When?
21.04.2024-04.05.2024
Group size
10 volunteers incl. 1-2 camp leaders
Active for climate protection and biodiversity – save the peatlands in the Hunsrück area!
You will actively contribute to protecting a special peatland called “Weyrichsbruch”. This area was drained more than 150 years ago for forestry use.
Peatlands are a valuable and natural Co2 storage as well as an ecological habitat with a high and very specialized biodiversity. For these reasons, in the 1980s it was decided to revitalize a small part of the Weyrichsbruch. Now the regional authorities for nature protection want to revitalise a much bigger part and this is where you can help! Under the supervision of two experienced Park Rangers you will improve the water balance in this peatland in order to renature the bog, and help it to cope better with the consequences of climate change. Some of your tasks will be to undo the drainage of the area by blocking or filling ditches, or by building small wooden barriers. While working, you will be able to discover many rare species which have already returned. The park Rangers will be happy to explain to you the ecological background and the consequences of climate change and they will guide you to discover this special habitat and its species.
The Weyrichsbruch is bordering a well-known hiking trail. On that trail, it is possible to take a look inside the bog from a wooden plank path. In addition, various information boards have been placed around the area to convey the ecological background of the Weyrichsbruch and thus contribute to environmental education.
Attention: The work might be physically hard, the wheelbarrow becomes your daily companion and you will get wet and muddy for sure! Please bring hiking boots, rubber boots and suitable working clothes.
This Workcamp is based on the cooperation between IBG and the regional “Foundation for Nature and environment”. We have been working together since 2016, organising one or two international Workcamps per year in the field of nature protection.
This is a special project for nature lovers and people interested in nature protection work. You will get wet and dirty. Please be prepared that April in the Hunsrück area can either be warm and sunny or quite fresh and rainy.
Please be aware that ticks can be an issue when you spend a lot of time outdoors in natural areas in Germany - like in this camp. In our General Infosheet you will find suggestions on how you can protect yourself against them. You are also welcome to check whether a vaccination against the tick-borne disease TBE makes sense and is possible in your home country.
You will stay in the Educational Centre in Kell am See, which is an important place for youth work in the whole area around the city of Trier. This public and non-profit centre offers the opportunity for youth groups, associations and schools to spend some days or weeks here running a seminar or other projects.
You will stay in five wooden tepees for max. five persons each. Staying here, among pure nature and with the campfire in the middle of the tepees’ circle is a wonderful experience. You will sleep on mattresses inside the tepees. Close to the tepees, you will have access to your own kitchen including a dish-washer, to a living room and sanitary facilities, all inside the Educational Centre.
In your free time you can use the different outdoor facilities of the centre like the campfire and the basketball, football and volleyball fields. Please be aware that the tepees have electricity but no heating, so it might be cold at night. The facilities in the centre (kitchen, living room and sanitary facilities) can be heated though.
Your group of volunteers will be responsible for grocery shopping and cooking together. The food will be bought with the camp budget and everybody will take turns for cooking, washing the dishes and cleaning. In order to reduce our carbon footprint on the planet, we encourage volunteers to reduce meat and try more sustainable dishes.
The Workcamp will take place in Kell am See, a village 30 km from Trier, not far from the border with Luxemburg.
The landscape in this area is very beautiful! It is dominated by huge forests, steep hills, small brooks and ponds, rocks and marshes. Only small hamlets interrupt the nature, which makes it a perfect region for plenty of different species but also for hiking.
The area is well known for cycling, walking and other kinds of outdoor activities. There is a local holiday resort nearby the Education Centre, which offers more than 200 holiday bungalows next to a lake and locals love to come here for cycling (there is a 45 km cycling path on a former railway roadbed) or to spend a nice day outside. The region also offers plenty of historic sites (castles, museums….). In addition, you will have the opportunity to come in contact with local associations, e.g. the local voluntary fire brigade. Since there aren’t many public transportation means available around Kell am See, the number of excursions will be limited. However, you will have the chance to visit the city of Trier with its famous Roman sites, the cathedral and birth place of Karl-Marx.
If you have any questions about the project or your tasks as a camp leader, please send us an email or call us:
Email: projekte@ibg-workcamps.org
Phone: +49 711 649 02 63