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Weimar - Traditional Stone Techniques & Reconstruction of historic parks | OH-H06 | 2020-08-15 - 2020-08-29 | CONS,ENVI | Age: 18 - 35

IMPORTANT: If you’re going to make an application for this workcamp you need to know that you must be very motivated and understand that this is a project related to the cultural heritage of UNESCO and which will require a strong commitment to participate.

The history of Open Houses Network dates back to the mid-1980s, when a group of young people began to restore village churches in East Germany in voluntary work to protect them from decay. The initiative to save these buildings brought together people who enjoyed the freedom these activities provided, bringing life again to these places in ways which by far exceed the craftsmen s work done – through exhibitions, concerts, making music together or just sitting by a camp fire. Today, spaces free of political and ideological pressure are no longer urgently required; nonetheless, it is now rare to find places where people can meet without commercial pressure, free of bureaucracy and institutionalism, free of prejudice and the exclusion which it produces. What should be easy – to go somewhere in order to meet people and to work together – has become difficult. The tightrope walk between, on the one hand, public activities in a monetary and functional sense, and the retreat into private life on the other, is very difficult, and it requires a lot of power and permanent efforts to tackle red tape and financial restrictions. Free spaces are less and less understood as common property, and are permanently being cut back. The idea of public property seems to have gone out of fashion, and places of common responsible work have become rare. Open Houses Network tries to create and protect such spaces. In this process, we do not want to be the do-ers. We want to be those who propose vision of initiating a new change in perspective while still being aware of the need to rely in the co-operation of others. We understand our projects and events as offers – as offers to create space for commitment, for changes, for meetings.

Work: The project consists of two parts – a practical working part which will last 6 hours per day and a study part, which takes place in the evenings and during weekends. The practical part usually consists of two elements – a park restoration part on one hand and a maintenance part on the other hand. Due to a rotating system the volunteers have the opportunity to get to know during the project both fields. The restoration part will take place at the so called "kitchen garden" at the Southern edge of Belvedere Park that had been arranged in the 19th century as a combined fruit, vegetable and flower garden. Time has had its hand on this garden, and some of its elements have been lost to nature’s way. Nonetheless, the traces of the original designs remain, and the first task will have the volunteers carefully uncovering and helping to restore a pathway that ran through the kitchen garden. Additionally, the dry stone walls as the formative element of the garden are ruinous and shall be protected against progressive decay. Since the dry stone walls are an important habitat for wild bees and other rare insects the restoration needs to be carried out extremely carefully, the stones that have fallen down over decades will be collected and reutilized to restore the structure following instructions from the artisan specialist. The works will be guided by a bricklayer specialised on historic walls and traditional techniques that will provide during the study part more theoretical knowledge in this field. Another part of the group will carry out maintenance works mainly in the Belvedere Park, part of the ensemble of the UNESCO World Heritage site “Classical Weimar”, thus supporting Weimar Classic Foundation, the responsible site management. At the same time the volunteers will gain a detailed knowledge about the different parks and gardens of the World Heritage site and the challenges in managing them. The educational part of the project will inform the volunteers about the background of the project provide knowledge about historical garden and park architecture, traditional gardening and other related topics and will include lectures and guided tours about “Classical Weimar” as well as excursions to related heritage sites. The opportunity of free entrance to museums and exhibitions will enable in addition individual study.

Accomodation and food: The hostel in the city center will accomodate the volunteers in shared bed-rooms. All the basic facilities for the daily needs of the volunteers will be available. Both food and accomodation are included for the volunteers as part of this project. The volunteers will be responsible for preparing the shared meals in the hostals kitchen through a rotation system where all will participate. This would be a good opportunity for the volunteers to bring with them traditional recipes from their countries which could be presented to the group.

Location: Weimar

Location and Leisure: In the late 18th and early 19th centuries the small town of Weimar in Thuringia saw a remarkable cultural flowering. Enlightened ducal patronage attracted many leading German writers, composers and artists to the town, including Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Friedrich Schiller and Franz Liszt, thus making Weimar the cultural centre of Europe at that time. This development is reflected in the high quality of many of the buildings and parks in the surrounding area. “Classical Weimar” was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1998, the 20th site in Germany to be recognised as World Heritage. “Classical Weimar” comprises twelve individual buildings and ensembles, all of which portray tangible and intangible elements of Classical Weimar’s cultural heritage. Weimar’s City Castle, the Duchess Anna Amalia Library, Goethe’s and Schiller’s residences, the Town Church, the Ducal Vault with the Historic Cemetery and many others are included on the World Heritage List. Weimar’s historical parks and gardens connect the historical buildings and their surrounding grounds and are a key feature in the “Classical Weimar” collection: the Park on the Ilm with the Roman House and Goethe’s Garden House, Belvedere Park with its Castle and Orangery, Tiefurt Park and Castle and Ettersburg Park and Castle. The European Heritage Volunteers Project “Parks and Gardens of Classical Weimar” has been taking place since 2011. As in all years since 2012, also the 2020 project will be carried out within the framework of the UNESCO World Heritage Volunteers Initiative. It is to this year the longest ongoing project under the framework of the WHV Initiative that has been in function uninterruptedly. Leisure time: The project will take place in the beautiful town of Weimar in the heart of Thuringia. The participants can enjoy the cultural offerings of the city and free access to several museums which are managed by the Classic Weimar Foundation. Additionally several guided tours to nearby places of interest for the educational component of the project will be organised. There will be a free day where an excursion to nearby places of interest can be arranged by the group. Usually average temperatures in Germany during the summer time are about 20º C to 30º C; during the night it will get colder. It is possible that there may be three weeks of non-stop sunshine, but every day rain is not impossible either.

Train/Bus station: Erfurt (20 km), Jena (20 km)

Requirements: Motivation letter related to the project and CV + photo required Skype interview will be scheduled for selection. -Passport -EU-members should bring their European Health Insurance Card; those which have an individual travel insurance should bring the certificate

Language: eng

Extra Fee: 50 EUR

Volunteers should bring: -stable work boots, really appropriate for practical work -appropriate clothes, waterproof coat -mosquito protection lotion -Dictionary -typical recipes, sweets, music, instruments and games from the participants home country for group activities -More detailed information will be sent later on the infosheet