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Old 03-08-2007, 12:41 PM   #1
blinkchick2134
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Post Wwoof - Work in organic farms around the world

Recently, I've paid for and started researching hosts to stay with through an organization known as WWOOF. Here's some information that some travelers may find very helpful:

WWOOF: World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (formerly, Willing Workers on Organic Farms)

The basic principles of WWOOF are simple. You pay a membership fee (usually 15-40 dollars depending on country/region) and you recieve access to a listing of hosts. These hosts are usually organic farms, eco-communites (ie hippe communes), family farms or homes with gardens. In exchange for working 4-6 days for roughly 4-8 hours a WWOOF member will receive room and board (meals). Working conditions and living quarters vary from host to host: one host may only be able to provide tents while another may offer a room within their own home and one host may be vegan while another may slaughter their own cows.

The organization runs on the idea that WWOOF members are looking to gain mainly from the education they receive about organic farming, alternative technologies and self-sustainability; rather than just a cheap place to stay.

The down side to WWOOFing is that many hosts may not speak your native language thus hindering understanding your job for the day. Other negatives include that most hosts are located in rural areas. This is a problem when trying to pre-plan your trip, internet contact (let alone snail mail) may take a few weeks. On the other hand, if you're working a few weeks for a WWOOF host that's a two-hour walk from town, you won't be wasting your money on a room, beer or meals out.

The main site for WWOOF is located at www.wwoof.org. This site gives you a listing of all country organizations (larger countries have individual lists) as well as the WWOOF Independent list which entails all countries that have only a few hosts (ie Costa Rica, South Africa, Thailand, etc etc)

I've joined WWOOF Independents although I have yet to stay with a host, I've gained a lot of information about how the organization works and have already talked to a few perspective hosts in Costa Rica. I'll post more in this thread after staying with them in the next year or so. If anyone has any questions about how it works or wants me to find a few hosts in an area I'll be more than happy too. However, most (if not all) hosts require you to have a WWOOF membership to stay with them for the free exchange, a few of the farms offer working holiday in which you have to pay for room/board. The WWOOF membership allows you to skip that payment.
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