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Wednesday,
June 30, 1999 |
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"WWOOFing It": Volunteer on an Organic Farm and
Pay Nothing For Room and Board Almost Anywhere in the World
If you have ever entertained the idea of living with a family abroad or
spending your vacation doing volunteer work, you may want to investigate
WWOOF, an organization that arranges volunteer opportunities working on
organic farms all over the world. As a WWOOFer, you farm with your host
family for 3 to 6 hours per day, and in return, receive free room and board.
Although the type of work varies according to each individual farm, possible
responsibilities include picking fruit, herding sheep, milking cows, baking
bread and painting the farmhouse. Most WWOOFers spend around a week on
one farm (before either heading home or heading off to a different farm),
but the minimum stay is only 2 nights (while the maximum stay could be
six months or more depending on the individual arrangement between the
host family and the volunteer). WWOOF was founded in England in 1972 as
"Working Weekends On Organic Farms," a program designed principally for
city dwellers, offering short volunteer opportunities at BioDynamic Emerson
College Farm in Sussex. The WWOOFing experience became so popular, however,
that the length of time spent on the farm grew longer. Concurrently, national
WWOOF organizations were created in New Zealand, the United States and
Australia, using the same acronym, but now signifying "Willing Workers
on Organic Farms." At present, the worldwide list of WWOOFing nations includes
50 countries (and over 600 farms) in North and South America, Europe, Asia,
and Africa. To become a WWOOFer, you must join the WWOOF organization in
the country where you want to work. For between $10 and $20 (it varies
by country), you become a member, and in doing so, receive the membership
book which lists all the farms accepting volunteers. You are responsible
for making your own bookings with the farm of your interest; you arrange
the starting and ending dates of your stay. Most farms treat WWOOFers as
guests; the volunteers have active roles in determining the amount and
type of work they are assigned. WWOOF's primary aim is to encourage people
to learn the art of organic growing. WWOOF also recognizes and firmly advocates
the cultural exchange aspects of their program. By living and working with
a family in Australia, Ireland, Ghana or Japan, they say, you are granted
an intimate understanding of life in a foreign country, without having
to pay large sums of money. The only costs of a WWOOF experience are the
initial membership fee and the travel expenses involved in getting to your
farm of choice. To learn more about WWOOF, see WWOOF International's Web
site at www.phdcc.com/wwoof/, which lists all of the countries
carrying a national WWOOF organization. You can also write to WWOOF International,
PO Box 2675, Lewes BN7 1RB, England, UK. |
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Copyright © 2000 Arthur Frommer
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