Imagine a week where… You wake up to the sound of chirping birds, or peaceful rain drizzling on your tent. The soft yet powerful “dong” signals and it’s time to get ready for the day.
Breathe in and smell the fresh air, nature surrounds you.
There are smiling faces that greet you around every tree and you’re fed with deliciously healthy plant-based meals. In the morning, you work within a community of active citizens, giving back to mother nature by either planting trees, removing invasive plants, painting environmental murals, building with natural materials and more.
In the afternoons you’re attending nature-based workshops ranging from mycology, permaculture, ecology, herbal medicine, music-making, and mindful living.
Let’s not forget about the dancing sessions which include conscious dancing and silent discos.
It’s a safe space for yoga, meditation, and reflection. Bathe in nature with forest walks, waterfalls, and beaches, unlocking parts of yourself you didn’t know you had within. Participate in meaningful and deep conversations, as well as develop life-long friendships with the most amazing earth warriors.
At night, you join with music around the campfire (Jeremy Loops was there too, if I may add), environmental film screening, a talent show, speakers evening and music night celebration. Together you celebrate the day, celebrate your accomplishments, celebrate your experiences and celebrate your new profound knowledge.
… this is an average day at the Greenpop Eden Festival of Action.
A special highlight this year was meeting and listening to the ecologist and filmmaker John D. Liu. He spoke about the importance of restoring our planet. Liu is the chairperson of Ecosystem Restoration Camps where they are actively restoring ecosystems from arid deserts to productive food forests. (Learn more about his work here)
Another key highlight was a panel discussion on series of ecological questions between Lui, Timothy Wigley (Permaculture Father in South Africa), Siyabulela Sokomani (Shoots and Roots), Matthew Koehorst (Six Kingdoms) and Anna Breytenbach (interspecies communication). It was pointed out that the survival of our human species depends heavily on the health status of our earth’s ecological systems. We need to work together as a species to restore our planet! (Read more about the panel discussion here)
You attend the festival to give back to mother nature, but in the end, you are fulfilled and rewarded in so many ways. The experience of living in an eco-active community is an experience I wish upon every person.
I’d love to give a very special shoutout to Greenpop an environmentally conscious tree-planting organisation who aims to re-connect people to the planet. Thank you for creating this incredible space and for the work you are doing.
“Be active, not anxious about the future”
Photo credit: Aidan Tobias and Mike Faraday
