Botanical Garden Alpinum Schatzalp (Davos GR)

CODE: CH-SCI 10.12

Description: The private botanical garden “Alpinum Schatzalp” is a part of the Art Nouveau mountain hotel Schatzalp in the heart of the Swiss mountains. Occupying about 5 ha at the height of 1864m above sea level, there are over 5000 different species and types of plants from all over the world that are cultivated here. Like all botanical gardens our goals are:

Conservation and collection of plant species from all over the world
Education of visitors
Local recreation
The botanical garden Alpinum Schatzalp is a part of the Berghotel Schatzalp.

Type of Work: During your stay you will get an insight into horticulture, especially into the field of alpine gardening. Volunteers will mostly be working in the field of nature conservation, espacially controling (weeding) invasive Neophytes. Apart from that, you build pathways, prepare compost, prepare soil for future plants, propagate plants, maintain the garden grounds and prepare flower-beds. Please be aware that the work is physically demanding, you will sometimes need to carry heavy things (& working at the height of 1864m above sea level is more tiring)!

Study Theme: The Alpinum is willing to offer a lot of knowledge, especially in the fields of plant conservation, Alpine horticulture, gardening and botanical sciences. Therefore, volunteers should be interested in the abovementioned topics and ideally have a good level of English.

Accommodation: The volunteers will be located in shared or single rooms depending on availability inside the hotel (this will only become clear on site); each volunteer will have a separate bed. Sheets and blankets will be provided. The shared toilets and showers are located on the floor. Please note that volunteers use the same corridors and stairs as staff and not as hotel guests. There is a washing machine which costs 3 CHF per load. There is also WiFi available. An adapter for the sockets is most of the times needed depending on the device. Volunteers are asked to bring their own adapter for the socket.

Language: The workcamp hosting partner speaks Swiss German, German and English. The local language is Swiss German. Camp language will be English.

Requirements: Good shoes and working clothes are necessary! Keep in mind that you will have to do physically demanding work in order to meet the high demands of a botanical garden.

INCOMING/ADDITIONAL FEE for volunteers applying via Partner organisations & Contacts of SCI: https://scich.org/en/incoming-fee/

Notes: Food will be provided through the hotel canteen. This camp is not possible for vegan people and can be difficult for vegetarian people as the canteen and food provided is mostly meat-heavy. The Alpinum is willing to offer a lot of knowledge, especially in the field of gardening and horticultural/botanical sciences. Therefore you should be interested in abovementioned topics and have a good English level. The overall concept of the Schatzalp is a slow mountain concept which means that the entire area is a place of recreation and contemplation. If you are in search of nightlife this workcamp should not be considered. The volunteers organise their free-time activities themselves: there is a huge amount of beautiful hiking places. The Alpinum usually organises two evening get-togethers.
Organization Description: SCI Switzerland is a non-profit organisation which promotes intercultural exchange, sustainable development and non-violent conflict resolution. It has been organising workcamps and long-term exchanges for volunteers worldwide since 1920. Each year more than 100 volunteers from Switzerland engage in SCI projects abroad, while around 200 international volunteers participate in projects in Switzerland. SCI Switzerland is certified by the Intermundo quality label, which guarantees high quality standards in youth exchange. Swiss workcamps are mainly focused on the work with youth as well as in the area of environmental protection. That is why among SCI Switzerland`s values is also an environmentally friendly lifestyle in accordance with the ideas of sustainable development. Volunteers are encouraged to be eco-friendly, especially when travelling to Switzerland and during the projects. Before applying be aware of high travel costs within Switzerland and check prices on the railway website www.sbb.ch. A participation in the camp from the first until the last day is needed for reason of instruction and group dynamic.