Internship

Four weeks in autumn (harvesting) 
18 February - 15 March 2019
​and
Four weeks in spring (planting) 
2 - 27 September 2019

Free in exchange for work

​Live, work, eat, experience and immerse yourself into an organic, self-sufficient, sustainable lifestyle in the lush center of New Zealand's North island.
Learn how to grow, harvest and process your own food.  Learn how to work holistically alongside mother nature to maximise the nutritional properties of your food while simultaneously reducing your environmental imprint.

The range of skills you will learn with us will be extremely varied, and many will be applicable in other cultures and climates.  

This is limited to only three participants so personalised training can be given.

What you will learn:

A huge range of self-sufficiency skills (homesteading in Amercian language).

This will start outside with the most basic but important aspect, soil care; and include all aspects of raising your own food on a small block; milking a house cow, managing pigs, sheep, poultry, bees and beef cows, harvesting and storing winter feed, fencing, butchering and mating. 

As well as the harvesting, pruning and planting, there are the skills of turning the produce into edible and/or storable food; bottling, jam making, cheese making, making sausages, salami and jerky, drying fruits, smoking meats and cheese, pickling, cooking…

Should you have an interest in a particular aspect or wish to complete a timely project while you are here, please discuss.  If at all possible we are happy to accommodate.

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Date and details

Six weeks in
spring (Sept/October/ early November)
or autumn (March/April)  
Spring is the exciting time of year when everything is blossoming and growing and full of promise.  Planting and planning and babies everywhere!
Autumn is when it all comes to fruition (excuse the pun).   It is the season to harvest and store for the lean months ahead.

•  Accommodation is in our home, sharing our facilities and lifestyle with our pets etc.  You have a large sunny room and wifi at your disposal.
• Plenty of home-made, organic, nutrient-dense food, once again shared with us (and we eat only the best!).
• Personalised training, mentoring and practice in an established, holistic, working, organic lifestyle.
• Discussions on a wide range of topics – from climate change, bio-dynamic principals, sustainable lifestyle fallacies…
• Attendance at any of our workshops being run during your stay.
  
• Access to an extensive library of reference books on farming, homesteading, cooking, horticulture and animal husbandry.​ 

What's involved

Weekdays are workdays, join in and work an 8-hour day caring for the animals and completing the projects related to the season.
Tasks are varied and included milking the house cow and processing her milk, feeding the pigs, moving  and checking cows and sheep,  looking after the bees, planting and weeding gardens, feeding and pruning trees, harvesting and processing food - all with a huge emphasis on soil nutrition to ensure everything is healthy - including us.
​Each person will be allocated sections relevant to their interests, with the aim to  learn how to take these right through from initiation through  nurturing to harvesting.
   The focus is on producing high-quality nutrient-dense food in an integrated sustainable system.  
House duties of cleaning and preparing meals are  also shared, just like in a family situation.

Weekends are  to relax or explore.  
We are centrally located in the middle of North Island and bird sanctuaries, mountains, sandy beaches, waterfalls, bicycle trails, Hobbiton Lord of the Rings film set, Rotorua with geysers and bubbling mud, and the cities of Tauranga, Taupo and Hamilton are all within one hours drive. 
  Unfortunately, public transport is not the best here and your own transport will make it a lot easier to access these attractions. 
Alternatively, laze in the sun with a good book – the cat will show you how.

What you need

• Good work boots are worth it
•  Gloves if you prefer them 
• Raincoat 
• Personal clothes and toiletries 

There is no smoking or 
chewing gum allowed on the property
​and we do not cater for special dietary needs.

How to apply:
Forward photographs of yourself and your curriculum vitae to Sheryn: s@corrugatedcreations.co.nz. 
Please include the following information:
Why you wish to undertake the internship. 
What you hope to obtain from it.
Any areas of particular interest you want to focus on.
Details of any past experience in working with animals, gardening, on a farm, or in a group.
If you have any special  needs.
Contact details.

Note that we do not discriminate on any basis, we are just wanting to get to know you.