Looking back to March 2024, when I started volunteering for GEN Europe, it is hard to describe how much my life has changed in the eight months since then.

First and foremost, I have met so many great people who share similar values that I no longer feel alone in my urge to (co-)create a better world. Secondly, the "Ecovillage culture and tools" for dealing with emotions, conflicts, and dreams have had a transformative impact on how I communicate and experience human interactions, as well as navigate my life. 

It is not an exaggeration to say that I have a feeling of "richness" in experience and inspiration that cannot be matched by any monetary compensation I would have received in another job. 

From this feeling of gratitude toward my own experience, I wrote this month’s blog article about "volunteering in intentional communities." I really hope you find some useful advice and that you, too, are inspired to further explore the world of ecovillages through the experience of volunteering in them.

And within the context of volunteering, we have even more exciting news to share with you this month!

The GEN staff team (especially Franziska, Maja), developed a website where all ESC volunteering opportunities in ecovillages can now be found! This will make it so much easier for everyone looking for opportunities specifically in ecovillages. We are so excited and are certain that you will be, too!

With love and in community,
Franziska and Julio on behalf of the GEN Europe team

As I described in the introduction, volunteering can be a great way to get to know the world of ecovillages better. Together with Alex from NextGEN, we have gathered tips from our own experience and the experience of other volunteers on how to best prepare for volunteering in an ecovillage!

The National Networks Working Group is inviting you for their annual event: This year's meeting will be held in Hof van Moeder Aarde in the Netherlands from the 16th to the 19th of January 2025. It's a space for representatives from National and Transnational Networks of GEN EU to meet, connect, hear and engage with the latest updates from the network.

We will co-create and ignite the writing of new projects and new ideas, and the GEN EU team will be present to listen to the network. If you, besides that, want to enjoy the GEN family and good company, this is your place!

🌍 Exciting news from GEN Europe! We've just launched an enhanced member directory that seamlessly connects with our interactive map. This dynamic tool showcases our vibrant network of ecovillages with searchable profile cards, making it easier than ever to find and connect with members across Europe.

Filter by name, network, or country - plus, now you can put faces to places with member photos!

The best part? Our national and transnational networks can easily update their information in one place. Are you a network wanting to join or implement this system? Get in touch! Together, we're making our ecovillage community more accessible and interconnected!

Great learning and networking opportunities are coming during the first week of December for those interested in getting involved with different kinds of projects.

First, the Projects Working Group will be hosting an Open Online Session on December 2nd from 17:30 to 19:30 CET for those (wanting to be) active in writing projects for your organisation or network or interested to understand more about the Erasmus+ funding opportunities.

The general Erasmus+ funding structure and purpose will be presented and afterward there will be open space to ask questions and discuss about ESC, KA1 and KA2 with experienced practitioners from the network.

Please sign up in advance if you plan to attend, and you will receive the link to the event!

Following up on the above event, GEN Europe will invite all its members to join a networking meeting with another inspiring European network: Trans Europe Halles, a network of grassroots arts and culture centers with strong DIY, independent, community-driven and alternative values.

Both GEN Europe and Trans Europe Halles believe in the power of communities to create regenerative futures, and we may want to get to know each other a bit better and explore possibilities to work together on a grassroots level.

We will meet for a mingling and cross-pollinating event on Thursday 5th of December from 16:00 to 17:30 CET, where we will exchange experience and ideas, network and seed ideas for potential future collaborations. During the meeting, the EU-funded programmes Creative Europe and Erasmus+ will be presented, and especially those opportunities that could support a joint collaboration.

GEN Europe is part of the Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnership "Sustain-Ability: Shaping GreenComp for the Youth Field" whose aim is to increase the capacity of the European youth work sector to support the implementation of Agenda 2030 by using the European sustainability competence Framework.

Within this frame, we are hiring a researcher and a youth trainer in the field of education for sustainability. The two roles, even if different in terms of tasks and skills required, are consequential and complementary, and applicants that could convincingly apply to both positions will be given priority in the selection process.

To read the complete job descriptions and all the details about the application process, click on the following links:

Education for Sustainability Researcher

Youth Trainer in Education for Sustainability

The deadline for the submission of applications is Friday 29th of November.

Please share this opportunity with people in your communities or otherwise connected with the ecovillage networks that may be interested!

From November 1–7. 2024, participants from multiple European countries gathered in the beautiful ecovillage of Lakabe, Spain, for a Partnership Building Activity (PBA) supported by the European Union. The event provided a dynamic space for organizations, initiatives, and individuals to collaborate, share knowledge, and ignite new projects in sustainability, social inclusion, and community building.

Our long-time member Tamera is celebrating their 30th birthday and is launching a fundraising campaign!

This event is a transformative approach to dealing with the Climate complexity. An empowering training for Youth Leaders and Facilitators to deepen:
• Inner resilience & capacity to guide charged dialogue spaces
• Session & course design
• Dialogue skills applicable in work, organization, and personal life
• Accessing body wisdom to communicate authentically
• Building capacity for leadership and facilitation
• Creatively responding to challenge
• Facing the urgency of the climate crisis together

The event welcomes participants from the Netherlands, Italy, France, Romania, Switzerland and Germany without age limit per country. Applications are still open!

Join the Climate Consciousness Summit for a unique experience that intertwines the climate and healing movements, and find meaningful ways to connect and contribute!

This Conference is Powered by Sociocracy For All (SoFA) and organized by the Intentional Communities Circle (IC Circle), with support from its parent circle, SoFA English. Rooted in sociocratic principles, this event showcases the power of shared governance in action

As we look toward a more sustainable and resilient future, it’s clear that the key to success lies in collaboration—particularly across generations. In rural communities, the older generation offers invaluable wisdom, built on years of experience, while the younger generation brings fresh ideas, energy, and a passion for innovation. When these strengths are combined, we can build futures that both honour our roots and embrace new paths forward.

The course is designed for all spiritual pioneers who want to work on the foundation for a profound system change from fear to trust. The course would like to inspire you with examples from Tamera’s research and offer ideas as to how you can engage in your own projects.

Transition Network International offers a space where you can ask questions regarding the changes and the restructuring process they have undertaken.

This will be the final three day online international conference in their trilogy dedicated to a new expression of Leadership.

In this conference we the focus is on activation.

They will utilise the themes from the previous two conferences to mobilise to the next stage of action. Themes that include: a deeper understanding of governance and hierarchy, leadership through the heart, reactivating the Divine Feminine and establishing a new balance with the Divine Masculine, regenerating consciousness through a higher frequency of vibration, confronting old leadership models and enacting the new.

Impulse Boost Camp is an international training course for young people who are voluntarily active in civil society. During the 9-day long program, you will participate in a variety of workshops that will introduce you to useful tools for your activism and voluntary work.

ECOLISE invites you to this workshop if you are...

Member of a community-led initiative? An academic? A policy maker? Or a member of a Non-governmental organisation (NGO)/ Civil Society Organisation (CSO)?

… actively working to transform food systems? Are systemic barriers holding you back? Do you want EU policymakers to understand the power of community-driven solutions? 

Then join ECOLISE for this event which will see the kick off of ECOLISE’s policy positioning phase on “Just and sustainable food systems - from the perspective of community-led initiatives”. 

This event will be an interactive workshop,  kickstarting  a participatory advocacy process where they’ll connect, learn from one another, and build an alliance for just and sustainable food systems policies at EU levels , with community-led initiatives at the heart.

Feel free to read and pass along this email to your community!

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