countrytalkandtips.myfreeforum.org

Moonwaves · Joined: 14 Dec 2006 Posts: 80 Location: Dusseldorf

It's been mentioned a couple of times so here's a thread for it. You're right blowin, difficult to choose a forum for this one! Smile

I recently signed up with WWOOF - won't post a detailed description here, please check out this link: http://www.wwoof.org/

I signed up with WWOOF independents as that covers Ireland and France. My sister lives in France and I'm always threatening to move over there so there's a good chance I will try to volunteer over there as well to see how it all works in a different country (and the chance to speak French would be good too as I'm not very fluent and am very lazy if I know there's someone around who speaks English!).

I plan to join WWOOF Germany next year as I'll be hopefully over there for a couple of weeks in September.

Unfortunately as I work full time in an office I don't have a huge amount of time to offer. I only recently got my book of addresses to look through but the flick through I've had seems to indicate that a lot of people want someone to stay for an entire season. As I only get 22 days holidays each year I can't really commit to much more than two weeks or so. I was thinking of offering a few weekends in a row if I could find somewhere within a couple of hours of Dublin (going down on Friday evening and coming back on Sunday). Blowin, do you reckon this would be acceptable to some people?

I'd love to hear about your experiences as a host. I'm not terribly fit and more enthusiastic than skilled so I worry that I'd be more of a hindrance than a help. On the other hand I have to learn somehow I suppose...

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http://livingthesimplelifeiwant.blogspot.com

blowin · Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 12:56 am Post subject:

Hi Moonwaves -- I have just noticed that I never replied to your question . Embarassed

. I am very sorry about that . I will do so asap .

Meanwhile anyone with an interest in the WWOOF scheme should note the following email I received from the "real" / original WWOOF organisation :

NOTE - THIS IS AN AUTOMATED EMAIL - DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL

Dear WWOOF hosts in Ireland,

Many of you have recently been contacted by someone calling themselves 'WWOOF Ireland'.
This group is unknown to us and is not an official group.
It is not currently recognised by any WWOOF group, and will not be recognised until we understand more about their project.

PLEASE DO NOT JOIN THIS NEW GROUP

However we do fully support the idea of setting up a national WWOOF group in Ireland.
To this end WWOOF Independents and WWOOF Australia have been working for the last 6 months with a longstanding Irish host.
She has been working hard at setting up a WWOOF Ireland and she was hoping to launch later this year.
She too was about to email all Irish hosts to see if they would support the idea of a national group in Ireland.

It is not in anyone's interest to have two rival WWOOF Ireland projects.
We have made contact with this new project and have put them in contact with the host that we have been working with.
They are currently communicating to see if both parties can work together on a unified project.
It would be better for all to have one complete list.

We will keep you informed of the situation as it develops.
Thank you for your understanding. Any comments on this are welcome.

contact:
hosts@wwoof.org

Best wishes
Carl

WWOOF Independents
www.wwoof.org/wwind/

PLEASE make sure you put the word WWOOF in the subject of any emails.
Otherwise your email is likely to get lost.

admin · Site Admin Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 227

Aha , blowin did in fact reply to Moonwave's question . It is on the duplicate thread which is under "Chat" . A very long reply it was , too , Laughing

.

The guys in the "original" Wwoof organisation have given our forum a nice mention in their newsletter . Take a look at theirs if you would like further info on how it all works . http://www.wwoof.org/
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we need more people to say something .

admin · Site Admin Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 227

In the interests of fair play I invited "Wwoof Ireland " to respond to the letter in blowin's post , above . This is a copy of their reply :

-----Original Message-----
From: s c [mailto:wwoofireland@googlemail.com]
Sent: 19 January 2008 12:56
To: *****

Dear ****,

Thank you for your email. I was very interested in what you had to say about the WWOOF project.

I am not usually one for forums as I prefer more direct contact, however, as you have asked, I am happy to comment. So please feel free to put this email up on the forum, and thanks once more for drawing it to my attention.

Sadaf

"Let me take the opportunity to inform you that I have chosen not to pursue my WWOOF IRELAND project further, as after much deliberation, I have decided it is not the best project for me.

I have had a lot of positive feedback about my approach with support from Hosts and WWOOFers alike, all of whom I wish to thank once more.

I have been a legitimate party in WWOOF IRELAND and I simply wanted to set up something that to my knowledge was not in existence, and felt that there was scope for a new and more professional angle to WWOOF, in my country. I wanted to create something that upheld Four Principles of Irish Farming:

· Family Farming

· Self-Sufficiency

· Applying Renewable Resources

· Commercial Farming

This would include non-organic farms with an emphasis on promoting the Irish countryside over Ideological themes.

And I wanted to exclude communes and New-Age Lifestyles from WWOOF IRELAND as I did not want to promote something I do not support or believe is right.

However, following discussions with the wider WWOOF organisation: Carl (Surname unknown) (WWOOF Independents), Annie King, and particularly Andrew of WWOOF New Zealand- who has been very positive; I feel my approach to things may be best served without using the WWOOF name as the things I stand for are better served elsewhere.

Go raibh maith agaibh

Sincerely,

Mrs Sadaf Cooney

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we need more people to say something .