Activities in Kaprálův mlýn

This time I’d like to present what my project is about. This is an overview made for on-arrival training for volunteers, and I will describe a bit more.

Autumn was full of school groups - for adapťák (team building for a new formed class) courses, environmental education programs etc. Sometimes our job was only to accompany “kids” (often around 17 years old :D ), so they don’t get lost or injured in forest while doing their tasks. But it is also a great opportunity for me to learn about nature in this region of Europe - biology, geology… Especially we enjoyed helping the participants with outdoor activities - caving and abseiling (climbing down from a rock). It’s really great to encourage young people to do something challenging for them and then see their satisfaction. Participants experienced also many night games, which means putting many, many candles outside, and Casino game - actually long-term team building (pupils needed to promise one good deed for the benefit of other classmates during the school year) but we played some board and asart games with children as part of this activity. =)

When there are no programs, we usually do some practical work outside or inside - collecting something from the grass (depending on season - apples, cutted grass, leaves, snow ;) ), repairing something (big task was to repair stairs, but we were also fixing chairs, tables, beds...), planting something (until now only apple trees yet) and making apple juice (we are almost experts!), or MOŠT in Czech language. The local fire brigade also knows about “us” - one of our tasks was to cut and then to burn bushes on the closest hill Lysá hora for nature protection reasons.

Another typical activity of keeping the center in order is cleaning. Dishes, beds, showers, toilets and - mmm - brushing floors - the volunteer is always ready to make the place shine! ...and warm - our job is to keep the fire for heating of the building. I love it! Another nice task is to save family lifes of the staff workers. :D (It’s a quote from them!) OK, it means that every weekend one of the volunteers has a SHIFT, serving in our little shop and looking after accommodated groups, so that staff workers always can have free weekends to spend at home and not at work.

Sometimes there are events happening here - like Open door day (see in my previous post) or Chasa - work weekend and party for friends of KM (Kaprálův mlýn). I even made a poster after it - artistic skills sometimes are used here (see on the photo -> ).

The organization cares also about our learning. We have an opportunity to study Czech language twice per week for 2,5 hours in Brno (a reason to get to the city!) and participate in two mandatory trainings organized by Czech National Agency for some volunteers from the whole country (new friends!). As KM provides programmes for children/students about ecotechnologies, they are so nice to educate also us sometimes separately. E.g. our coordinator was very glad to have enough time to make with us some experiments about efficiency of different light bulbs. Amazing experience was a staff retreat in January, in a little wooden house in the forest, close to a ski slope, with no electricity and water (no problem - made from snow!). I was afraid I would miss winter while staying in Czech republic, but this was a gift for me - snow level over one metre! And such a challenge - going back with a full backpack on skies through the forest.

In times, when KM is not overwhelmed with outdoor programmes, we get opportunities also to help in other related places - e.g in Scout institute in Brno or in forest kindergarten who rent one of KM’s rooms (the only my childhood musical instrument playing knowledge - xylophone - was used for creating atmosphere in an Advent event!). There are many organizations, connected to nature and environment, around, so we have visited an NGO “Veronica” in a village Hostětín, where they produce apple juice, and helped in their office in Brno to sell Christmas trees and in a biomarket. We have also visited and helped in one of the ecogardens en Brno and went to check bird nest boxes in parks of Brno with the organization “Hnutí Brontosaurus”. Sometimes we cooperate with other volunteers and participate their events, e.g. Living library, presenting our countries in schools. As KM is also a scout center, once we traveled to Prague, to present it in the big (rover) scout meeting called Miquik, visiting an ecocenter “Toulcův dvůr” on the way.

We also have opportunity to realise our own ideas, it is called a "personal mini-project" in volunteering projects. For example, in November I organized an event, Latvian hike, dedicated to 100 years anniversary of Latvia. The hike was in the shape of Latvia's border, and I shared interesting facts about nature on the way and about Latvian culture (including sklandrauši! - local food).



As you see, volunteers are not bored in KM, and we definitely cannot complain about routine. Our coordinator warned us about possible winter depression but we are desperately trying to find out how it is possible to get it here. :D