Workcamp Switzerland

The goal of the group "fRilingue" is to offer teenagers (age: 13-20 years) a two week language camp with a small budget. The aim of "fRilingue" is to combine language courses (French and German) in the morning with free time activities such as sport, music, dance, theatre and cinema in the afternoons. The special advantage of this project is the mixture of adolescents from the French and the German part of Switzerland. Normally there is not so much interaction between adolescents from these two parts despite them belonging to the same country. We call it in German the "Röstigraben". There will be some special programmes in the nights and on the weekends such as trips to lakes, beautiful villages and other tourist attractions.
Volunteers are responsible to prepare all the daily meals for the youngsters. They will go shopping, do the cooking and wash the dishes. They will also have the opportunity to join the youngsters on the weekend trips.

Requirements: Knowledge in German and/ or French.

Date: 3rd of July until the 14th of August 2010*
Location: Fribourg FR and Cudrefin NE
Accomodation: FR: student house "Beauséjour"
CU: tents

* One Workcamp lasts for two weeks. Voluntees are also welcome to stay longer or to switch from one location to the other.

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Living and working on the farm

Edith von Allmen and Raphael Zuberbuehler are the owners of the farm called Buehlmatt in Teuffenthal. They live there with their children, but not only with them. Buehlmatt is also the home for 2-3 adults with mental health problems. Buehlmatt offers those people professional care, work on the farm and a home. There are cows and some smaller animals on the farm too. People on the farm Buehlmatt are happy that the workcamp will turn their home into a place for intercultural exchange.

This year we want to welcome specially Volunteers from Eastern European countries, to talk about common prejudices and to see each other in a new light through workshops. Beside this special programme Volunteers will work. The main work will be fencing. The sheeps will stay in the farmland and the volunteers will help to fix new fences.

The volunteers will stay in a very simple accommodation in a small hut close by the farm Bühlmatt. There is no bathroom just a simple toilet. The volunteers have to wash themselves with cold water from the nearby fountain or boil their own hot water on the stove. This workcamp is for nature lovers who want to live away from a big city. Teuffenthal is a small mountain village, which is situated around 10 km from Thun.

Date: 24th of July until the 7th of August 2010.
Location: Teuffenthal BE
Accommodation: huts

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Constructing dry stone walls along the pilgrim path

Members of the union called Region Thunersee are municipalities around the lake of Thun. The aim of the union is to take care of the cultural landscape in the region. One big and ongoing project is to maintain the old pilgrim-path. It is part of the famous trails leading to Santiago de Compostela. Around the lake of Thun this path fits nicely in the landscape between lake and mountains. It's a beautiful old trail, not only for pilgrims, but also for nature-lovers and hikers. In order to maintain the path this project called "Treffpunkt Pilgerweg" needs the help of volunteers.

Once more the volunteer-task consists of maintenance work on the pilgrim-path around the lake of Thun. One of the main tasks will be to repair dry stone walls. The volunteers will also build new dry stone walls. Be aware that this work is physically demanding. An expert of dry stone walls will show you how it's done.

Date: 21st of August until the 4th of September 2010
Location: Beatenberg BE
Accommodation: Holiday house

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Constructing dry stone walls special "SenTeen"

In this special Workcamp Young people and seniors from Switzerland are invited to meet each other and to learn from each other. It's a pilot project and it should help to create respect and tolerance between people of different ages and to strengthen the relationship between different generations.
The aim of the union is to take care of the cultural landscape in the region. One big and ongoing project is to maintain the old pilgrim-path. It is part of the famous trails leading to Santiago de Compostela.

The volunteer-task consists of maintenance work on the pilgrim-path around the lake of Thun. One of the main tasks will be to repair dry stone walls. The volunteers will also build new dry stone walls. Be aware that this work is physically demanding and it needs some talent in handcrafts and patience. An expert of dry stone walls will show how it's done. One one day there will be a workshop about different generations.

Date: 19th of September until the 25th of September 2010
Location: Beatenberg BE
Accommodation: Holiday house

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Holiday Camps for children

Since 1990 the foundation "Stiftung Feriengestaltung für Kinder" organise holiday camps, weekend and day projects for children and teenagers. The aim of the foundation is to offer all the children- no matter from what social or financial background- holidays in summer camps. The most important thing is meaningful free time activities. In these projects the organisers are caring for the individual wishes of the girls and boys and offer them an unforgettable holiday.

The main work consists of caring for the Children. When the kids are sleeping, the volunteers will have time to prepare the next day.

1. Summer camp "Living like in the middle ages"

Let's go away from modern life and back to the middle ages. For one week the kids will be strong knights, they will try the craftsmanship from long time ago, they will do tournaments and defend their castle from evil with honour. There will be interesting stories that will bring an insight into the middle ages.

Date: 18th of July until the 24th of July 2010
Location: Mariastein SO
Accommodation: castle Mariastein

2. Project "5 Elements"

This meaningful project will be realised in cooperation with the specialist department for visual impairement in central Switzerland. We are concerned to offer interaction and to build up teamwork. We want to experiences a lot of things together and learn from each other. It's important to make new experiences with the senses ears, nose, tongue and skin through sounds, smells, flavours, temperatures and touches. Under the name "5 elements" this will be a highlight in this years programme.

Date: 25th of July until 31st of July 2010
Location: Engelberg OW
Accommodation: Holiday house, St. Raphael

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Alpinum Schatzalp

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 generation. In this botanical garden guests can find many rare plants and more then 3500 different types of species and cultivars. This magic place is for everyone who loves nature.

Volunteers will help out in the botanical garden. The work can vary, but people have to be aware that it can be physically demanding. Depending on the fitness of everyone, different works will be done such as taking out trees that had been cut before, to damp compost, to week and to plant. The voluntees have to bring along their own working hand gloves.

Volunteers will sleep on the second floor of the hotel in the old flats of the staff. There will be two or three mattresses per room. On the weekend Voluntees can explore the region.

Date: 4th of September until 18th of September 2010
Location: Schatzalp GR
Accommodation: flats

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