What s Inside?

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1 Newsletter Autumn 2015 Welcome to the Autumn Newsletter, 2015 Now the nights are drawing in and the clocks have gone back, what better way to spend a long dark evening than reading through this autumn edition of the WWOOF Ireland newsletter. Annie's roundup of WWOOF Ireland activities includes an update on both local and international news, with a focus on the recent conference in Italy involving the 10 partner countries developing the Living and Learning on Organic Farms learning guide. There is a full report on this exciting project and how both WWOOFers and Hosts can get involved. We have a new Hosts' Pinboard, lots of website news and tips, a WWOOFer's travel tale, and a wonderful recipe from Host Rachel Dare of Organico - a Carrageen moss drink to chase away those winter sniffles! Now the Newsletter is coming out twice a year, we have the opportunity to expand the content - so please let us know what you would like to see. Maybe more educational articles and international stories that compare organic farming methods and experiences would be interesting? Please get in touch if you are able to offer information, photographs or to put us in touch with possible contributors from beyond Ireland. Catherine Weld, Editor What s Inside? WWOOF Ireland Round-Up Living and Learning on Organic Farms (LLOOF) Tool Survival Action Plan 2 Hosts' Pinboard From Ireland to Italy; a WWOOFing adventure Rob's Website News Recipe: Carrageen Moss Drink Building a Movable Drop Toilet Newsletter Autumn WWOOF 1

2 WWOOF Ireland Round-Up Annie King explains what s been happening at WWOOF Ireland since the last newsletter Another busy year for WWOOF Ireland and we are delighted that as promised, we have now achieved the target of two newsletters a year! WWOOF Ireland Delivers... Other targets that have been met; a Regional Rep has been appointed for central County Cork - Sally Baker, who introduces herself in this newsletter; we now have insurance in place for WWOOFers included in the membership fee, see below; Jo Fowler, our Regional Rep for Ulster, has now become a member of staff, as the first port of call for complaints; and there are new and improved features on the website that Rob introduces later in the newsletter. On Sunday 12th April we had our first Simultaneous Seed Swap event at opposite ends of the country - a BRING, BUY & BARTER BBQ! in County Donegal and County Cork. This was so successful and such a good opportunity for local Hosts to meet each other, that we are thinking of making it an annual event for the Sunday after Easter in other locations too! Rising Membership Despite the increase in fees to cover the cost of insurance, our membership is still increasing, both with WWOOFers and Hosts, with the peak of activity of WWOOFers still concentrated in the summer months. Thankfully, this year, with increased use of the Noticeboard, and the listing of new Hosts, we had no reports of any WWOOFers being stranded with nowhere to go. A Plea to Hosts and WWOOFers We still have WWOOFers who contact us saying that some Hosts send no reply at all, so PLEASE Hosts do reply to every that comes in, even if it is just No thank you. And WWOOFers, do realise that you will get more responses if you do NOT send the same to all the Hosts you apply to - read the details first and talk about what interests you most there. Not only does it show the Host that you are genuinely interested in coming to their place, but it can save misunderstandings that sometimes can lead to complaints later! The Bring, Buy and Barter BBQ in County Donegal FoWo Insurance Policy Scheme in place The existence of FoWO has enabled the setting up of the insurance for WWOOFers which Annie has been negotiating for the last 3 years. This was put in place on 1st July meaning that every WWOOFer who is with a Host registered on this scheme following that date (they do not have to have joined after that date) is covered for Personal Accident and Liability. PJ Hayman, who is the broker for this worldwide bespoke insurance plan, also offers travel and health insurance options for WWOOFers, see our Help section on the website for more details. 15% of the profits from the scheme is being fed back into the funds of FoWO to help provide more support where it is needed for emerging WWOOF groups. As well as ourselves, Norway and Canada joined from the beginning, and there are seven other countries now expressing interest. 2 WWOOF Newsletter Autumn 2015

3 FoWO News Our increasing membership continues to make us one of the largest groups in the world. FoWO, The Federation of WWOOF Organisations - the democratic body set up for existing and new WWOOF groups throughout the world - had their second AGM on the 15th October and Annie is continuing as a voluntary Director, giving Ireland representation in World WWOOF decisions. European News On a more regional European level the Living and Learning on Organic Farms (LLOOF) project continues from strength to strength. The second meeting of the 10 European partners took place in Italy (see Catherine's report on this) and through the Erasmus+ funding for this project and Ireland's role as Promotions Co-ordinator, Catherine has now been able to join WWOOF Ireland as our Promotions Officer, as well as newsletter editor. We will be hosting the press day for the launch of the LLOOF learning guide which will follow on from the next European WWOOF meeting. This will be hosted by WWOOF Ireland over the weekend of the 20th May 2016 at a WWOOF Host venue, Russagh Mill Hostel in County Cork. Look out for more information on the website. WWOOF Ireland is delighted to welcome Jo Fowler and Sally Baker to the team Jo Fowler Complaints Officer It's a little over 11 years since we first had WWOOFers here in Ireland. I've lost count of how many have come through our doors, sat and eaten with us, weeded, shovelled whatever needed to be shovelled and had a good laugh, but it's probably around 600. We live in a breathtakingly beautiful part of the Inishowen Peninsula in north Co. Donegal. It felt a bit selfish to enjoy the views, the abundant wildlife and the warmth and hospitality of our neighbours and not share it, so, being totally immersed in organic farming and the way of life that goes with it, it seemed only natural that we invite WWOOFers to enjoy it all with us. Quite often the experience of WWOOFing is life changing. It is a privilege to have had a share in such a pivotal event in young people's lives. I was delighted to be asked to take on responsibility for any complaints that come into the office, and as WWOOF is unique in its aim to promote an organic, sustainable lifestyle, it is a pleasure to do what I can to work with the WWOOF Ireland team to keep that standard. In uncertain times it is good to have a constant... I hope to be part of keeping WWOOF constant and a standard bearer for a more sustainable world. Sally Baker Central Co. Cork Regional Representative I have been living in West Cork since moving from the UK in 1975, when my late husband and I bought our cottage and 3/4 acre of land. I had been a veterinary nurse and Jim was a depot manager with a tyre company. Our three children were all born here and are now themselves rearing their own families. It was my son's partner Ais's suggestion that I apply to become a Wwoof Host (they are Hosts themselves in Co. Clare), as I had broken my arm and was finding it difficult to cope with the outdoor jobs around the place. Being on my own, it was a struggle to get stuff done! I have found being a Host a really rewarding experience and have made some truly great friends along the way. There have also been the occasional not-so-good intervals where I think both myself and the Wwoofers concerned learnt lessons the hard way... but then that's all part of life. I was very interested in becoming more involved with Wwoof as a Regional Rep as I really love meeting people and am hoping to visit Hosts to exchange ideas and experiences. In the knowledge that a problem shared is a problem halved, I'm looking forward to being of help when needed by both Hosts and Wwoofers, even if it's just a listening ear when someone needs to let off steam! Newsletter Autumn 2015 WWOOF 3

4 Living and Learning on Organic Farms Conference in Italy Annie and Catherine report on the LLOOF conference plus two days of meetings After a year of intense virtual activity, with monthly Skype meetings, online planning, presentations from the partners on various aspects of the project, and promotion to interested parties for information and consultation, the 10 partner countries of the Living and Learning on Organic Farms (LLOOF) Erasmus+ funded project, had their second face-to-face meeting in September. The three day meeting took place at a WWOOF Host farm set on top of a hill in the beautiful village of Sassonero in Italy and included a Conference day, with delegates from Italy and beyond. There were farmers, smallholders, volunteers and Hosts from other countries, including Switzerland, Denmark, Germany and Israel, reflecting the true international nature of the project. All were invited to contribute to the discussions and decisions about the make up and content of the LLOOF learning platform. Presentations were made to show how the project has taken shape over the past year, with partners explaining to delegates their individual roles; as well as Italy planning the conference, the tasks undertaken by the groups range from the initial needs analysis from Serbia, to the planning of structure and content by Spain and the Online Educational Resource (OER) design by Hungary. Turkey has developed a contacts list, and communicated with Ireland for the distribution of promotion. Online resources, monitoring of soft outcomes and progress reports are handled by Sweden, Czech Republic and the UK. Much under discussion at the Conference was the learning content and approach, lead by Germany. The meeting concluded that the best way forward would be to develop a learning platform showing real people with real experiences, though video presentation, providing opportunities for feedback and interaction. Essentially, WWOOF volunteering is a practical learning process in an informal situation, undertaken in a hands on way. As many volunteers already produce short videos of their experiences on blogs or You Tube, it would be a short step to ask for specifically tailored videos as short presentations - to create the effect I can meet this person! so that Hosts can directly share their knowledge with many volunteers. We are very grateful to Nick Addey, a Host in Get Involved... Calling Hosts with expert knowledge and WWOOFers with a video camera or phone! We are asking WWOOFers to contribute to the LLOOF learning guide by making short instructional films with their Hosts. These will be moderated and then uploaded to the learning guide. Each film will be between 1 and 5 minutes long. So if you are a WWOOFer who enjoys making short videos or a Host who could offer information on one of the learning topics listed opposite, we'd love to hear from you. We can offer tips and guidelines about length and content, and personal support by phone or if you've any questions. Please contact catherine@wwoof.ie Visit: edvorg.weebly.com/ West Cork, for his important contribution to the project, in the shape of a short film, made with WWOOF Ireland, in which he presents information on tool maintenance, design and use, specifically aimed at WWOOFers. Showing this in Italy certainly influenced the partners' decision to focus on video as an important learning tool. A group of conference delegates including Annie, discussing the LLOOF learning guide content and approach in Italy 4 WWOOF Newsletter Autumn 2015

5 The LLOOF project is unique in Erasmus+ terms, being the only project in the funding scheme which has the full quota of ten partners, and is choosing to distribute funds evenly between the partner countries, despite the disparity of earnings in the different nations involved. Conference delegates from 15 countries, including a strong local Italian contingent Newsletter Autumn 2015 WWOOF 5

6 EU Conference in Brussels Following the conference in Italy, LLOOF co-ordinator Adam Cade attended an EU conference in Brussels on the 15th and 16th October. Knowledge for Young Farmers is a Pilot Project Exchange Scheme for young farmers. The central mission of the LLOOF project - an online learning guide as an interactive extension to the hands-on practical learning of volunteering, supported by experienced Hosts - is very relevant for encouraging young farmers. Indeed, WWOOF is one of the largest exchange schemes for young farmers in Europe already in existence, and is continually growing. The planned LLOOF learning guide will extend the reach of organic growing and sustainable living education. Filming for the LLOOF Learning Guide WWOOF Ireland has been collecting new video material for the LLOOF promotional film and for the learning guide itself, and is very grateful to all who have been helping, especially two WWOOFers, Vince from France and Allie from the USA, and Hosts Charlie Maguire, Christine Brewer and Sally Baker. WWOOFers and Hosts working together to provide content for the learning guide is helping to build relationships, increase shared knowledge and improve communication; it is also fun so please don't hesitate to get in touch if you'd like to get involved. Top: Charlie Maguire instructing WWOOFer Vince on the multiple uses of a traditional Irish shovel, while being filmed on a mobile phone by another WWOOFer Middle Row: Left: Sally Baker talks on film about some of her hand-made wooden kitchen implements. Right: Christine Brewer explains to WWOOFer Allie how to feed the chickens and ducks Bottom Row: Left: Vince and Allie harvesting pumpkins, ready for Halloween. Right: Vince and Allie kindly agreed to record original guitar and mouth organ music as background for the LLOOF film 6 WWOOF Newsletter Autumn 2015 Welcome to the Summer Newsletter, 2014 We hope everyone is having a good if busy summer with the wonderful weather we have been enjoying.

7 The Tool Survival Action Plan - Part 2 Nick Addey shares the fate of some of his favourite kitchen tools at the hands of his Wwoofers Butter fingers did for this dish... and far left, the most recent breakage - goodbye faithful flask! Many of the best meals I ve eaten have been served up by my wonder Wwoofers. The French, I have to say, lead the way and les garçons put most of us to shame. I d trust them in my kitchen anytime, bombshell-style messes being the only downside. Les filles, on the other hand, are quite capable of knocking up a wonderful meal but are also, seemingly, unfamiliar with the effect of flame on plastic. Fondu, I know, is a classic French dish, but when served with sieve drippings it loses its appeal. Quite how one completely mangles the cogs on an electric hand blender I ve no idea. I d had that faithful blender for twenty years or more but in a very short space of time, seconds, it became just another scrap item. I don t think the food was up to much either... possibly because that same chef had trouble with his timing. We had one of those lovely eggshaped egg timers, solid, metal and it worked faultlessly for years. Three minutes for a perfect brew; when to check the bread; when to get ready to go out. Now, it too, is scrap having been contrarily twisted once too often, its insides scrambled. That, probably, is the saddest thing, the Egg was such a friend. He also did for the towel-rail in the shower room (don t ask - I didn t) and several ducks, but that s another story. This list of breakages could go on and on, touching on everyday objects such as jugs and mugs (put your favourites away for the duration), fridge door fittings, tent lamps (they get sat on), ceramic butter dishes (butter-fingers), bike lights ( It just fell off ) and perhaps, every so often, once in a blue moon, your heart. Wwoofers - love em to death! HOSTS' PINBOARD We have to let you know that any Hosts who are not active - that is, they have not used the website at all - for three years will be automatically deleted to keep in line with recent EU Data protection legislation. We are still looking for anyone wishing to become a Regional Rep - please send an if you would like to find out more. Also it would be good to have more emergency spaces for WWOOFers who might be stranded due to illness or other problems in their Host families. And are there any Hosts who would be willing to hold a social event such as our Seed Swap? Hosts, please encourage WWOOFers to leave feedback; postive feedback is encouraging and negative feedback is used to improve things! And finally, please be sure your younger WWOOFers know the legal age for drinking in pubs in Ireland is 18! Please be in touch via the website if you are interested in being involved in any of the above ways! Newsletter Autumn 2015 WWOOF 7

8 WWOOFing from Ireland to Italy Laëtitia Lejeune's WWOOFing trip around Europe led to a lot of learning as well as fun When I started to wwoof, it was an opportuntiy for me to gain more experience with animals which I wanted for my work, and to travel, (I always wanted to travel). But at the same time, it was a chance to learn more about each country I went to, about the people I was living with, and about myself. Ireland: It was my first trip alone in another country, and I couldn't stop apologising because I arrived one hour late. At least I thought that I was late, I just forgot that it is one hour earlier in Ireland than in France! At Shannon airport, naturally, as a French person, I went to the right side of the car to get in and my Host laughed a lot, but nicely; then we went to a pub and I had my first Guinness. The next day, I discovered the unique and very gorgeous hills made of limestone, and realized that I would have to speak English to the animals too; I never thought about it before I met Ciùnas, the dog, who doesn't understand French of course! After two weeks I went to Bantry, Co. Cork, where I met my second Hosts; Susy and Francis. I immediatly loved Susy, she made Lasagna, my favourite meal even if she couldn't know it, the first evening I arrived. There it was a paradise, they were so nice, I learnt a lot about animals, gardening, and the organic way of life. We spent the day taking care of animals: guinea pigs, rabbits, dogs, cats, ducks, hens, a turtle, four donkeys, sheep, and gardening. It was a very good experience. Field work in Denmark... Denmark: I had to continue my trip, and so I went to Eskilstrup, a small village in Denmark. When I arrived, my luggage didn't! It was the night and I was a little bit stressed about it, but my Host Flemming helped me a lot; he gave me all I needed (toothbrush, soap, boots ), he was very welcoming. Sara, a Spanish wwoofer was there. It is always interesting to meet people from another country than the one you're in. We spent the day cleaning the fields, planting a lot of vegetables, and doing some DIY. The landscape was similar to mine in France with forests and small villages, the difference being the relief; in my region there are a lot of hills everywhere, in Denmark everything is flat, so you can go everywhere by bike. Also you can't be wrong about which country you're in because every garden has the Danish flag in it! Norway: The next step was Trondheim, in Norway and the landscape from the house took my breath away. The farm was on a mountain, overlooking a beautiful fjord. There were hills and mountains everywhere as if the ground refused to be flat. My host, Ole Johan, was very nice and his mother Eldbjørg too, very funny, she loves life and you can see it! At the beginning, Ole couldn't pronounce my name, Laëtitia, so he said lettuces, it was the closest pronunciation he could manage, it was very funny! I didn't have the right pronunciation of his name too, so that was fair. If you keep going on the logical translation of my name, I was in charge of the lettuces! I guess it was my destiny. I spent one month there, and it wasn't enough!! The first week I didn't work with animals, just in case I brought some diseases to them because I worked in other farms before, but after that I was working all the time with chickens, cows, sheep, lambs, pigs and a little bit of gardening and I really loved it. Ole was very strict about the hours of work and it was very comfortable. We worked from 8h to 12h and 14h to 16h - and when he told us to stop, he would continue what we were doing. I remember when I arrived he asked me if I was able to cook. Susy and Francis taught me a few things but, except desserts, I didn't really know how to cook anything. He didn't wait for my answer and just said Of course you know, you're French! Yes, of course! I wish it was true! He taught me some more things and I made some cakes, it was a nice deal. Once again I didn't want to leave But I had to. And to go to Greece! I was so excited about it! 8 WWOOF Newsletter Autumn 2015

9 honey in Italy... olive oil in Greece... feeding sheep in Norway... and making goat's cheese in Greece Greece: Next I went to Lipsi Island via Athens, by boat. I was very excited about it but a lot less so after twelve hours in the boat. It was 2am when I arrived on Lipsi and my Host was waiting for me with his scooter. He took my HUGE luggage in front of him on the scooter, me behind him and we were going to the farm. The boat, the island, the scooter with my huge luggage, all of this made me feel like a real world traveller more than anything. The work consisted of gardening, the vineyard, feeding goats, and cleaning houses. But I mainly discovered the lifestyle: no washing-machine, no internet, almost no food, springwater that we had to bring from a well to the farm. But we had a lot of fun there! The beach was 50 metres from the farm, I went there every afternoon to swim with the fish in the ocean, it was really gorgeous! I had a food crush there: stuffed calamari with tomato rice - delicious! Every single person on the island was so kind, so nice! It is a small island, everyone knows and helps each other. We all used to meet at a restaurant called Manoli's, and by all I mean us wwoofers, and also the people of the island: an Englishman who comes to Lipsi every year, an Australian who is the house painter of the island (he used to say my job is very difficult, you never know if you start to paint with the blue or the white! So stressful! ) also a woman from Armenia... It was very rewarding. I loved Lipsi, but five weeks on this farm was enough. So I took the plane to Kos, another island, then the plane to Athens, then on to Milan. Italy: I stayed two weeks in Magenta (near Milan), with a lovely family: Rafaele and Valentina and their children. Rafaele loves France, and he and Valentina speak French. Valentina, added to being a very good mother and a wonderful woman, can cook anything. Each meal we had meat or fish followed by pasta and I know it is a cliché, but such wonderful pasta! The work at the farm was to collect blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, plums, lavender, and we learnt to collect honey! Everything I learnt I had occasion to use; for example, Susy showed me how to give food to sheep and I was able to do it in Denmark, Norway, Greece, even in a zoo where I worked after wwoofing! It can sound ridiculous, but when you have sheep food and you are in the middle of a flock, you had better know how to do it, otherwise you finish on the ground in less than 10 seconds! The experience of wwoofing depends on the Host, of course, but also on all the people you will meet and the context of the things you do. I met wonderful people from all around the world. Before this trip, I felt uncomfortable to go far away from my home alone, but now I feel comfortable everywhere, and I think that I am able to deal with a lot of different situations. It was a step in my life, I'm glad I did it and I'm proud of it. I wanted to find myself in a professional way and found myself in a personal way. This experience allowed me to see things from a new angle: when I arrived in Italy, the landscape made me think about the south of France but now, the south of France makes me think about Italy! Watching the total solar elipse on 20 March 2015 in Ireland with Host Francis Greaves Newsletter Autumn 2015 WWOOF 9

10 Rob's Website News WWOOF Ireland website manager Rob offers a few tips on new additions to the website I'm pleased to announce further improvements to the website. Finding Hosts by for WWOOFers WWOOFers will now be able to search for the profiles of Hosts they are in contact with via the WWOOFer's drop down menu on the top right of the site. This overcomes a problem often reported to us by WWOOFers who upon receiving replies from hosts (without signatures or usernames) were unable to ascertain where they came from. They can now pop in that address, and providing that address is the same as the Host used to register with the site, will then be able to see a link to the Host's profile page. DROP DOWN MENU ENTER HOST'S ADDRESS HERE Parental Consent Forms for WWOOFers WWOOFers between the ages of 16 and 18 years will now automatically see on their dashboards a blue button that says CREATE A PARENTAL CONSENT FORM ; clicking on this will take them to the form. After completing it online, the form can then be printed and signed by a parent or guardian, and a copy should also be sent to the WWOOF Ireland office. These WWOOFers are instructed to show the form to the Hosts they visit to prove they have their parents consent. CLICK HERE TO CREATE A PARENTAL CONSENT FORM WWOOF Ireland on the noticeboard WWOOF Ireland now has the facility to post notices to the top of the noticeboard. Please look out for these notices as this will be the usual place for information from the WWOOF Ireland office. Noticeboard page numbers There are now page numbers at the top of each noticeboard page, making it easier to return to find a particular notice again. Clicking on one of the page numbers will take you to that page, so make a note of the page you are on before navigating away from the notice; if later you want to return to the notice, click on that page number, and you will be returned to the correct page. PAGE NUMBERS INFORMATION FROM WWOOF IRELAND Finding WWOOFers for hosts This has been added to the mobile version of the website, and is now accessible on mobile phones and tablets. 10 WWOOF Newsletter Autumn 2015

11 Families accepted box for hosts There is now a Field on the website where we ask Hosts to state whether they take families. Please can you check this is filled in, it is a YES or NO answer! To set this please go to your Host profile edit page. If any Host is unsure of how to do this, please contact me and I can set it for them. I have also added a search facility for that Field where WWOOFers can easily find out if Hosts can take families. There is now a link on the WWOOFers menu to that search to make it more accessible. HOSTS SELECT 'YES' OR 'NO' TO INDICATE WHETHER YOU ARE ABLE TO TAKE FAMILIES Incorrect notices apology I would like to take this opportunity to apologise to those of you who received incorrect membership expired notices that were sent in error from our test sites. This is an unfortunate side effect of the new safer system of testing employed with the new website. We now have a much safer system of development and problem testing than before. We are using test sites replicating the live website where we can check if there are any issues or conflicts that might damage the complex software of the site, without experimenting with the live website itself. So we need to use old copies of the database from time to time and sometimes, despite our best efforts to avoid it, out of date messages are sent out before we can alter the settings to prevent them. We will try our best to avoid this in the future but cannot guarantee it not happening again, so please bear with us! If you think an has been sent out in error, please check your membership status by going to your Host home page and click the membership button, and if in doubt contact me. Carrageen Moss drink for sore throats and chesty coughs Rachel Dare of Organico Health Food Shop and Cafe in Bantry gave us this fantastic recipe for winter colds and chills This is a really easy, nourishing and soothing drink, made from Carrageen moss, that is ideal to combat winter chills. It makes a jelly-like thick liquid which, with honey and lemon juice added, tastes pretty good and really makes you feel better. It is easiest to use the dried seaweed for sale in most healthfood shops - but if you are very keen you can harvest it yourself in Ireland. Ingredients: Carrageen moss - a good handful of the dried seaweed (about 5 grams) 1 organic un-waxed lemon 1 teaspoon of manuka honey or local honey per person 1 pint cold water How to Make: Juice your lemon. Put the Carrageen moss into a medium stainless steel pan, add water to cover, add the shell of the lemon if it is organic, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice. To serve, strain into a large mug and add honey to taste. Keep the pan near the stove and heat up more as needed. You can also add sage leaves which are good for sore throats or thyme leaves for chesty coughs. Newsletter Autumn 2015 WWOOF 11

12 Annie's Compost Toilet A team of WWOOFers spent their visit building a movable drop toilet from recycled material The objective of this compost drop toilet was to use only recycled materials to create a cubicle with two compartments which would be light enough to be moved from one trench to another. The design was evolved during the process of building by Thomas, a returning WWOOFer from last year, and Ossian, whose connection with WWOOF is through his parents, who would never have met if it were not for WWOOF Ireland! Things like the exact size were dictated by the dimensions and type of recycled timber available. Insulation for the walls came from a demolished caravan and the interior was lined with thin soft board from the tip - giving a cottage interior! Screws, nails and the exterior damp proofing were the only things purchased. The final cladding was salvaged fencing panels, cleaned and painted and put in place by a series of WWOOFers over the summer months - too many to mention, but who all have my gratitude - you know who you are!! Although a permanent feature that will be used by WWOOFers, it was originally made for a large party held in July when it came in very useful! 1. The frame made from recycled timber 2. Reclaimed windows for each side 3. Left: Andoni and Josepha, the trench diggers Above: Thomas, one half of the main construction duo, with Ossian below 4. Toilet with damp proof cladding positioned over trench 5. Above: Ossian, showing the interior with toilet box, wooden floor, doors made with bamboo slats from a Venetian blind and second-hand flowery toilet seat! Left: Thomas, Andoni and Josepha 6. Above: In place for the party with sign, steps and solar lighting, but no exterior cladding 9. Left: Cladding and corrugated iron roof (not quite finished!), added after the party by many other WWOOFers WWOOF Ireland is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee Company Reg. no Registered address: Milbeg, Coomhola, Bantry, Co. Cork WWOOF Ireland This newsletter is printed on paper from sustainably managed forests (Thanks to Bridget Trethaway for the front cover photo)