ESC Permaculture in Practice - Learn and Act!

CODE: SDA 26-ESC-A6

Work:

The work focuses on intensive hands-on permaculture and landscape restoration. Volunteers will dig tree pits, remove self-sown trees, mulch soil, shred branches, make compost, mow grass with a scythe, prepare natural fertilisers, clean the stream bed, support water retention, plant honey plants, paint beehives, expand the apiary, and help with small village tasks and waste collection. Volunteers will also learn how to process garden produce by preserving, drying, and storing fruit, herbs, and seeds. Work takes place mostly outdoors in all weather conditions and is physically demanding. Volunteers must be prepared for manual labour; tools and work gloves are provided.

Most of the work takes place on the grounds near the house, around the village, or in the orchard, all of which are within walking distance. If necessary, you can take a car or bus, and we also have several bicycles available for rent.

Accomodation and food

Volunteers will stay in two shared rooms and sleep on their own sleeping mat and in their own sleeping bag. The accommodation includes a washing machine, refrigerator, kitchenette, and Wi-Fi. There are two toilets and two showers. Volunteers prepare their own breakfast, lunch, and dinner using purchased ingredients and produce from the garden. The diet is mainly vegetarian. A fully equipped kitchen is available, with opportunities for outdoor cooking, including a campfire.

Location and leisure

Újezdec is a small and quiet village in the Kolín district, surrounded by agricultural land and crossed by the Moštický stream. The village has very basic infrastructure and falls under the administration of Horní Kruty, where basic services such as a grocery shop, post office, football field, and playground are available. The workcamp is based in a renovated farmstead from 1936, adapted for energy self-sufficiency. Next to the house, a permaculture garden, ponds, and a developing forest create a growing island of biodiversity. Mobile phone reception is available.

Leisure time includes a mix of active and relaxed activities. On site, volunteers can play football, pétanque, volleyball, badminton, table tennis, jog, or take part in outdoor exercise such as yoga or using an outdoor gym. Evenings can be spent watching films, sitting by the fire, singing, and enjoying informal group time. In the nearby area, reachable by bus, volunteers can swim, rent canoes or rafts, borrow bicycles, or go hiking. Depending on interest, half-day or full-day trips can be organised to Prague, Kutná Hora, Sázava, or Kouřim.

Project hosted by

This project organised in cooperation with the Association for Development 3K focuses on education, language learning, international understanding, and permaculture-based land management. For over ten years, the organisation has run a French-language summer camp and has been organising an international permaculture workcamp for the fourth year. The main goal of the project Living Permaculture – Changed by Nature is to continue building a permaculture orchard and food forest biocorridor to strengthen biodiversity, ecological resilience, and sustainable food production. Volunteers gain hands-on experience in permaculture while contributing to a long-term community project. The project supports SDG 15 (Life on Land) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).

Directions to meeting point

The journey will last approximately 3h30 and will need from 3 to 4 changes.
We will provide more details in the specific infosheet.

Additional comments

Study part: The educational programme includes lectures and discussions on permaculture principles, edible forests, composting, biodiversity support, and water retention in the landscape. Volunteers explore relationships between people and nature and discuss practical ways to reduce the impacts of climate change in everyday life. The programme also includes practical learning on food sustainability, such as cooking with basic, locally available ingredients suitable for winter storage.

It included a 1-day interactive workshop on participatory cross-media storytelling for sustainability. Learn accessible filming, editing, and storytelling skills to create meaningful digital stories