Volunteering / permaculture internship

Here at Bogata Suma we love to host people from all over the world! It brings us inspiration, new ideas and insights, first hand views on international politics, new games or recipes, a rhythm in our day and fun for us and our kids.

We also believe that we make the world a better place by exchanging skills and knowledge about a more sustainable and natural life. How to make wine from flowers or berries? How to grow vegetables? How to make natural cleaning products? How to propagate fruit shrubs? We like to share our simple and natural way of living with you.

"I had such a wonderful time while staying at Bogata Suma. What a nice combination it was of a bit of everything. So much valuable theoretical knowledge, while putting it straight into practice in the gardens, the orchards, and the food forest."
Marcus, Switzerland

How does it work?
We host people from spring -> autumn for a minimum of 3 weeks after the introduction week (so 4 in total). Only when you have superpowers in cooking or construction, we make exceptions.

A volunteering period here starts with an introduction to permaculture and sustainable living course. This 5 day course is all about:
- a sustainable life in harmony with nature,
- permaculture solutions and how they work in practice,
- self sufficiency, taking care of your own needs
- how you can use permaculture design methods for setting up your own sustainable life
More details below

> Apply here for a volunteer spot

Who is this for?
Volunteering at Bogata Suma is for people who love healthy food (vegetarian or with meat), who are genuinly interested in sustainable living and permaculture, who are independent and have an adult approach of life.

"I went here for 6 weeks to be enriched by nature, eat straight out of the garden and share a permaculture family lifestyle. I received this and more. Barbara is so inspiring with her way of seeing life. She provided me with information about permaculture thinking and I also enjoyed her sense of humour towards life. Their property is very beautiful with a buzz of insects. This family is really walking the talk when it comes to having a clear vision of following a permaculture way of life."
Joanne, Australia

More about our program below

Learn about permaculture and design in our program for sustainable living

Help Peter with constructing cool stuff like a shepherd's hut and furniture

Cook and grow delicious organic food and help Nol to become a good chef

 

If you are a CHEF, >> click here for more info.
If you know your way around with wood and/or construction, >> click here.

For people that want to learn about permaculture, self sufficiency and a sustainable lifestyle, we developed a special program.

"Thank you Barbara, Peter, Nol and Fleur for the great weeks we had at Bogata Suma! We learned a lot about permaculture, had many good talks on many different topics and took a lot of inspiration and nice memories out of the stay. Maybe we'll come again sometime ;)"
Iida and Rune, Finland

Sustainable living, permaculture and self sufficiency program

The first week of your stay is an immersive program to learn about practical permaculture in real life. What is sustainability, what is permaculture, how did we design our land and our life with permaculture ethics and principles as decision making tools. How to setup an ecological garden for self sufficiency, how to take care of yourself with herbs. It gives you an overview of "all" aspects of living a sustainable life in the countryside.

Subjects that we will cover in this week:
- What is permaculture,
- What is sustainable living,
- How did we setup a good life in harmony with nature,
- Growing food for self sufficiency and setting up an ecologic food growing system with mulch, compost and natural fertilizers,
- How did we setup our food savana and forest garden and what mistakes did we make. We'll feature seed saving, planting, pruning and propagating techniques,
- Natural building techniques: strawbale, cob, wood construction,
- Animals, their functions, food and care,
- Herbal health: finding, collecting, drying and storing herbs, making teas, making tinctures, kitchen herbs, herbal oil,
- Storing & preserving the harvest, drying, cannning, jam, syrup, fermenting: making your own sourdough, sauerkraut and wine making.

After this course week you can stay for another 3-99 weeks as a volunteer, and go more in depth with the subjects that interest you the most. That is: if we feel a mutual match, of course.

This week is a mandatory introduction week for general volunteers (chefs and wood workers can apply also for other times). It will be held a few times a year, when we have openings for volunteering.

"We learned a lot here, there were many projects that we could work on so we learned a little of everything. We also learned about herbs and berries and picking fruits in the wild, how to make tea and marmalade. They live in a beautiful area, big and full of possibilities, very peaceful. We all ate together and had great conversations, learning ways to make projects for our own future. Thank you for this experience."

Mayta, Brazil

The next possibilities start on:

25 March 2024

29 April 2024

3 June 2024

2 September 2024

30 September 2024

> Apply here for a volunteer spot starting one of these dates

"I spent a month with Barbara, Peter, Nol and Fleur at Bogata Šuma in Croatia. What a place and what a family! Barbara is passionate about permaculture, sharing her vast knowledge with volunteers and visitors to their home. Peter is passionate about design, architecture, making things. Together they make a great team and have created something unique. For a period of time I was the only volunteer and I felt like a member of the family. If you volunteer here, you will have a high degree of independence, and there is plenty to do. Enjoying meals together in good company with home grown food is one of the greatest pleasures in life, thank you for that!"
Leon, New Zealand

 

What if the form says FULL; only course?
We have enough volunteers for this period and you can come for only the course.

What if you can't volunteer for 3 weeks after the course?
You can choose to only follow the course. In every course we have spots for people who can't come and volunteer afterwards.
Volunteering here is 3 weeks or more; not less. It's all or nothing.

What if you want to stay longer than the 4 weeks?
That is possible. We have hosted people for months!
You will grow into another position after a month and you can setup diferent (bigger) projects if you like. If you have a permaculture background you can help Barbara with her Diploma designs or help her give courses. If you have a background in wood work you might enjoy building your own house and stay forever? :-D Together we can find "your way".

More information only by e-mail: volunteers@bogatasuma.eu

 

Using a chicken in the garden to catch caterpillars

>> More pictures with volunteers