10 Track 10

Review unit 1

fluency practice

reading review 2

Organic farming the new vacation

Page 47

Organic farming the new vacation

In 1971, Sue Coppard worked as a secretary in London. While she enjoyed city life, Sue also missed the countryside where she spent most of her time as a child.

So she offered to help out on a farm, or more specifically, an organic farming program organized by a nearby college.

She got a few people to volunteer as well, and they spent the weekend doing ‘housework,’ which involved clearing bushes and cleaning drains.

Afterwards, the farm manager said they could come back anytime to help out.

Sue put a small ad in a magazine, offering people the chance to volunteer at the organic farm.

The volunteer program grew quickly, and soon other organic farmers joined in, asking for people to help out.

With so many people and farms involved, someone needed to organize the different groups.

A few of the original volunteers started WWoof (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) to help volunteers and farmers find one another. Today, at least 50 different countries have WWoof organizations, and many other countries have individual farms that participate in the movement.

While WWoof is still a weekend activity for some, it now welcomes travelers and people who wish to live and work on farms for longer periods of time.

WWoof volunteers can stay on a farm for weeks or even months at a time in exchange for hands-on farming and gardening experience.

The work can be exhausting, but volunteers think it’s worth it. By working on farms, the volunteers interact with farmers and develop a love for the outdoors and organic farming.

Many travelers now use WWooFing as a way to visit new countries and experience new cultures.

As travelers will discover, every WWOOF opportunity is a bit different. In Serbia, you can find Misa and Olja, a couple whose farm is known for its hard cheeses, and for its bread made from homegrown grains.

Fincs Amiruca, a farm in Ecuador, teaches volunteers how to grow peanuts, plantains, and yucca. When volunteering in Japan, you may get to learn about growing rice.

WWOOF is only one of the many unique volunteer opportunities available.

Volunteering is something that anyone can do, and a wide variety of organizations accept or even welcome volunteers.

So the next time you get the itch to be active on the weekend or on vacation., why not look for a good cause to spend your energy on?