Following the call for Host Grant Program, FoWO is happy to announce the winner.
Congratulations to Blachford Lake Lodge a host with WWOOF Canada who has been awarded £ 500 host grant! Their winning application will enable them to double their current gardening area in the arctic tundra with the help of their WWOOFers by building new garden beds with covers to protect the soil generated from their composting toilets (producing four square meters of organic soil each year!) and enable them to produce a full garden in their short three month summer by making the most of 24 hour daylight.
Host Grant Program is an activity of the global Federation of WWOOF Organisations aiming to support development projects of WWOOF hosts’ worldwide.
This program awards grants for special projects that help further the WWOOF movement, enhance the educational experience of visiting WWOOFers on host farms, and promote small-scale organic agriculture, as well as for proposals from hosts who are in need and are committed to the goals of WWOOF.
Examples might include (but are not limited to) the creation of new habitats (wildflower meadows?), herb spirals, forest gardens or raised beds, tree planting projects, building compost toilets (or bins), water harvesting, creating or improving WWOOFer accommodations, and alternative pest control.
This year, FoWO received about 30 entrants from Romania, Chile, Italy, Argentina, Greece, UK, Tanzania, Czech Republic, Germany, Kenya and Turkey. The grant was awarded trough the selection process based on:
- project results’ sustainability,
- WWOOFers’ involvement and
- demonstration of good organic farming and growing principles to future WWOOFers.
The assessment panel comprised Amanda Pearson – FoWO International Development Co-ordinator; Rodrigo Rocha – WWOOF Portugal, Basil Black – WWOOF Independents and Sarah Potenza – WWOOF USA. All applications were anonymised for the judging process.