Off Grid Artisans & Makers
A bid to preserve heritage skills and our ecology through the provision of affordable living & workshops space for the people who work with hands and land.
Ogamvillages.com
Off Grid Artisans & Makers recognise our actions & livelihoods are
part of the eco system.
We want to enable more hands on learning spaces where people can live, work,
grow food, share skills, resources & provide education & training in :
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heritage skills and creative arts,
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natural building,
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habitat management,
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soil health,
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carbon sequestering & local food economy.
Benefiting Local economy
& community through:
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Education
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Mental health & wellbeing
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Heritage skills
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Creative & Agroecological livelihoods
Benefiting ecology through:
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Increasing bio diversity through natural farming & land management
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vernacular Low Impact dwellings
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reducing travel from work to home
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soil improvement & carbon sequestration
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working with native plants & rare breed animals.
“What is the Lost Opportunity Cost if we do not create sustainable models of living now?”
About
This project was initiated by Kezia Hoffman & Gaz Hoj,
with 44 years experience between them in teaching arts & heritage skills to youth & young adults with special needs.
If we are serious about protecting heritage skills we need to provide:
Affordable housing & workshops & training.
If we are serious about protecting the environment,
we need to enable
people to live sustainably.
This project addresses both issues by recognising that people and their livelihoods are part of the ecosystem.
The Artisan skills most at risk are the ones requiring heavy duty expensive equipment.
When we support these practical skills & provide space for shared resources & cross pollination we leave room for other creative platforms to thrive.
Project
We aim to diversify our cultural offerings by assisting people from social and economically disadvantaged backgrounds to access affordable living and workshop space and pass on their skills. We champion heritage skills, creative arts education, sustainable living and investing in a future for our children.
We aim to work with like minded individuals & organisations to establish Land Co-ops with affordable housing and workshop space for artist development and to deliver education / training in the following:
Wood
Metal
stone
glass
clay
creative arts
wagon building
wood gasifiers & Biochar and charcoal making. (Biochar for the land & carbon sequestering, charcoal for the forge).
food & land management
vernacular building
storytelling
Music
Sculpture
craft & wilderness retreats
& more!
Working ethos
Culture based on cooperation, compassion,
creativity & ecology.
We aim to build land based creative sociocratic collectives where people are empowered to live and work as equals, develop their skills explore creativity and contribute to the general running of a sustainable project.
9 foot HofnHoj sculpture Dragon, to be continued...
Get Involved
We require Land donations and old farms which we will hold in Community Land Trusts.
We seek share holders looking to invest in projects that enhance ecology, education , well being , heritage skills, the arts, community, affordable housing and sustainable living.
We aim to work with like minded individuals & organisations
We also seek a working dialogue with local councils to allow off grid, low impact dwellings for those wishing to invest their time in managing the land and teaching land based and heritage craft skills. This requires a change in how we approach planning, making self build options more accessible to those on lower incomes.
We currently hold a CIC, Community Interest Company called 'Granary Creative Arts'. This social enterprise has been running heritage arts projects from a rural Granary in Hampshire for 6 years and has a track record of delivering well loved workshops and events. Our business bank account is with Triodos, there are no paid members, any profit goes to enhancing the community benefit.
