Dear Friends
Months have passed. Nomadic life suits us, for now, and while the novelty has worn off, our adventure spirit certainly hasn't.
The last 3 months have been filled with friendship and community, weaving ourselves more firmly into a global village of edgeworkers. We continue diving into unexpected situations, having ECCO's coincidence generator on our side. But first things first. Benjamin's adventure in Java.
Much has already been written about this time.
Jay wrote about the Men of Ujung Kulon, edgeworkers and fantastic people we met in the far west of Java: https://jaybennett.substack.com/p/the-men-of-ujong-kulon
Devin wrote about friendship and to "those that jump on planes on a lark": https://devingleeson.substack.com/p/love-letter-to-some-special-men
And I wrote about plastic, and what that has to do with anything and everything:
https://benjaminpollitt.substack.com/p/where-does-it-go-when-i-dont-need
What sticks with me most is the time we got to spend in Tamanjaya, immersed in village culture and the jungle.
We come for the rainforest; we stay for the people.
After three days in the jungle, we spend another three days in Tamanjaya as guests of Nanda. He is a passionate man, committed to protecting the rainforest and creating a plastic-free region. We have found allies in him and his friend Anang.
Through genuine ecotourism, Nanda brings opportunities and a sense of community to the village. He pays the local people good wages as jungle guides and for the tree seedlings he uses in his tree-planting programme, and he also helps to boost the village’s economy in other ways. We are able to persuade him that a portion of the income from tourism could also be channelled into his next project, rather than passing it all on straight away.
His idea is to buy a small plot of land and build accommodation on it for volunteers, who would then help to further revitalise the village through clean-up campaigns, educating the local people about plastic, and looking after the planted trees.
Thanks to our commitment and engagement, doors are opening for us in the village that would otherwise remain closed to outsiders. We meet Aba Wasta, the village’s last elder and shaman; we interview Om Dedi, who still carries within him the inhabitants’ original connection to the land, the jungle and the animals; and we are invited to a traditional meal: eating together from a large banana leaf, using our hands.
Months have passed. Nomadic life suits us, for now, and while the novelty has worn off, our adventure spirit certainly hasn't.
The last 3 months have been filled with friendship and community, weaving ourselves more firmly into a global village of edgeworkers. We continue diving into unexpected situations, having ECCO's coincidence generator on our side. But first things first. Benjamin's adventure in Java.
Much has already been written about this time.
Jay wrote about the Men of Ujung Kulon, edgeworkers and fantastic people we met in the far west of Java: https://jaybennett.substack.com/p/the-men-of-ujong-kulon
Devin wrote about friendship and to "those that jump on planes on a lark": https://devingleeson.substack.com/p/love-letter-to-some-special-men
And I wrote about plastic, and what that has to do with anything and everything:
https://benjaminpollitt.substack.com/p/where-does-it-go-when-i-dont-need
What sticks with me most is the time we got to spend in Tamanjaya, immersed in village culture and the jungle.
We come for the rainforest; we stay for the people.
After three days in the jungle, we spend another three days in Tamanjaya as guests of Nanda. He is a passionate man, committed to protecting the rainforest and creating a plastic-free region. We have found allies in him and his friend Anang.
Through genuine ecotourism, Nanda brings opportunities and a sense of community to the village. He pays the local people good wages as jungle guides and for the tree seedlings he uses in his tree-planting programme, and he also helps to boost the village’s economy in other ways. We are able to persuade him that a portion of the income from tourism could also be channelled into his next project, rather than passing it all on straight away.
His idea is to buy a small plot of land and build accommodation on it for volunteers, who would then help to further revitalise the village through clean-up campaigns, educating the local people about plastic, and looking after the planted trees.
Thanks to our commitment and engagement, doors are opening for us in the village that would otherwise remain closed to outsiders. We meet Aba Wasta, the village’s last elder and shaman; we interview Om Dedi, who still carries within him the inhabitants’ original connection to the land, the jungle and the animals; and we are invited to a traditional meal: eating together from a large banana leaf, using our hands.
Substack
The Men of Ujong Kulon.
Meeting Earth Guardians in a sea of plastic.
❤3
I love the time I got to spend with Jay and Devin, witnessing their interactions with strangers who just open up with big smiles on their faces when one of the men approaches, having them teach me how to swear, knowing them to be on my team for evolution and being equally on theirs and letting their love for me blaze through my stories of being lonely while celebrating my birthday. I have found friends in these two men, and I will keep them in my heart, even when we're on different sides of the planet.
❤4❤🔥4
3 months of New Zealand, March till June
Holding Space for Children,
Village Weaving, Exploring Nature.
NatureShellCrafting.
Holding Space for Children,
Village Weaving, Exploring Nature.
NatureShellCrafting.
❤1