I love how Project Kamp keeps it real, are not afraid of recognising and addressing challenges. Thank you for all the reference material that others can benefit from!
And how they approach any challenges with an open mind and very often with a research approach (let's compare systemacally and see what is the best solution). It makes them stand out for me.
Theory for the increase of smoking: Me as a smoker I experience the feeling of hunger being very close to wanting to smoke. So, I understood a lot of people change their diet coming to Base Camp and might not stuff their stomachs as much as they were used to. All in all, people might just be hungry 🤷😅
I've truly enjoyed watching the evolution of the project over the past couple of years. People come and people go, but the camp has become its own organic entity, which is very cool to see as it evolves.
It's cool but it's also very noticeable the fatigue growing among the "permanent" crew. Something they mentioned. Hopefully they can all have some time off as well.
hello from Canada. one possible solution for the timing of arriving of new members of the team could be an welcoming/ INTRO video, so when people show up, you guys only need to present the intro video, bypassing the need of multiple presentations of the Kamp, optimizing your time
Some people would love to do an admin job where you are. Especially if they are less capable of physical work but would still feel they were of use to the kamp
I enjoy that Dave is back in the show. You rock. I would like to understand the ownership structure of project kamp. The community and shared experience is wonderful, yet I guess at the end there is an owner and others are guests investing their time and effort. Can these things be reconciled somehow?
Don't forget online supporters who donate their money. Their Patreon has 1211 supporters - at their lowest subscription rate of 7 euros/month is around 8500 euros a month alone. RU-vid probably another couple thousand. So either one owner or a couple are receiving and employing several of these people, with the short-term guests volunteering for food and board, or the money is distributed in a different way. That's serious income in Portugal, and money often becomes an issue in such "intentional communities". Will be interesting to see how Kamp deals with it, as I'm sure they're already doing to an extent.
You'd be surprised what kind of work different people enjoy: I would absolutely love doing administrative tasks in the project camp office. Beats working in the city! I hope a fellow admin-nerd finds their way to you!
I really believe the increase in drinking and smoking is because of the social aspect. Many people who don't normally drink end up drinking when spending a lot of time with friends. One person who drinks can tempt everyone else. I totally get it. It could also be that if there's drama and toxicity, that plays a part, but I doubt it's that in a chill place like project kamp. Great video, keep it up! A tip: Maybe use the names of people more in videos and show their name when the person goes on screen so people can become more familiar with the faces to the names. This will help viewers really feel connected to the project, as the project is awesome, but so are the people and they are who make it works!
Natural Cycles: A suggestion would be to seek out individuals for the winter that are used to working in those conditions. I would suggest providing Environmental Data for the winter season. Oddly enough, I find that here in Canada, working on the land in the winter is easier for certain hard physical activities like chopping trees, etc. but every geographical location is different. Hope this helps!
I was thinking the same thing. Those of us here are so use to just carrying on in -20C. I don't think they are in the coldest area of the country either, so it wouldn't even get that cold. I think the challenges would be getting around and the resources that would be used and how they are used. Might not be practical just yet.
It's not the cold as such, I suppose, it's the rain. It can start raining in October and go pretty much non stop till March. Or you can have practically no rain all winter because f consistency.
Hey guys! I have some tips from my experience! Alternatively, repurpose the tree on your land - for example, a chestnut log can serve as a rustic and effective retaining wall or garden edge. Another option is to create hugelkultur garden beds by stacking logs and branches with layers of grass and leaves, which decompose over time and improve soil quality. For heating purposes, use certain types of wood like cherry, yew, or maple, which impart a delicious flavor to cooking when used as barbecue or pizza oven fuel. Branches can be utilized for retaining walls or supporting track sides in construction. Instead of burning forestry slash, consider leaving it to rot in place on the hillside, sequestering carbon and benefiting the environment. For removal, turn it into biochar, a type of carbon charcoal that enhances soil quality when produced in a low-oxygen burning process. Leaves from various trees can be fodder for animals, but caution is necessary as some may be poisonous. They contain nitrogen, while twigs and small branches have carbon, making them suitable for fast-decaying compost or mulch under trees or in gardens. However, be mindful of the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio, as excessive carbon can deplete soil nitrogen and harm small plants.
'how to chop mimosas, we don't really know'..a small army of people have previously replied to this question with a range of answers and solutions from other countries.
Well, in the rain season you could try to make a little hole in the heart off the trunk. Rain will fill it. Make sure it cant run out the sides. Good chance the trunk will rotten. Killing the tree.
Thought the same and had to google it: "In the year 2022, almost a quarter of Icelanders fell under the definition of having a harmful consumption pattern of alcohol, or risk consumption [...]" Boy oh boy ...
@@LiLBitsDK I think for both practical (refrigeration/contamination) as well as ecological reasons they only serve vegan food. I'm sure more than one of them misses meat. Would be cool if they could at least get a small flock of chickens so that they have access to fresh eggs. Even some dedicated vegans will eat eggs if they know where they came from and that the chickens are being treated well.
@@EnkiduShamesh contamination? really? people all around the globe can handle meat just fine... I am sure a rural place in Portugal could too... No reason to only serve vegan food... heck could atleast make it vegetarian... but someone there is holier than god so it gotta be vegan... and without going too deep into it then humans are omnivores not herbivores and enforcing it on other people is kinda sick... and they do have power, so refrigeration isn't an issue if they really wanted to... and if vegans eat eggs then they are not vegans, they are vegetarian... which is more sane than vegans denying their biology...
As an old man (old to remember the hayday of communes) it is great to see the worldwide diversity of your Kamp! Thank you for you stewardship of the land, and good luck with the 'donut hole' you hope to purchase. Your videos give me faith for the future of this planet 😊 I appreciate all the effort that goes into them!
An idea: first hire a big mulcher for the tree stumps. Second: resource tree trunks and make a big shaded area over cleared space using logs to block sunlight and keep trees from regrowing. Make tall enough to walk under. Char base of trucks and put in trench filled with sand to allow drainage and minimize rot. So one area at a time. You'll have a shaded hangout area and keep tree growth down. Maybe dirt on top of log roof to keep it from catching on fire.
As a fellow Icelander and a viewer from episode 1, I was amazed to see you have an Icelander on the team. Would love to see an introduction on him! Keep up the good work, I love the content and Project Kamp is one of my favourite channels.
I strongly agree. As a project manager in the pharmaceutical industry I might have seen projects where specific tasks/roles are split up on many persons. That resulted in many open tasks "piling up", no oversight and a bad communication. It is necessary to have some kind of structure and reporting in that case. Or, and that is maybe easier to handle, have one person overviewing these tasks (and solving it alone). And I only refer to specific tasks, not everything you can image :)
the Icelanders replies were grate. Meat lol (i would totally agree). For the camp would a system like you did with the media team be a good solution to the "needed" jobs around camp. Opening for black smith for tools, Admin for paperwork, supply and requisition... ect.? community pillars
Regarding new people starting at kamp, how about having a "buddy system" where a more senior member of kamp is assigned a new member who they coach for a few weeks until they are settled. This way it doesn't matter if new members arrive at the same time or in bits throughout the summer.
'We love all of you and what you are doing at Project Kamp. The question of "what is a sustainable community and how can humans live sustainably in a natural environment" is one that can only be answered by actually creating it and evolving it like these folks are doing. It is hard work and extremely challenging, which is why most people would prefer to just separate their garbage for recycling and send a check to some environmental protest group. Real change is hard work, uncomfortable and full of challenges to solve creatively. Kudos to Project Kamp for actually walking their talk into a truly greener future...
It’d be a good idea to collect as many kinds of acorns and other tree seeds as possible this year, so they may be germinating in spring, and ensure diversity in the forest. The local community would like to help I would think
what i love about project kamp, it's the fact that it's giving me perspective and idea how to improve my house, currently thinking about using less nail to reuse more for example. you guys made me happy every monday keep the good job !
Find it fascinating to see community work and build. Especially the community get along with one another. In some countries considered a blessing. Hope for humanity is near.
Solar energy, I think you aligned all the panels in one direction and therefore probably forgot morning sun and afternoon sun - winter sun. New panels you set up must take this into account
Tree problem, hybrid Paulowina trees could be a solution, does not reproduce on its own, grows 4 meters per year with a little pruning, originates from Asia. After regular pruning, after 8 to 10 years, 35 cm in circumference and durable wood for furniture or a yoga desk....and of course shade very quickly! Deal with the topic.
i start to fall in love with what you guys do. i follow for years now and i feel that the work you do will help not only yourselves but the whole world.
Fresher's week 🎉. Have new people arrive within a week period. Spend the week doing orientation and ice breakers. Talk about plans and projects and let them settle and get used to the vibe and camp life flow. Then have a big party at the end of the week to celebrate the start of the season
For any plant, if it has no foliar mass during autumn, it can´t store energy in the roots for the upcoming spring. So if you get rid of the new shoots now and keep them away until autumn, the chance of the survival of the plant reduces quite a lot. If it sprouts again next spring repeat until all energy storage is gone. Might be helpful to get rid of the mimosas that were cut down.
Mimosa sprouts from the energy stored in the dense matt of their grafted root system. It will take at minimum 3 years of constant browsing to deplete the root system. Project Kamp has already experienced the resprouting phenomena. I do not understand why they are not addressing this problem. The only solution is goats. It appears most of the cut mimosa are being used to create on contour berms that will compost over time. 😊
@@stevejohnstonbaugh9171 Interesting, wasn´t aware of the sturdiness of mimosa. After two seasons so far I managed to get rid of all unwanted plants. Yes, goats but also sheep do wonder in getting rid of everythign that grows.
@@figos1 Most invasive species have some core "hardiness" that enablers them to outcompete the native species. No natural pathogens, more moisture than their native habitat (southern Asia) speed of growth. In the case of Project Kamp they simply shade out the natives (which are much slower growing). Where it my property I would use the "hack and squirt" method to kill the root network. As to sheep - they typically look down for food - head down grazers. Sheep also require more routine maintenance including shearing. Goats, on the other hand are much hardier and (assuming they are "local") their browsing vision is much wider (up to about 4' and down to the ground, and they don't eat the crown out of native vegetation like sheep when allowed to overgraze.
You can plant native trees and woody shrubs in April and May. You simply have to commit to running a drip irrigation circuit to water them for the first two summers after planting. You seem to have adequate water supply, so the cost is low.
@@LiLBitsDK Hi there lil Bits! Thought you changed your name! Still drinking Mr. Stephan's Koolaid, I see. 50 seedling trees can be drip irrigated for less than you have been led to believe if you are smart about your choices. Here in the US 1000 feet of 1/2" poly mainline irrigation pipe can be bought for $112.29 USD That's 20' between seedlings and 2 fittings required. 😊 Plant 50 trees for 10 years you have a 500 tree forest. Simple!
@@stevejohnstonbaugh9171 who is Mr Stephan? and I don't drink american toxic drinks... lol... I don't care what shit costs in USA... I what it costs in Portugal...
That wood experiment board is so awesome. So many beautiful characters as I watched the Q&A. I wish you all safety, good times + friendships and harmony ❤
Both workplace and admin could be the same role if you don't go the decentalised route. Companies often have office managers, you could have a site manager. This could also be an elected position you rotate every x weeks, and the knowledge of how you do this added to your project reference files. I recommend you look at systems used in lean manufacturing for stock control, and concepts like kanban for admin management.
You guys are so good at making videos. Why don't you guys make introduction videos of all the aspects you want to communicate to the new residents. Make one of each chapter, how to deal with each other; how to use the tools; how to deal with the "sanitary" rooms; how to deal with the storage of products, how to deal with the storage of food, how to deal with your garbage; how to clean and so on. The advantage is that you then don't forget anything, you can easily (more) adapt/renew the videos based on new insights, but also that everyone can watch and/or rewatch it at their own time but also that you can possibly watch them together and thus also create a "together" moment.
Exactly what I was going to say, videos detailing the function of the place and keeping record who watches as would be extremely necessary watching them before going to camp
It is a paradox but the values behind Project Camp means that there has to be a certain tolerence for inefficiency. I do think having two windows a season for people to arrive feels fair so you can onboard people more consistently.
With all the wood chips on the ground you should add Mushroom mycilium to it and have another food source right at your feet. Wine caps grow great in wood chips and love traffic areas often walked once the mycilium is established. Also for all the mimosa trees you can use a fungus called Fusarium wilt to kill the mimosa for ever with very minimal work.
Fusarium oxysporum The Mimosa tree has its own special fungal pathogen called Mimosa wilt (Fusarium oxysporum). Initial symptoms of Mimosa wilt are a yellowing and wilting of the foliage on a few of the branches. This foliage then browns and falls off. Affected branches die.
Onboarding and accounting are relatively normal organization challenges: - I've seen onboarding (e.g. land tour, explanation of inner workings) being made into a normal periodic task, e.g. every other week which also helps those who didn't retain the knowledge from when they just joined. Alternative model I've seen is to do a buddy system, where a long-term or a more established member is paired with the newcomer and this role rotates and is part of the general task (this can be hit or miss based on personality). - for accounting, this is a good opportunity for off-site help (e.g. find some volunteers who are online, but not on-site) and for some software system that organizations use, but generally, management is a job and is something that is hard to outsource so somebody who enjoys it should become a member (it is definitely not just a seniority thing).
To deal with the poop problem and the power demands for when winter comes, you guys could set up a methane generator with the outhouse. The methane gas that emits from the human waste can be collected and used to power gas stoves or pumped into a generator to power space heaters. Another method I saw used for this is using the waste to collect fly larva in separate containers to provide protein for livestock, specifically chickens.
We grow our own fruits and veggies. If you build a greenhouse also it will provide year round food stuffs. Buy seeds initially then harvest your own seeds from the first crops. You will save a lot of money. 👍👍👍 you already have great composts now in the making to use.
4:45 a good way to solve it is to make the smoking spot less friendly. No tables, no back rest, only small individual chairs that you don't want to use for too long.
About the whole introduction into the kamp thingy. You have all the materials and skills to fix this! Just make a video explaining the basics! Let them come, show them the video after meeting and if they have any questions afterwards write them down and improve the video. It's easy for both parties and the video could even be a private one on this channel to which you can link before they are coming on site to save some time. Then once they arrive you give them the quick and dirty walkthrough and let them settle down 😁
About sourcing the materials.. it will always be a compromise in the end but given you will end up with a lot of raw material by forming the land it may be worth it to start a small team or enterprise in search of material that can be re purposed and to make some basic facilities to process some raw stuff. Trees that have fallen over and have dried a bit, pieces of metal and agri equipment that are overgrown, lots of material that have been sitting in someones shed for years. It's all out there in the rural landscape and could provide a rotating basis of low cost bulk materials that also provide an anchor and a set of limitations in the design process. Additionally you'll form a network and put yourself out there as a good cause to donate any kind of usable waste or overstock to.
@Project Kamp Ok I used to work as a supervisor at a furniture manufacturing plant for a giant company. To get your influx of new people and old people motivated as a group I suggest a few things. Weekly team meetings Have new people shadow experienced people for a day or two. As to you materials issue. I suggest working with your local vendor. Come up with a way for them to stock extra materials that you would commonly use in the summer. This in exchange for you using them exclusively for that resource. In other words map out how many extra pieces of lumber they would need to keep on hand at the start of the summer and then slowly revert back to winter numbers of stock through the summer. This should keep enough materials on hand at the vendor for your needs. A plus side for the vendor is they will have an idea what you are doing and can make sure they don't sell out of a material, which could make a customer go elsewhere. At my factory we had what we called a tool armorer (repair guy). All they did was fix tools. ( we had an enormous amount of pneumatic air tools)
I think the lack of public transport was a critical mistake. I think the land location should've been picked along the line of an intercity bus or an intercity train, so that once Project Kamp grows to a big population, people should be able to get on the train and visit the city much more easily.
For the natural cycles challenge, you could (in the future) consider building a bunk house type place. For example, even using a shipping container you could insulate it and convert it into a place where people staying at project camp could sleep. This would make it less daunting for people to come in the winter/autumn/ spring because they would know they have a place to sleep which is drier, warmer and more comfortable (mostly) than a tent.
I’d say if you want to create effective fire breaks among the trees and around the camp, mimosas etc need to be pulled completely out of the ground - as any wildfire will burn the roots underground as well as over ground.
I just love to see you all grow and develop! And it's super interesting to see the journey and how everything changes bit by bit. Don't have the possibility to donate via patreon butI'm trying to leave a comment on the videos I watch for engagement and the algorithm!
work life balance..... Set a schedule Breakfast is at x- time Work starts - X time lunch - x-time work - x-time Stop working, FOT (goof off time) Dinner - x-time More FOT Plan specific days for NOT working, or only work if there is a critical failure. You have water, set up some sprinklers for people to play in. Slip n slides, misters, dig a hole and put a water filtration system in, then build a concrete water tub around it all. Get yourself a cheap projector, a laptop, and do movie nights. Have people take turns preparing their favorite treats. Incultural exchanges food, holidays, what ever teach about each others cultures. Do a dance night every week or 2. Build a sauna...... Build a place to observe the stars, moon, planets, and what not. There are tons of things that you can do to help take the edge off work.
Great update! It's inspiring to see the realness of it. As a Dutchy who has been living in my van in a permaculture/regenerative project in the South of Spain for over 2 years (and 2 years in another before that). For us summer is a time of going in survival and rest mode. It's too hot and too dry to do too much. The workseasons (at least here) are the other way around, summer is for rest and maintanance, winter (even though it's raining, or because it's raining) it for working, I still struggle with that. Our volunteer seasons starts in October/november, once the rain starts and ends around May when it get warmer. Last year it even started in January, because we just needed more time to prepare the work (our core group had 6 people in it). At some point we were 15-20 people and by april/may the core people were exhausted. These kinds of projects are beautiful and great, but as you said, you need to rest. The coming and going of volunteers is really intense. And with more specialized volunteers, which indeed is a challenge, you also have to get a bit lucky. And maybe the admin can be done virtually by someone? Well keep up the great work and I hope you all find enough time to rest!
I enjoy the practical projects but the really clever thing about project camp is that it's a social experiment, much harder to make work. Why do we love you so much ? effort, honesty, an effort at a sustainable life style, being realistic and I just like seeing optimistic people giving me faith that the human race has a future.
for the smoking and drinking problem, we as Muslims have an effective way of dealing with these bad habits it being the month of Ramadan when any adult would fast from dawn to dusk by stopping eating food, having sexual relations, cursing, smoking, or drinking alcohol (are already forbidden as anything that can harm the body), and do at least one good deed in that period of time favorably charity and in Islam charity could be as just as little as a smile in the face of others or helping them with anything they are in need of. we also combat the urge by praying and reading the Quran, which helps us stay focused on Strengthening our will this helped countless people quit bad habits, especially smoking and drinking. I wish you guys the best wishes and am having a blast every time I see a notification of one of your videos.
In the hight of Summer and winter, focus can be indoors and community socialisation, you don't want too much physical work in the extremes. In the mild winter is the best time for trees and grass management, they're more likely to be dormant, so shock can be minimised, cold burn, or controlled burn is best then. In the mild Summer water catchment can be the focus, you have less rain and flowing water to interrupt you working on the infrastructure.
for the arrival, you could go with an "orientation" style plan. Host a 2-3 day event every few months (or as often as needed) where thats the only times you accept new arrivals. It spreads them out, but also give them a "class of 23" type connection with the small batches.
For the sourcing, talk to suppliers about "lead times"(you may call it something else). try to find suppliers that can make sure you can get it with like a 2 week notice. like "we are going to be buying this amount at some point, we are waiting on labor. How much notice do you need to supply this?" Some will even offer to store it on hand for you with a deposit.
for the admin challenges. To decentralize this, you need to decentralize all of the peoples knowledge and daily tasks. I suggest a shared "knowledge base" where you can all write down all of the processes and contact info, and other things one may need to call someone to ask a question about. Also maybe daily notes? so if person A buys something from store 123 and talks to salesperson Q about it, they document all of that into the notes system. that way if someone else needs to call or go to that store, they know who they spoke too and what was said.
Hello. for tree plantation, you should dig all the holes a few month before planting. Add some compost to the soil and put it back into the holes, mulch and you'll get an easier planting work in automn. You could dig in august.
Maybe you could recruit some people living in the southern hemisphere, see down here we get our summer vacations in winter. You could find some legal way of getting some "J1" (The name of the Summer work and Travel visa for the US) into the Kamp!
You, collectively, have MUCH wisdom. The most meaningful answers will grow from within. That being said, there must be sufficient joy among you all. This may come from working together, finding and working with individual strengths, not beingTOO dogmatic, ant generally allowing enough room for individuality. There will always be a trade off. Some will thrive and some will falter. Your task as administrators is to see what people are capable of and make the right conditions for their, and your, success. The solutions are time and place specific. All the best to you all
"Committee Meetings" ~ a posted schedule of committee meetings addressing various topics. Then "Sub committee meetings" to address various projects. Some sort of democratic protocol. How are Decisions made? Not one person. Possibly a "Senior Committee" (people who have been there longest) and contrasted with an "Advice Committee" (elected and rotated every 3 months) with Dual Authority. (over decisions). A basic rule: no committee meeting can last longer than 45 minutes and must have a meeting coordinator who is responsible for time barriers and agenda development. Transparent outcomes. ~ Basic stuff for any organization in the USA. ✨🌸🙏🌸✨🇺🇸
