Housemates
Housemates are ‘tenants’ or ‘members’ who are usually engaged or working towards something outside the home related to sustainability or the caring profession. They pay ‘rent’ or a ‘subscription’ that includes both a $ component (to cover the $ costs of accommodation) and a labour component to take the total amount to market rates. Labour is credited to newcomers at the minimum wage rate for the unskilled, higher for those with appropriate skills, or when they have been acquired through inhouse training. Beyond that minimum labour component, extra labour covers their consumption of produce from the garden and boosts the efficient use of space and facilities.
When there is a perceived need to build trust among those of us with (initially?) tenuous connections, housemates and I can keep track of their contribution (labour time) and consumption by a home-grown, in-house system which I have dubbed “TemptyTrust” and utilises the LETS Community Exchange Network online. The purpose of this system is to build and maintain trust through transparent self-monitoring. It provides a means to account for consumption and contribution.
The reason for ‘branding’ the system as TemptyTrust is to provide an easily identifiable reference that can be associated with its origins, just as Bill Mollison and David Holmgren are generally acknowledged as the ‘fathers’ of permaculture. There is no intention to patent the idea or profit from it.
Visitors can do a one-week internship for free, to find out what it’s like to live sustainably in the suburbs.
Woofers and HelpXers have been visiting and joining in on the life of the household since January, 2013. Here they have found acceptance, good quality accommodation, company, food and interesting activities. To become a part of the fun, read the descriptive guidelines to see if you are a suitable candidate, then make an enquiry via the Contact form here.
You can find the same information by looking up Host 20066 on HelpX
Foreign visitors should show their passport and visa, and provide contact details of a friend or relative for emergencies. Equanimity Foundation is covered by Queensland Householder Workers’ Insurance.
hello, my name is Tina, I am from Taiwan, I am interesting in the homestay, how can I talk the details about it with u? Thanks
Hi Tina. Just use the Contact form on this site and we can discuss it via email. Thanks!