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Co-learning residency program

Join our community as a short-term member to experience off-grid living and non-formal education on sustainability

As a co-learning resident in Sunseed you will become part of our community for a short-term period. You will have the chance to explore all of our eight different departments.

 

You can learn through hands-on work, experimentation and creative activities about our daily tasks and long term projects. If you want, you can always develop your own little personal project.

You are free to choose from a variety of different daily tasks to work on. Every week we write down and share these tasks with you. We are here to help you, but our general work ethic is based on self-organisation and pro-activity.

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Our departments

Organic Gardens

Ecosystem restoration

Sustainable Living

Eco-maintenance

Appropriate Technology

Administration

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What we offer you

Personal
one-on-one mentoring

(S)low-impact lifestyle an low-tech solutions

Living and learning sociocracy

Non-formal education and experimentation

Weekly communal and educational activities

Delicious vegan meals with organic seasonal foods

What you can expect

Shared dorm (mixed gender)

4 h of work per day, 5 days a week

Waterless urinals, dry compost toilet

No electricity usage after sun hours

Off-grid
village

Free
weekends

Chemical-free product zone

Hot summers,
cold winters

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What daily life here looks like

Please read through the practical information page to know more about how daily life at Sunseed plays out and what our weekly structure looks like

When and how long can you join?

We ask for a commitment of at least two weeks, although a full month is preferable both for your own experience and for the community as a whole. We ask you to arrive on the first Tuesday of the month, since that is the day we go shopping with the car and can pick you up in the town of Sorbas. 

 

We are open for applications to the following dates in 2026: 

September (Arrival date: 01.09.)

November (Arrival date: 03.11.)

(All other months are already booked out)

Prices

We use a flexible payment system based on shared responsibility so that everyone can take part while helping keep the project going long-term. It’s based on trust, honesty and self-reflection (gift economy concept) - you choose how much to contribute based on your own financial situation. We don’t ask for proof or financial documents; we just invite you to be thoughtful in your choice. If you’re not sure what amount feels right, feel free to talk to us, we’re happy to help.

 

We encourage you to think about:

 

  • Your overall financial stability

  • How secure you feel about money

  • What you can comfortably afford

  • How your contribution can support our community

We ask for a deposit of 80 euros in order to confirm your place. If for any reason you are unable to attend on the selected date, this deposit is non-refundable.

Bottle system:

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What does your contribution cover?

Organic food

From Monday to Friday we serve three vegetarian meals a day. Food on the weekends is self-organised with the use of our supplies. 15-20% of the food comes from our gardens. The rest is bought from local farmers and regional ecological producers.

Educational activities

Our team offers a range of activities depending on the departments' needs. You can get involved with gardening,  eco-maintenance, drylands management and more. You can also take on a personal project if you have a specific skill.

Accommodation & maintenance

Your payment covers accommodation in our dorms, clean bed sheets, the use of natural cosmetics and administration costs. Our houses are maintained in the traditional Andalucian style. While reusing as many materials as possible, we still have to buy some from time to time.

Fixed costs

To provide an educational experience for people from around the world we have many hidden costs - rent, insurance, taxes, website hosting, phones, internet, car maintenance, staff reimbursement and more. Your contribution will help us to continue running Sunseed in the long-term.

Gift economy statement

As a community, we need money to cover our basic and additional needs for things we cannot produce ourselves, such as grains or building materials. In this way, we have connections to monetised systems that require us to ask for money from those who stay with us in the short-term. We want to be transformative in how we view, interact and understand money as a community, in an attempt to subvert capitalist structures. 

 

In this way, we incorporate the system of a gift economy. A gift economy is western defined term, but has been used as a system by many indigenous groups. It offers an opposition to exploitative capitalist regimes, and calls attention to our reliance and relation to the land and people that support us, and in turn how we support them. 

 

For instance, Robin Wall Kimmerer, an indigenous scholar, describes this as:

“The currency in a gift economy is relationship, which is expressed as gratitude, as interdependence and the ongoing cycles of reciprocity. A gift economy nurtures the community bonds which enhance mutual well-being; the economic unit is “we” rather than “I,” as all flourishing is mutual.”

 

A gift economy does not mean ‘donation’ or a ‘true gift’ in which something is given without expectation of an immediate return in full. Through this, the gift may be reciprocated later in time, or in another form to what was given, or not at all. It is a flowing of resources to those or where it is most needed, building relationships and supporting collectives. This may be money, or a lesson on planting, or a meal cooked, but in this way a flow of gifts around the community sustains us and our way of life.

Apply here

Save yourself a spot as a co-learning resident at Sunseed by filling out this application form. Any other questions? Please email: communication@sunseed.org.uk

Proyecto Sunseed

Asociación registrada en España (Nº. 600836)

NIF G04746459
Spanish project of the Sunseed Trust Ltd
(Reg. Charity  No. 1098353 in UK)

Contact

sunseed@sunseed.org.uk

+34 680599431

+34 935013168

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