lived in a communal or intentional space before, then it may require some adaptation to assimilate with the life of the community. Living in a community requires a very different orientation to living in regular society.

The pattern of life is not individualistic, but shared; this requires a willingness to live beyond one’s comfort zone and contribute to activities that enhance the experience of community life.

Everybody comes to an ecovillage with their own unique attributes, perspectives, dreams and gifts. To honor and respect the needs of individuals whilst harmonizing in pursuit of a collective vision is the goal of community: it is a balance, a dance, a work in progress to which we are all aspiring in our day-to-day life.

For some, finding the balance between ‘me’ and ‘ours’ is intuitive and easy; others find it challenging to navigate the unfamiliar terrain beyond societal norms. A lot of these subtleties about the way humans share space can only be understood meaningfully through lived experience.

For newcomers to the journey of community life we highly recommend the CLIPS Guidebook, which offers a detailed primer on the adaptation required to thrive in intentional community.

You can also read more about community living and culture in our blog.

↞ living 0ff-grid ↠

Adapting to an off-grid way of life may require a major adjustment for some people. Our Nature Preserve is located a long distance from contemporary civilization and modern comforts.

Yet we are not out camping in the wildness, either. Our ecovillage is well-established with sustainable, environmentally friendly and ethically-sourced materials, systems and operations. We have all the necessities that people require to live a healthy, happy, comfortable and minimalistic life.

If you are adventurous, resilient and at home in natural simplicity, you are certain to enjoy your time as a volunteer in our ecovillage.

↠ food ↞

We eat an exclusively plant-based, wholefoods diet based on what grows here and in our local environs. Our approach to food is minimal, optimal and sustainable. We love what we have and we appreciate the abundance of what nature provides us daily. Staple foods are banana, papaya, jackfruit, taro, coconut, and greens. We also keep dry-goods such as beans and peanuts in storage.

↠ accommodation ↞

As a volunteer, you will sleep in shared accommodation (men's and women's dorms) in spacious, well-appointed cob bungalows with a view of the mountain and a located beside a river for swimming.

Houses are equipped with fresh springwater and solar-powered electricity. We have hot showers and a sauna on-site, as well as walking trails through the forest, access to a private waterfall, and abundant gardens full of tropical fruits.

↠ transportation ↞

Edenhope Nature Preserve is located in a very remote location in the West coast of Espiritu Santo. It is not an easy journey that can be made any day at any time; our travel across the island is contingent upon weather conditions at sea and other environmental factors such as landslides and fallen trees.

We put a lot of planning into transporting newcomers to our ecovillage. We have a fast boat that has made the travel to town for pickup a lot easier than it used to be; in order for us to facilitate your travel to Edenhope Nature Preserve, we ask that all visitors contribute to the cost of fuel for our boat to make the long trip to Luganville.

↠ we expect ↞

↠ Your willingness to participate in the daily meditation practices that hold our community together

↠ Your commitment to devotional service (karma yoga or seva) in support of the community projects.

↠ Your clear, honest and respectful communication

↠ That you uphold the vision of this space in your daily conduct

↠ That you limit internet usage to necessities only