Short-term (2 to 4 weeks) "environmental" projects in Switzerland

The house Fontana Passugg on the ground „Riedliswiese“ in Passugg-Araschgen is a hotel for ordinary tourists and at the same time a centre for cultural and educative belongings and a meeting place for people with impaired hearing. The house was built at the end of the 19th century. For several years the place was a well-known health resort. In 1983 the last inheritor, decided that the house should be used for deaf people and people with impaired hearing.

The aim of this Workcamp is to clean the surrounding after the long snowy winter. Volunteers will prepare the house and the surrounding for the main season and will help out in the hotel (kitchen, rooms). The main tasks of the volunteers are: garden- and forest work, house and kitchen work. During the workcamp there will be a sightseeing trip to Chur with a translator in sign language.

The volunteers will sleep in dormitories in the house Fontana or the guest house „Alpenblick“. The rooms are cosy. A cook from the pension will prepare the meals for the Volunteers. Everyone has to help to set the table, cleaning and doing the dishes. There is a common-room to meet each other, a library and internet access.

Passugg-Araschgen is a small village about ten minutes by bus from Chur. The place is surrounded by grasslands, forests and mountains and is situated very idyllic. The close by town Chur is a typical, small Swiss town and the oldest town in Switzerland.

The workcamp in Passugg-Araschgen is an „Access 4 All“-project and is therefore open for people with any kind of handicap or without handicap and with no age restriction (18+). We expect a certain kind of independence. The area is not suitable for people in wheel chairs.
It’s helpful to be interested in people with impaired hearing, because the group will be in contact with deaf people. We want to make steps towards the integration of people with any kind of handicaps into the society and to strengthen the social competences.
Volunteers will mostly work outside that’s why they should bring along warm water proofed clothes and good shoes to work.

The closest airports are Zurich or Basel.

English / German / sign language

For nature lovers, who are interested in garden and agriculture work! - In the beautiful region of Davos (Schatzalp) there is the „Alpinum“, a huge botanical garden in the mountains. An association was founded to support this garden and to save some rare species and the nature over there for the next generations. In this botanical garden guests can find many rare plants and about 5000 different types of species and cultivars.
The group of Volunteers consists of four people. Interested candidates should be autonomous and self-managing. Leisure activities have to be organized independently.

Every year, there is a lot of work to be done in the botanical garden. The Volunteers will sup-port the gardener in his daily work. Interested Volunteers should be physically strong and interested in agricultural and garden work. Work is seven hours a day; two days per week are off. - Volunteers will receive a small pocket money, food and lodging.

Volunteers will sleep in the hotel in small staff-rooms. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be provided from the personal canteen. In the hotel there are staying the ordinary holiday guests, the Volunteers will stay in the personal flat and spend the time together and with the employees of the hotel.

Set in an exceptionally beautiful bowl of mountains Davos is the highest town in Europe at 1560 meters. In Davos there is the world class ice hockey, cross country skiing and ice skating. In the traditional hotel Schatzalp you enjoy a glorious panoramic view across the valley. The Volunteers will have the chance to see an incredible beautiful part of Switzerland.

The motivation of the volunteers has to be very high to work outdoors and it can be physically demanding. Applicants should be very interested in gardening work and agriculture. That’s why a MOTIVATION LETTER is required. Volunteers should bring along warm, robust working clothes (water proofed), trekking shoes (suitable for the mountains). Punctuality is very important for this work. Smoking during the work is not allowed. The positions are also open for unemployed youngsters who face some social problems.

Closest Airports are Zurich, Basel and Geneva, there is a connection to the train station Davos Platz. From there volunteers can take a cable car.

Good English/ Basic German

For nature lovers, who are interested in garden and agriculture work! - In the beautiful region of Davos (Schatzalp) there is the „Alpinum“, a huge botanical garden in the mountains. An association was founded to support this garden and to save some rare species and the nature over there for the next generations. In this botanical garden guests can find many rare plants and about 5000 different types of species and cultivars.
The group of Volunteers consists of four people. Interested candidates should be autonomous and self-managing. Leisure activities have to be organized independently.

Every year, there is a lot of work to be done in the botanical garden. The Volunteers will sup-port the gardener in his daily work. Interested Volunteers should be physically strong and interested in agricultural and garden work. Work is seven hours a day; two days per week are off. - Volunteers will receive a small pocket money, food and lodging.

Volunteers will sleep in the hotel in small staff-rooms. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be provided from the personal canteen. In the hotel there are staying the ordinary holiday guests, the Volunteers will stay in the personal flat and spend the time together and with the employees of the hotel.

Set in an exceptionally beautiful bowl of mountains Davos is the highest town in Europe at 1560 meters. In Davos there is the world class ice hockey, cross country skiing and ice skating. In the traditional hotel Schatzalp you enjoy a glorious panoramic view across the valley. The Volunteers will have the chance to see an incredible beautiful part of Switzerland.

The motivation of the volunteers has to be very high to work outdoors and it can be physically demanding. Applicants should be very interested in gardening work and agriculture. That’s why a MOTIVATION LETTER is required. Volunteers should bring along warm, robust working clothes (water proofed), trekking shoes (suitable for the mountains). Punctuality is very important for this work. Smoking during the work is not allowed. The positions are also open for unemployed youngsters who face some social problems.

Closest Airports are Zurich, Basel and Geneva, there is a connection to the train station Davos Platz. From there volunteers can take a cable car.

Good English/ Basic German

The Volunteers will live and work on the biological farm Buehlmatt in Teuffenthal. The farm is run by Edith von Allmen, who lives there with her children and some employees. Buehlmatt is also the home and working place of some adults with mental health problems. The project offers those people professional care, work on the farm and a home. There are about five people and a lot of animals (cows, chickens etc.) living on the farm. The people on the farm are looking forward to the Workcamp and the cultural exchange.

On the biofarm Buehlmatt there is always a lot of work. The volunteer tasks consist of maintenance around the farm and in the forest, depending on the needs of the farm and the weather. They will for example help to cut and prepare firewood for the winter months, to clean the forest.

The volunteers will stay in dormitories in a small hut close by the farm Buehlmatt. There is a kitchen, a simple toilet and shower. It’s a nice, but simple accommodation for real nature lovers who want to live away from a big city. The main meals will get prepared by the project partner together with the Volunteers and everyone is responsible for the main cleaning and to follow the house’s rules of the host.

Teuffenthal (close to Thun) is located in the pre-Alps. Teuffenthal consists of farm houses spread across the hills. There are only 180 people living there. Thun is a bit more than 10 km away. Thun is a charming little town with stunning view on lake and the mountains. From Thun it’s only 20 minutes by train to reach Bern, the capital of Switzerland.

No alcohol and no drugs are allowed inside and around the farm Buehlmatt. If anyone breaks this rule, she/he will have to leave the camp immediately. The motivation of the volunteers has to be very high to work outdoors and it can be physically demanding. They should bring along warm, robust working clothes, sun and rain protection and good shoes to work. The Workcamp is an “Access 4 All” project and is open for people with and without handicaps. We expect a certain kind of independence.

In their leisure time volunteers can go for a hike in the nearby mountains. This region is famous for hiking tourists. There are many hiking trails close by. It’s also possible to visit Thun on the weekend.

TERMINAL
Closest Airports are Bern, Zurich, Basel

English

For nature lovers, who are interested in garden and agriculture work! - In the beautiful region of Davos (Schatzalp) there is the „Alpinum“, a huge botanical garden in the mountains. An association was founded to support this garden and to save some rare species and the nature over there for the next generations. In this botanical garden guests can find many rare plants and about 5000 different types of species and cultivars.
The group of Volunteers consists of four people. Interested candidates should be autonomous and self-managing. Leisure activities have to be organized independently.

Every year, there is a lot of work to be done in the botanical garden. The Volunteers will sup-port the gardener in his daily work. Interested Volunteers should be physically strong and interested in agricultural and garden work. Work is seven hours a day; two days per week are off. - Volunteers will receive a small pocket money, food and lodging.

Volunteers will sleep in the hotel in small staff-rooms. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be provided from the personal canteen. In the hotel there are staying the ordinary holiday guests, the Volunteers will stay in the personal flat and spend the time together and with the employees of the hotel.

Set in an exceptionally beautiful bowl of mountains Davos is the highest town in Europe at 1560 meters. In Davos there is the world class ice hockey, cross country skiing and ice skating. In the traditional hotel Schatzalp you enjoy a glorious panoramic view across the valley. The Volunteers will have the chance to see an incredible beautiful part of Switzerland.

The motivation of the volunteers has to be very high to work outdoors and it can be physically demanding. Applicants should be very interested in gardening work and agriculture. That’s why a MOTIVATION LETTER is required. Volunteers should bring along warm, robust working clothes (water proofed), trekking shoes (suitable for the mountains). Punctuality is very important for this work. Smoking during the work is not allowed. The positions are also open for unemployed youngsters who face some social problems.

Closest Airports are Zurich, Basel and Geneva, there is a connection to the train station Davos Platz. From there volunteers can take a cable car.

Good English/ Basic German