Environmental and maintenance works in the Convent San Giorgio

Since 1999 the ex-Convent San Giorgio, a Volunteering Permanent Centre has hosted hundreds of volunteers in different occasions (national and international workcamps, European Volunteering Service, etc). The Convent is situated in the region of Abruzzo, centre of Italy, about 150 km away from Rome. It has been fully restored by the local institution Mountain Community and furnished following as much as possible the "static free" standards.

The project aims to bring new economic, tourist and especially cultural and spiritual movements in an area quite isolated. It deals with sustainable living, no waste, recycling and clever use of all energies (human included).

The role of volunteers during these years has been fundamental, and all people passing through the Convent for different occasions as seminars, stages, parties have contributed to bring on these activities. Themes as peace, solidarity, ecology are linked. For the realization of the idea it is necessary that different intellectual and spiritual forces, positive thought and energies flow in the same direction.

The project based on the Convent San Giorgio has different working situations:

- the garden: most of the food eaten comes from the garden where organic cultivation and experimental new techniques for "clean agriculture" as permaculture are practiced
- work in the village: during these years many paths were re-opened and maintained which in the past were the ways to reach the villages in the valley; fountains which were the only source of water for people living here were cleaned; farmers of the village were helped in little jobs in their farms (as cleaning stables)
- collaboration with the Regional Park of Sirente-Velino: working with experts from the Park to count animals (dears and wild pigs), cleaning areas from different kind of garbage, helping in spreading environmental awareness
- work with hosted people: every year hundreds of people from different part of the world and of Italy are hosted, offering them the occasion to experiment working holidays, seminars or stages (during Summer: yoga, tai-chi, ceramics, shiatsu, permaculture, dances, etc.), programs of excursions and at the same time a way to experiment the different way of living in the Convent.

The international volunteers this year will take part in the life of the Convent working inside to maintain the structure (cleaning and small carpentry jobs), in the garden, with the animals of the small farm (chicken, ducks, goose, pigeons, rabbits, goats and sheep), on the paths in the Regional Park of Sirente Velino an in the village of Goriano Valli, in the garden of the Convent. The work will be outside most of the time (depending on the weather).