Hawaii Eco Retreat (HER) is a women-owned hospitality business, holistic retreat center and intentional community focused on ecological living and personal growth/development in a residential community context. Some of the work alive in the space now involves integrating the polarities of masculine and feminine both within ourselves and also in our relationships, remembering our sovereignty, empowerment, embodiment, and creating a container of safety for the divine feminine to rise. Staff and volunteers form the backbone of the community providing labor in core areas such as Housekeeping, Hospitality, Land and Garden work, Light construction/painting, Food prep/catering for retreats and more. We have community agreements based on the values of self-responsibility, integrity, empowered direct communication, sobriety/no smoking, self-development, conservation, clothing-optional, supportive environment for conscious/consensual relating and intimacy, LGBTQIAP+, and humor. The center is located within a larger off-grid eco-village neighborhood with other privately-owned lots/homes. We are located walking distance from the ocean and have a gorgeous year-round climate, tons of fruit trees and great infrastructure to support community living.
Overview
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Work together with others in a way that emphasizes clear, direct communication, self-awareness, self-reflection, empathy, kindness, and respect of self and others.
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Agree to, embody, and be willing to assist in upholding the 10 items in the community agreement fields.
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Have a high value for structure and clear agreements, with flexibility given to accommodate a non-corporate, more family/human oriented setting.
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Have a mindset towards personal self-development, and view interpersonal challenges as opportunities to grow.
Work Hours and Term Commitment
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Work 25 hours per week
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While the goal is to have the time distributed evenly over 5 weekdays, we may need a few lighter cleaning shifts, or a cook shift on a weekend.
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Make a 2 month commitment
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Log hours daily in the Daily/Monthly Project Hours Accountability Spreadsheet on Google Sheets
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If work is missed without prior arrangement, you will be asked to pay out of pocket by the end of the week at a rate of $30/hour.
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There may be an option to make up the work before the end of the week, but only at the discretion of the Team Lead.
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If the work is not paid for or made up, the volunteer may be asked to leave the property.
Responsibilities
Provide labor in core areas such as Housekeeping, Hospitality, Land and Garden work, Food prep and catering for retreats, and light construction. There are many things to be done to support the functioning of our center, and volunteers need to be willing to step into any of those roles. The work is split relatively even in these categories:
Cook shift, scheduled by the Kitchen Manager
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Dinner prep: 4-6pm *be open to direction from the Kitchen Manager on what to make and what works best in our kitchen.
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Cleanup: 645-730pm *follow kitchen cleaning checklist posted on refrigerator
Cleaning and Organizing shift
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Common area to be deep cleaned once per week and tidied daily
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Flipping rooms & making beds
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Washing, drying and folding bedding and towels
Land work
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Work with the land manager on orchard and garden maintenance.
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This can be weeding, harvesting, planting, mulching, weed wacking, digging, and more.
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Washing, canning, freezing, or preserving produce.
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Painting buildings, sanding boards
This will typically be in the form of 3 or 4 hour long scheduled shifts with a clear starting and ending time. The schedule may change in accordance with Hawaii Eco Retreat’s needs.
Meetings
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Attend 15 minute community meeting at 7:30pm on Monday’s with a highly encouraged Community Share Circle to follow from 7:45 - 9:00pm.
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Have regular review/feedback meetings with the most relevant Core Staff Member at the end of first week, end of second week, end of first month, and as needed after 1 month and final exit meeting.
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Participate in any other check-in’s or meetings as needed, especially to discuss any missed or low quality work, or break of any other community agreement. If work expectations are not met, the volunteer will be provided with a performance improvement plan.
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Must have a cell phone with facebook messenger app installed. Must check and reply to messages.
Accommodations, Food & Amenities
Accommodations
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Stay in a sleeping space, usually a big private tent (8 person). They can get hot during the day, and we have plenty of other areas to hang out/nap during that time.
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Queen size memory foam mattress or twin size bed on a frame. All bedding is provided.
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At certain times, we may ask the volunteer to move tents or rooms to support specific projects.
Food plan
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Receive our community food plan, including prepared dinner Monday- Saturday. The kitchen is self-serve for breakfast, lunch and Sundays, with full access to all the food.
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Receive prepared retreat food during retreats. If meal service is being provided, you may not have access to the kitchen so as to not interfere with the chefs. There are some appliances outside you can use.
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We are mostly a fruit farm, with exotic fruits such as pineapple, mango, star fruit, citrus, and avocados. We have some greens, and are working on growing more veggies to eat. The majority of our food is bought at a store.
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*Food plan is subject to change.
Amenities
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Access to all community events & classes *closed container courses have additional fee
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Use of the Yoga/Dance/Meditation Spaces, Pineapple lounge
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If these spaces are reserved for events, then they would not be available for personal use. Will always try to collaborate to get space needs met.
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Use of co-working spaces with internet, desks, and chairs
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Enjoy a clothing optional environment with sunbathing loungers, hot tub, and warm water pool.
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Bottoms must be worn in Dining Lanai and Kitchen areas.
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There may be times when we need to wear clothing in order to support certain events.
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Use of Washer Dryer and clotheslines
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1 load of laundry per week, plus the option to combine your sheets with another person’s in another load.
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Walking/Biking distance to ocean and beaches
Volunteer Guests
After you have been here for 2 weeks and are in good standing you can have one overnight guest per week. Any guests overnight beyond that must be paid for and arranged in advance. Rate, $35/night in a bedroom or $25/tent (plus 4.712% tax). The food plan is $15/meal or $35/day. Any unpaid guest fees may result in losing the privilege to have guests, deductions from staff pay (if applicable), and/or end of the volunteer/staff agreement.
Talk to us if you have a regular significant other wanting to stay over often, or a guest coming from off island and we will discuss how best to work with the situation.
You are responsible to orient your guests including relevant community agreements and message On Site with the name of your guest before or on arrival. Overnight guests need to sign the waiver, and sleep in the same space as you.
Where We are Located
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This area of the Big Island is what some describe as remote. We are 20 minutes from the nearest town, and an hour from the nearest big town/ airport. There are buses that stop 2 miles from here that can bring you to those areas, and you can also catch a ride with community members going to town. We have people here on-site that rent out cars and we have bikes that are also available for rent. We are walking distance to the ocean, and biking distance to the nearest beach. Other events are further away, but many catch rides with others, as these events are popular.
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We are in the jungle. There are cockroaches, fire ants, geckos, centipedes, spiders, wild pigs, and mongoose here. As well as birds and coqui frogs for your listening pleasure!
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It rains a good deal here, and then the sun shines and we have rainbows often!
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The majority of our soil is brought in from elsewhere on the island because we are located in lava zone 2, and the ground is mostly lava rock. We also have fruit flies that like to eat veggies, and Rat Worm Lung Disease (don’t worry, we avoid this with a washing protocol). That is why it’s harder to grow all of our own food here.
What to Bring
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Close toed shoes, slip on sandals (all rubber if you have them, the grass is often wet)
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Rain jacket, umbrella, a brimmed hat
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Clothes to get dirty in
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Long pants and long sleeves for the garden. (Those pineapples can be pointy!)
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Fun clothes for dancing, if that is your thing.
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A flashlight
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Toiletries - we provide Dr. Bronner’s peppermint soap. Please make sure other products are environmentally friendly. Some people like bug spray, and we do recommend having sunscreen on hand (reef safe please).
Covid Policy
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Agree to our Covid Policy, which may change as conditions change.
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During exclusive use events at Hawaii Eco Retreat, agree to limit your offsite activities in accordance with government guidelines, as mentioned in the Covid Policy, in order to support the event in maintaining a bubble.
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Cannot have guests onsite during exclusive use events
Community Agreements at Hawaii Eco Retreat
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Personal Self-Responsibility. Take responsibility for your choice to be here, for your words and actions. Ask for a pause, a stop and state boundaries where necessary. When a breach of community agreements comes to your attention, take empowered action to make amends.
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Integrity in agreements. Honestly do the work you have agreed to do. Acknowledge where you have broken or disagree with agreements.
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Empowered direct communication. Make clear requests. No gossip or collusion. Address things that come up, do not be avoidant. Try one on one, then ask for mediation if necessary. Be available to receive feedback about how your words, actions, and/or situation you were involved with impacted someone.
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Sobriety on site. No smoking (or fires of any kind, no candles or incense, etc.) on site. No use or distribution of illegal drugs or alcohol on site. Transparent communication if one has a medical marijuana permit or are using substances that affect consciousness such as bi-polar medication.
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Pursue personal self-development. Respect other’s individual paths. Reflect on yourself rather than blaming others. Be transparent about what you are working on.
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Ecological awareness. Conserve Water, Electricity, Soil, Food, Recycle. Prioritize eating food off of the land first, island second, and off island last.
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Body positivity. Embrace the natural human body through a clothing optional environment (bottoms must be worn in kitchen and dining lanai). Nudity is not a sexual invitation.
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Sex-Positive. Embody, explore and express our sexual energy in a way that feels safe and consensual for yourself and others. Release the shame surrounding sexual energy by being transparent about your desires. Support all in consensual sexuality for 18+ adults. Take responsibility for your sexual choices and affirm your agency in making choices. Accept all gender and non-gender expressions, sexual orientations, as well as all relationship forms and styles.
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Non-Violence. No threats, intimidation or non-consensual touch. Recognize violent thought patterns towards yourself and others. Do emotional release work in a consensual manner at appropriate times and places.
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Participation. Make an effort to connect with all people on site. Hold and be held by the community at Monday night share circle. Attend community dinners when possible. Support a sense of humor and playfulness while being sensitive to others
Miscellaneous
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If a volunteer has any question or misunderstanding about their volunteer agreement or the broader Community Agreements, it is their responsibility to ask the Volunteer Coordinator for clarification.
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The Volunteer Agreement is not a rental contract. The Volunteer is not a tenant nor an employee and explicitly waives any and all rights that a tenant or employee would have.
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The volunteer will not disclose information about their Volunteer Agreement with any other person.
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If a Volunteer does not complete their work hours or does not act in accord with the Volunteer Agreement or Community Agreements, Hawaii Eco Retreat management may choose to dismiss the volunteer from their position, which would also end the volunteer’s residency at Hawaii Eco Retreat. It is at the discretion of Hawaii Eco Retreat management whether or not to allow the person to continue as a renter or guest at Hawaii Eco Retreat.
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If the Volunteer breaks their volunteer agreement or community agreement, Hawaii Eco Retreat staff have the right to inspect the volunteers sleeping space.
*PLEASE NOTE: Living in a community can be a rewarding and challenging experience. It is more than likely that things will come up for you that will challenge you emotionally. As a personal growth and development center, this can provide rich material to work through and is part of living here.