Embrace Your Inner Vegetable: Live In An Eco-Village Abroad

The state of the global economy has made it clear that what happens in one country can negatively affect the rest of the world. But the effect doesn’t have to be negative. That’s the driving concept behind Living Routes, a program provider that sends students to eco-villages abroad. 

Eco-villages are intimate sustainable living communities, typically removed from the hustle and bustle of urban life. Interested students can choose from 11 villages on six continents, and programs range from three weeks to a year. During that time, they live, eat, and work daily with environmental experts in the area.

Danielle Connor, a former Living Routes participant, studied in Mexico and Brazil. While in Brazil she took a course in Permaculture Design, a field of study that focuses on how to incorporate agriculture into societies without negatively affecting the surrounding ecosystem. Then she ventured to an eco-village in the Amazon, living in a hut made of locally harvested materials and learning skills like how to build an efficient water filtration system. “It was very hands-on,” she said. “You want to build a water filtration system? Here's some chicken wire and cement, let's do it!

Danielle says she regards her experience as a turning point in her life—it taught her that is in fact possible to live in harmony with the rest of the world. Since returning from her time abroad, she has worked at a national environmental group, become a member of the Living Routes board, and joined a "co-op" living community in the United States.

Danielle is not the only student who has returned home from a Living Routes program with sustainable living on the brain. According to Gregg Orifici, the Director of Admissions, many have started green initiatives in their own communities or on their own campuses. One alum helped add a green roof to her student union while another started a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program to provide organic food for the neighborhood.

A butterfly that beats its wings in China could cause a tornado in your backyard. By the same token, a student who lives in an eco-village in India could inspire you to turn your backyard into an organic farm.

- Courtney Pomeroy
(Top) A Living Routes participant attends to the farm in an Amazonian eco-village. Photo contributed by Danielle Connor.

• Learn more about Living Routes.