Everything you need to know about Struma Valley Village.
With Struma Valley Village, we are taking a different approach to other village projects and communities. This starts with the structure of the new village, i.e. first and foremost the question of where we all live? And what do we live on? And what about children and animals there? Housing? Food? Rules? Work? … many detailed questions about the external, material things quickly come together. But just as important as these external details is the question of HOW. This does not mean how we want to build it, but HOW we live and with which inner attitudes and values we try to animate a village community for the new era in togetherness and solidarity.
What is the Struma Valley Village in one (long) sentence:
The Struma Valley Village is a decentralized village in a valley, which consists of 20 locations in which small communities / families with a total of 150 people live, who give among themselves without money or 1 to 1 exchange added value of daily needs with enthusiasm and passion and try to implement an autonomous and self-determined life outside and inside outside the matrix with high consciousness and lived spirituality in which they are focused with their own inner willingness, orientation and intrinsic motivation to bring forth a new village of the new time in a new earth through their own joy of life. – Status: October 2030 (from the future)
But we all live our own lives here. We are responsible for how we organize our own lives and livelihoods. We are not a secluded commune, no religion, no sect, we avoid dogmas and any ideology. We are internally and externally free and independent people who try out and implement “new world ideas” and are prepared to invest some of our own time in this project as an experiment. We are still connected with the “old world” and also with the people who are not involved in the village project. The following text would like to provide a framework and first of all draw a picture and an idea of the idea in which many detailed questions are answered and, above all, describe the pillars on which the entire Struma Valley Village project is based. It then shows what already exists in reality and how it can continue to grow.Inhaltsübersicht:
Topic 1: The decentralized village structure and the village concept.
Topic 2: Pioneers and settlers, locations and small communities. The new human being.
Topic 3: Added value and the joy principle
Topic 4: Digital world – organization and coordination
Topic 5: What already exists and what can be done next
Topic 1
The decentralized village structure and the village concept.
Normally, when you think of a “village”, you immediately think of a local place where lots of houses stand together. In my world of words, such a situation would be a centralized village structure. All the houses and inhabitants of the village are centralized in one place, the village. In most cases, the proximity creates a sense of community and village consciousness on many levels and also in metaphysical understanding. People also share the events that occur and happen all by themselves in a village.
The Struma Valley Village is not centralized as described here. The houses are not together in the same street in the same village, but decentralized.
Decentralized here means that we live all over the Struma Valley in the form of families and small communities – either as a stand-alone location (farm, house, yurt, earthship, construction trailer, etc.) in the countryside / mountains, or within a real existing village. This means that the neighbors from the Struma Valley Village do not live in the next house, but somewhere a bit further away, but there are other Bulgarian neighbors in the house next door, they are just not part of the Struma Valley Village.
This important feature and fact of the project (decentralized instead of centralized) is very important to understand because life is different than in a local community/village.
We mention this explicitly because many people still think that the village is a normal, centralized village. A decentralized structure with many small communities / families that together form a village community has a great advantage and at the same time a great challenge for the people.
Advantage of the decentralized structure: It is easier to find a suitable property in a whole valley with many villages and 2 towns than to have to buy something in a specific village. There is the option of finding something in a preferred region in the valley. In the Struma Valley you have different impressions, feelings and energies everywhere – it is very diverse. This makes it easier to find your own optimal location to realize your own (life) idea and also to become part of the SVV and to actively participate in this project and benefit from the added value.
The size of the communities / families / groups at the individual locations is small (3 to 10 people). Each location is responsible for its own daily life. It is also concerned with realizing the kind of living together that everyone in the group wants. Decisions that take each individual into account are much easier to make to everyone’s satisfaction in a small group. The very important possibility of being able to withdraw completely, even for several days, is also easier to implement in small groups than in communities with many people and communal spaces.
„To live like a tree, alone and free, but fraternal like the forest, that is our longing. ” – Nâzim Hikmet –
The challenge of the decentralized structure: Due to the lack of spatial togetherness, a shared village consciousness and sense of community does not develop on its own. We have to create a mental image of the common vision of the future within us in which we are aware that “out there” there are many others who are working towards the same goal: to create a new village with new structures and values of the new world / time.
The mental image (as a morphogenetic field and as an image in the mind):
The idea and concept that new things can be manifested through joint imagining and mental creation is the foundation of the basic idea. In this way, a collective mental image / morphogenetic field for the SVV can be created. This means that we think, imagine and feel the SVV in its details and the connection of people together in its most beautiful form in our minds. We are then actively involved in making our own contribution and recognizing the connection to others in the village as something important for the project to succeed. The connection to others is the breath of the entire project. At this point I am also talking about directing energy and using the metaphysical, the magical, creating and shaping from the spiritual world. We can learn how consciousness is directed. How we can expand it and become soft and slow and how we can focus and concentrate it.
Everything that man created began with an initial vision / idea in the thought field before it became reality.
The classic neighborhood and the village consciousness / sense of community only exists in our mind / imagination as such a thought image and morphogenetic field. This collective image needs to be constantly maintained with our own power of thought and imagination and we need to be aware that in this way we also nourish and grow the morphogenetic field of the SVV vision through our intention, focus and concentration.
Topic 2
Pioneers and settlers, locations and small communities, the new man.
This decentralized village structure, if it wants to be lived, brings with it some changes in coordination and organization and inevitably other and new “demands” on the people who want to animate and create it. So there are requirements that have to be met if you want to be part of the project.
Without taking this too seriously, anyone who understands this text as a whole and can recognize and feel it within themselves is suitable. We will really find out whether all of this suits you during a longer stay here in the Struma Valley. This is not only important for the project, but also for you to find out whether you really can and want to connect with it in the long term.
We want to create something new with the SVV. We want to actively enter a new world that we do not yet know and create and live something new there that we do not yet know. “What we don’t know yet” shows that there are many unknowns in the equation and I don’t know today what will come of it, because only WE will create it together.
Entering a new world has a lot to do with pioneering. A pioneer sets out to discover the unknown. A pioneer is a trailblazer and trailblazer. Being a pioneer also involves qualities such as openness, peacefulness, freedom and humility. The following lines would like to use the image (and analogy) of open-hearted pioneers and new settlers to show a rather romantic picture of how to get started in Struma Valley Village.
First of all, the pioneer: A pioneer must board a ship and set sail. This means that he has made a conscious decision. A big change is imminent, everything that needs to be arranged at home has been taken care of, provisions have been made and “the ship is loaded with everything you need”. A pioneer does not go to another city to work there. He sets off to discover something new. He is a free and independent person and is prepared to invest effort and capital to achieve his goal. The pioneer knows that he will come to a region where he will meet others and continue to build a village together with them. There is a lot of knowledge and energy from us that is already there. We can be used as a discreet and conscious support so that the arrival is easy.
The pioneer must be prepared to acquire property with his capital in order to establish his new location. Ideally, the pioneer already has their own independent idea of why they are here and what they are going to do.
The special thing is that, as a pioneer, you can implement the location and your own idea exactly as you want because it is your own location and not part of a larger communal area where there could be restrictions again. The new location is a foundation stone for other people to follow. Depending on the orientation, there should be space and room at the sites to provide other people / settlers with temporary living space. The pioneer realizes that he alone and 3 or 4 other pioneers cannot build and maintain a functional village community. At least 150 people are needed for the SVV – and the pioneer creates the initial infrastructure so that settlers can move in and revitalize the location and thus also the village.
The settlers: They are the people who bring the SVV to life. They join a location (of a pioneer) and support the location. The settlers can also support other locations and contribute just as much to the success of the village as the pioneer. A settler does not have to make a large investment. The only requirement is to find a pioneer who can provide accommodation. Both players are free to make their own arrangements regarding the housing situation. What is clear is that the pioneer receives compensation for the accommodation – whatever that may be. A great option is, for example, the “living for a hand” idea.
There are so many new possibilities here, which is why you should join as a pioneer and also as a settler. In the SVV, your own ideas, visions and aspirations may be much easier to implement and realize. In the village, the concept of “having to work” is not a dogma. We try to live out our joy / vocation / passion / gifts / talents / love / preferences in such a way that we can realize ourselves more and support each other in doing so. To do this, it is of course necessary to know what your own calling is so that you can live it out and work with it in the village.
People who set out with joy to realize their own vision follow their calling. Good, true and beautiful things often emerge from this. And that is what we want in the valley. Good, true and beautiful things.
New people for this time and the Struma Valley Village are well anchored in their own psychic system and spirituality, connected and able to deal with their ego. They give first before they want/demand something – and understand the meaning, background and “workings” of this attitude. The inhabitants of this village project are united by the common spirit to create this project and the knowledge of the others carries and assures that one has a lot of support and is not alone – right from the start.
Locations and small communities:
We all (pioneers and settlers) live in small groups. These are families, communities, circles of friends, etc. at the sites. Pioneers and settlers are open-hearted people who enjoy contact and community. 20 locations, 150 people, an average of 7.5 people per location. Here 12, there 3 for example. Your own family, friends from the “old world” who want to join you. Groups of friends who have already founded a site with more people, or completely “new and foreign” people who can join a site as settlers, wherever it suits them. This creates small communities of people at each location who fit together well and create a harmonious everyday life.
It is self-explanatory that the small communities should not isolate themselves, but should be open and willing to connect and interweave/network with the other locations/communities. The mental image helps with this, and this also creates the spirit of a larger village community in which everyone can experience a bit of a large community.
The great advantage of smaller communities with e.g. only 6 people is that they can be organized more easily and more harmoniously than is the case with very large communities with many people “under one roof”.
The locations / communities are like the individual organs of the SVV organism. They are needed so that the SVV can develop and be revitalized in the first place. People are not tied to the locations and it is perfectly possible to move between locations if the need arises. In addition, the SVV has no guidelines and no influence on the organization and interaction within this small community.
The locations are self-determined and free. However, in order to not just live around, but to create something new, the idea is that we establish our own kind of trade within the SVV, without resorting to money or 1-to-1 bartering. Ideally, so-called added value is created at an SVV location. Added values are “services and products” that are produced/offered from activities that people enjoy and like doing, perhaps because it is a hobby or a passion. People who live in location A can also move to location B to pursue their activities there if it is more suitable. Because not every location has bees, for example. But you would like to help with the bees. The added value principle is described in more detail in the next topic.
The new person and personal suitability of the SVV residents:
As you have already read, the project is not suitable for everyone. You should be an active person with the intrinsic motivation to want to live a different life to the one waiting for you in the matrix. This requires a certain maturity and a clarified psychic system and awareness of your own pain body and imprints. You act more consciously and no longer react strongly to your issues. You are open at heart and can communicate with your heart, create beauty and harmony. Consciousness, spirituality, spiritual sciences, being a creator and all the other metaphysical things that go with it are anchored to some extent in your world view and don’t trigger any fear in you. Your image of man is more of an animated being with a core, many levels and dimensions than the mechanistic image of Descartes, which is only surrounded by materialism and rationalism. You enjoy freeing yourself more and more from useless imprints and conditioning and letting your light and your gifts shine more.
We try to live together without lies and deceit. Our human values and the virtues of the heart are important to us. Because that’s how it would be in a new world with new people.
I think it’s important to make sure that the SVV welcomes the right people and the right people, and we want to prevent negative energy from taking hold that blocks, saps energy and ultimately harms the project. Awareness, your own inner vibration, inner values, attitude, ego, etc. play a major role here. And in the end, it just has to fit.
Topic 3:
Added value and the joy principle – “flow of goods and services” within the village:
The SVV would like us all to try to find and bring to life new structures and forms in as many areas of daily life as possible. Many of these new structures and forms will emerge as we walk the path, so I can only give limited details in all areas today. The first thing to say is that although the people in the locations organize their own lives, it is necessary to do something for the SVV project and for everyone else. Because the idea is as follows:
We follow our joy and our preferences – ideally, this is an activity that corresponds to us and our vocation/passion. Since we are free and independent, we can devote a lot of time to it. As a rule, this activity can always create added value for other people. Because this activity gives pleasure, it is not necessary (and also not possible) to “sell” this added value within the village.
Trading and wheeling and dealing within the SVV to accumulate money (as in the old world) is not how we live here and what we want to do. “Good business” can be done outside. We don’t reject money, because without money many things don’t work. Here in the valley, however, the classic topic of money definitely belongs in the second or third row of importance (not completely gone). Changing money awareness starts in the mind.
Remember that when you work out of your joy and thereby create extremely useful added value for others, you come a great deal closer to the meaningful work of yourself. Meaningfulness and effectiveness/understandability in life are part of the salutogenesis principle, the development of health according to Antonovsky. With its effect and function as a village / project in the world, the SVV should open up precisely those spaces that bring health (not prevent illness) and opportunities for us humans to develop freely. Anyone who associates this activity (creating added value) with compulsion, pressure, reluctance and work from the old world is not suitable for the project.
To be more specific, there are added values that are not always needed or are only useful for one person or one location at this moment. A gift to paint beautiful murals and thus beautify the SVV in the locations is not needed continuously. However, you should be able to rely on the vegetable box from your own cultivation. Some value-added products are more time-consuming and laborious than others and may also cost more. People are often multi-faceted and often have several gifts, while others only focus on one thing. It may be that the added value / gift of our beekeeper never brings me a benefit / compensation because I don’t eat honey and yet he is regularly invited to my breathwork sessions and jam sessions (added value) and takes part.
There are good approaches for dealing with this in more detail. And we can research together how this could work.
At the same time, there are now also added values that we all need and want to create and produce ourselves. In these areas, too, there are passionate people who have a desire and an idea of what they are doing. And we need some of them. The following list is not exhaustive and simply shows a few examples:
- Humus production for healthy food. Regenerative agriculture. Everything that goes with it.
- Vegetable and fruit cultivation, self-sufficiency for the village, seed farming, permaculture, foodforest…
- Agroforestry. Field / wheat and forest / wood, chestnuts, flour,…
- Timber production on Paulowina plantation. (also called Kiri tree, bluebell tree)…
- Wood processing: firewood, wood gasification, construction timber – sawmill – carpenter…
- Furniture and house / accommodation / earthships / huts / yurts / workshops / stables and enclosures…
- Animals are part of it, just as everyone wants them to be. Chickens, cows are important for soil revitalization…
- Cheese dairy for goats, sheep, cows…
- Baked goods and doughs – if possible from our own flour…
- Food processing. Grapes, fruit, figs, etc. Juices, raisins…
- Energy production: wood and solar. As self-sufficient as possible – ideas…
- Courses such as yoga, gi gong, breathwork, making music, dancing, tai chi, personal development…
- Various workshops. (car, wood, metal…)…
- Toolmaker and repair of tools, Repaire-Café…
- Art and art workshop, think tank…
- Beekeeper, honey, propolis, pollen wax, candles…
- Herbs, ointments, CDL, peroxide, healing…
- Pharmacy, doctor and health and care…
- 3-D printer. Manufacture of products and articles…
- Education and care…
- Alternative ideas that can be implemented and tried out here…
These points are ideal for creating cross-location structures. Common field, forest, animals, etc. You need people who enjoy working on one of the individual topics and areas and want to put their heart and soul into it.
Everyone gives a part of the added value they have created themselves out of abundance and in return receives the abundance of everyone else, who also create and give added value.
The more areas we cover, the fuller our own lives become simply because each individual does what they like to do.
Let’s take the self-sufficiency and self-cultivation part out of the equation. Of course, everyone can grow whatever they like in their own location. But not everyone wants to do that. That’s why we have a field and greenhouse and grow according to a plan and scale for the needs of all the people in the SVV, like a vegetable box without payment. This cultivation happens on top soil. We try to produce original food from old varieties. I believe that if we all work together here and scale up like in our own garden, we will have great success.
The quality of the food depends on the quality of the soil in which it is grown and on which it thrives.
Here we should create together and work larger areas / fields / forests in such a way that we regenerate the soil and then start to grow our own with untreated, unaltered seeds and to harvest and give naturally. It is important here to do something for the earth and bring its soil back to life. There are other central areas such as animal husbandry (which is necessary to bring the earth back to life and keep it alive), wood processing, seasonal food processing, energy production, service/repairs, workshops and courses, pharmacy, care and education. In these areas there will always be the opportunity to contribute, if you do not know exactly how you can give your own added value. In order to find out what your own vision / idea / added value is, there will be appropriate courses and workshops within the SVV.
In summary, we want to develop freely, follow the joy and at the same time we want to try out many new structures in order to live a new way inside and outside. So it is necessary that the SVV has the request to the pioneer / settler to create this added value within the SVV, so that it becomes a meaningful implementation overall.
Products and services outside the SVV:
We will make products and there is the idea of making our own Struma Valley Village label and then selling the surplus produced under it. Direct sales from the producer are of course also possible. We are free. The important thing is that the focus is primarily on supplying the people of the SVV before it goes to the stores.
Anyone can buy products however they like. What is important is that the primary aim is to use the products that we produce ourselves.
We do not reject money and external contact.
Topic 4:
A dedicated digital platform as a coordination system and external presence
These topics are currently still dreams of the future. It is about a village community system, probably a telephone app, via which the SVV can be mapped. All locations and also all people who are involved, where which added values are created. Where festivals, celebrations and events take place, who needs help, etc. should be mapped here, tailored to our needs and used as an exchange platform. Such an application would also support the whole idea of a decentralized village and the concept of a shared village if I can see what is happening where.
The external appearance is the structure or form in which the SVV presents itself to the outside world. These are thoughts of an association or cooperative structure. Personally, I would prefer not to have to use such a “guise” for the old world, only when it comes to subsidies or funding or even investors (if then in a different sense…), a “tackleable” construct is probably necessary. Personally, I probably see this too negatively and I will be happy if I can recognize a harmlessness in it at some point.
Topic 5:
What already exists and how to proceed.
On the right is the map of the Struma Valley with the 6 locations that already exist. All locations are currently still under construction and only in Valcovo there are currently opportunities to join as a settler on a temporary basis.
Wide Sight Resort:
There is enough to read about the resort here in the diary. We are creating living space for 6 more people who will then “run” the resort and Valcovo House. Beata’s 1600 square meter property is now also part of the Wide Sight Resort.
House Dzhigurovo:
The house of Boji, Katja and Alvin. They have just moved in and are planning the renovations and another 1 to 2 guest rooms. Boji can help and communicate on all topics where there is a language barrier. The site will also have a wood workshop in a double garage with many tools and machines as well as the topics of food processing, nutrition, herbs, events and catering, etc.
Inner Sun Garden:
is Dimitar’s location. He landed quite independently in the neighboring village of Valcovo and is setting his own grand vision of a FoodForestGarden with pomegranates, citrus fruits, nuts etc., as well as some vegetables. The 8000 square meter site is also planned as a festival site for his own events and those of his Bulgarian friends. Over time, accommodation for 10 people will also be built. Dimitar’s vision fits in perfectly with the overall SVV vision.
Struma Sanctuary:
Is the apple orchard of Steve. An extremely peaceful place. Steve is English and has lived in Bulgaria for 12 years. Apples are not really his passion and he is looking for people to sponsor the 150 well-tended apple trees and bring in the harvest. A great community project to receive the bounty of nature. Steve gives all his apple trees to SVV as added value and is part of the whole project.
Mount Palat:
Is the youngest and largest site. On the way from Valcovo House to Wide Sight Resort lies the 2.3 hectare property of 2 friends, both called Christian, with several ruins and in some places foundation concrete slabs as remnants of the former use. These can be perfectly integrated and there is enough space for other things on 2.3 hectares. There will be an update here soon.
What can you do now?
Valcovo House is the welcome house and gateway to Struma Valley Village, so to speak. Interested parties can stay here when they visit Struma Valley for the first time. It is also about getting to know each other when it comes to joining the SVV. Our added value is as follows:
If you are interested, we first make a video call if possible to get a first personal impression.
Next, a visit would make sense. We get to know each other. You get to know the area, the valley, Bulgaria, the people and the project. Ideally, we would spend a week discussing everything over several days, exploring the area and visiting other locations. The Valcovo house is at your free disposal. We are not in the house. This means that you can also be a group of up to 10 people to see it together. The house must be empty for 10 places. However, one room (2 beds) may already be occupied. Because:
Afterwards there is the possibility to rent a room / accommodation in the house for a period of max. 6 weeks at a reasonable price. This time is then used to take a closer look at which region would be good and, as a pioneer, to look at specific properties / houses. We can actively help with this process so that we can find as many opportunities as possible at this time.
In addition to me, Boji from the Djihgurovo site is also needed for this, because as a Bulgarian he can find other contacts in the villages than we can as foreigners.
This added value from the house, myself and Boji is free of charge for the people in the village. Because we all benefit when the SVV offers such an option as a welcome house and it becomes much easier to find new pioneers and settlers who make it all possible.
It is not free for those who are interested. The added value is only free within the SVV. This first week in Valcovo House, including exploring the valley, talks and announcements, costs 250 EUR per person. It is not only the accommodation but also our time and costs for exploring the area and providing information.
For the longer stay, which is then already under the star to come to the SVV, a room in the house can be rented for 70 EUR per week.
You can easily contact us via one of the contact details found here.
Further information:
Links to other blog posts on www.meine-heldenreise.com
Where is the Struma Valley located?
The valley is located in the extreme southwest of Bulgaria.
A detailed description can be found on the Wide Sight Resort website. Here is the link:: Anfahrt Wide Sight Resort im Struma Valley Village
Why Bulgaria and how to get started.
I have been living in Bulgaria for 3 years now. The circumstances and the opportunities I have found here have played a key role in making this vision of a new decentralized neighbourhood village possible and feasible. There are interesting properties and land for sale here. The purchase price is still considerably lower than in more western countries and changes to simply implement ideas and projects are still possible and permitted here without a lot of bureaucracy. This results in great opportunities and great freedom in design. Fewer requirements, fewer specifications, less control, fewer regulations. And generally cheaper and less complicated in all areas. Anyone who can learn to love the region and Bulgaria has a great and easy life here.
I have friendly and trustworthy connections to ensure that the purchase of properties and land is carried out properly with notaries, tax advisors and, if necessary, architects. My job is also to get the people who want to come to their place and “introduce” them to Bulgaria and the Struma Valley so that their new life can start.
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“Michael in Bulgarien” in dem du mehr Inhalte zu verschiedenen Projekten hier im Struma Tal finden kannst.