Long-Term Volunteering at Ecovillage Silimalombu – Lake Toba
We are looking for long-term volunteers who share our passion for creating paradise on Earth!
Our family has nurtured an old mango forest right on the beautiful beach of Lake Toba for many years. From our mangos, we craft delicious wine, jam, vinegar, chutney, and cakes. We also process candlenuts into oil and natural detergent. At the same time, we’re always busy with exciting projects: making chocolate, building a solar boat, expanding our permaculture food forest, experimenting with aquaponics, constructing a house in the forest, registering a Botanical Garden… and much more!
Life here means waking up early and staying active throughout the day—sometimes with hard physical work in the forest or on construction, other times with creative tasks like updating our website, developing products, or planning to turn this place into a true self-sustaining hotspot. We live simply, close to nature, and we love it.
What we offer Free food and comfortable accommodation at our farmstay on the stunning shores of Lake Toba. Hands-on learning in permaculture, food processing, natural building, sustainable projects, marketing, and more. You’ll gain real skills and experience while contributing to something meaningful.
Who we’re looking for We value volunteers with intrinsic motivation—people who see what needs doing, use their own initiative and creativity, and enjoy turning ideas into reality. Whether it’s weeding, feeding our pigs, construction, cleaning, product development, marketing, computer work, or helping with the Botanical Garden, you decide what excites you most and jump in.
We don’t want to micromanage or constantly ask for help. We serve this land and nature, and we invite you to do the same—treat the place as if it’s your own during your stay. No boss-employee dynamic here; we’re a community of creators who have fun together: singing, cooking, playing cards or chess, joining local events around Lake Toba.
Important mindset note After 10 years of hosting volunteers, we’ve learned what works best. If you count every hour, expect constant direction, or see volunteering mainly as a way to get “free” food and lodging in exchange for minimal effort, this isn’t the right fit. In Indonesia, a typical daily wage is around 100,000 IDR (~7 USD)—you could earn that in one hour at a simple job back home. If that’s your approach, you’re better off working briefly, traveling as a paying guest, and supporting places like ours through stays or purchases.
We’re rich in nature’s gifts, community spirit, fresh food from the land and lake, and the joy of creating together. We want to share that richness with people who feel the same.
How to join as a long-term volunteer To ensure a good match for everyone, we now start with a trial period:
- First, book one week as a paying homestay guest (to experience daily life here and let us get to know each other).
- During or after that week, if we both feel it’s a great fit, we can welcome you as a volunteer.
Volunteering details
- Minimum commitment: 4 weeks (longer stays are preferred and create deeper impact and stronger bonds).
- First week as volunteer: 300,000 IDR per day (covers contribution toward the community while we build trust and rhythm together).
- After the first week: We’ll discuss and adjust based on how things go—often moving to a full volunteer exchange with no daily fee.
- You’ll learn a lot: practical skills in sustainability, farming, processing, building, and community living.
If this resonates with you and you’re ready to contribute with heart and initiative, come help us build paradise!
Welcome to the paradise—we look forward to creating it together. 🌿🏝️