Off the grid tiny house experience in a Permaculture Food forest
Overijssel
Help building an off the grid house in a Magic Forest
Food Forest, Alternative co-operative community, Communal Garden, Smallholding, Tree nursery
This little off the grid house has a piece of forest that’s about 1250 m² and needs lots of work. Maintaining the food forest, growing a lot of different species (including mushrooms), weaving trees into art sculptures, nursing young trees and ofcourse taking care of daily live.
I’m working on expanding the little house, building a bathroom & kitchen with a mass heater and making the house into a living house of different trees in the spirit of The Living Village. (you can see it as a pre study/ experiment for a Living House).
Work can include several tasks of the above, depending on what needs to be done and what will suit you, and even work at the places of friends in the forest. Short term stays for one willing worker at the time can be accommodated all year round, there is a small separate bedroom for you. There is a woodburned outside (living) shower (see photo).
English and Dutch is no problem. I will eat and serve mostly organic vegan food. I will expect that you can take care of yourself and live life positively. I hope you can help me make this world a greener place and see you in the magic forest.
FULLY FUNDED ECO VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITY
August 2026 till May 2027 for one month
4 places - EU citizens - 18-30 years old - 1 month - fully funded
This ESC opportunity is for EU citizens (under 30) interested in developing ecological, social skills and curious about living off the grid. You will be working with permaculture teacher Bouwie, experience life in a (food)forest, and participate in various activities, from harvesting to building. Become part of a regenerative culture for a period of one month! More info on https://aardecollectief.nl/en/youth_work.html
Watch our documentary here: https://youtu.be/7ywwSeSEV38
Green Greetings,
Bouwie
Food Forest designer, planter & permaculture teacher
Man, Born 1975, steady relationship (not living together)
Organic methods: I work with the permaculture Food forest system technique
Certifications: It's not a commercial farm, but I don't use chemicals
Type of work: Currently my biggest project is to build a bathroom & kitchen from the ground up (fire stoves included)
Internet access available
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Forestry
Wild foraging
Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas
Seed saving or production
Bakery
Green Building
Renewable energy production
Food justice / sovereignty
Methods or systems
Biological pest control
Holistic management
No-till farming
Permaculture
Regenerative agriculture
Bouwie
Member since 2019
Languages spoken:
Dutch, English
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 100%
Response time: typically within 4 days
Overijssel
If we have an appointment I will instruct you with the final traveling details, train station Dalfsen is nearby.
Reviews
Jeanne
France
•
December 2025
Staying at Bouwie's felt like a privilege to me. He's openminded and caring. I loved being surrounded by this forest and working with the flow. Since I came just before winter time it felt even more like an adventure.
Learning about off the grid power system and water system allowed me to feel more confident about what I was able to do. We had really good time having diner next to the fire talking about everything. I also had the chance to experiment volunteering here as single volontaire and also together with other volonteers. And of course it's nothing the same but I do recommend both.
You can learn a lot about yourself there and go behind your boundaries. And also have real human connections. It made me more conscience about how a house work and how it can impact nature and so how we could adapt it to still suits our need.
I'm thankful for this time !
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JT
United States
•
June 2025
A stay with Bouwie is an experience unlike any other; it is a level of inner calm and peace you'd be hard-pressed to find in many other communities around the world. Bouwie is generous, kind, and wise, with a complex and beautiful perspective on how we ought to live in communion with each other and with nature – it's sure to inspire your own life choices as well! My regrettably short stay of 10 days was enough to view Bouwie's world through his eyes, visiting many of his friends and other gardeners living harmoniously and sustainably in the Forest. We worked at the local co-op community garden once a week and pushed forward on important home renovations, which will eventually increase the size of Bouwie's home by about 50%. We often had guests for dinner, and their stories were often moving and powerful; be ready to share your own experience and be open. It's a varied assortment of work, so my advice is to be spontaneous, adaptable, and culturally open-minded. You may take away many lessons you were not expecting to learn. The nearby town of Dalfsen is small, but it's very fun to explore if you are interested in Dutch history and biking around beautiful areas. If you want to eat delicious vegan food and meet beautiful, hard-working people, Bouwie's magic forest is the choice for you!
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Nathan
France
•
March 2025
We want to share how beautiful we found Bouwie and his place! Under a canopy of oaks and acacias, the place invites you to disconnect. A timeless moment where we discovered a sober life, off the grid where nothing is missing and everything is useful.
Bouwie is a fundamentally kind and human, who deeply loves life and nature. We had beautiful moment together who will remain in our memories.
We highly recommand this experience and we will definitely come back again
Nathan and Valeriane
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Théo
France
•
December 2024
Good woofing, the food and the guy are so cool!!
Simon
Netherlands
•
November 2024
I had a short but wonderful time here. Even in such a short time I did so many things, learned a lot, got to know Bouwie and part of the community, had great food! So definetely recommendable if you want to get out of the busy city life and go back to the basics and forest life :)
Hella
Germany
•
October 2024
Staying at Bouwies place was my first ever Wwoofing experience and I have to say I had the best time ever. I’m really glad I came regardless of Maria’s review and trusted the amount of positive reviews Bouwie already has! We did a lot of gardening and it was so exiting to learn about all the different plants! Also the healthy vegan dishes were a personal highlight and I was just fascinated by the forest and its little community.
During the 3 weeks I stayed at his place I felt very comfortable and safe.
I would totally recommend visiting Bouwies place :)
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