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Group photo at the apple harvest in Walzenhausen/CH. (c) Maiann Suhner

Inheriting a big house and some agricultural land in the countryside means sudden taking on responsibility! What could be done with this place? What do I wish for? What do I need to implement my ideas? What could be done with all of the apples growing on the farm? There are many questions and doubts, but also many utopian ideas. Step by step, trees and berries are planted, the garden is expanded, contacts are made with people from the village who share similar mindsets, and the farm is featured on the WWOOFer homepage, welcoming its first travelers. The main question at the moment is: How can we share this beautiful place with others in an ecological way? The “Visit Utopia” youth camp in Mid-October 2024 served as an experimental space for such questions and desires. We constructed waterless toilets, cooked over a fire, picked apples, and transformed them into various storable products. We made piles of branches to create habitats for small animals, and we discussed, sang and dreamed around the fire about places and life concepts that make sense to us. Hopefully, the camp motivated each participant to realize their dreams, and the inhabitants of the farm to continue their journey.

Sources and links: www.pronatura.ch/de/jugend (de, fr, it)