What: WET service retreat in the Himalayas! Unstructured program of group tree-planting and organic gardening combined with solo meditation/yoga practice in a breathtakingly beautiful (and did we mention wet?) setting in the forests of the Indian Himalayas.

Focus: Plant trees and garden with local villagers and do meditation/yoga on your own

Where: Dharmalaya Institute in Bir, HP, India

When: June through September, 2012 (participants are welcome to arrive and depart anytime. Please note: this is the monsoon season and it's very wet!)

Language: English and/or Hindi

Facilitators: It's a self-directed retreat, but our local site manager, Raju, will be on hand to guide the tree planting and help with food and logistics.

Cost: There is no cost to attend, but you will need to pay for the cost of your meals and donations for accommodation are appreciated.

Description: Residential/non-residential volunteer and service-learning program. Also open to drop-in volunteers, but staying at least a week is recommended. 

The monsoon retreat will be entirely unstructured except for the group tree plantings. Raju will instruct participants (whoever may be crazy enough to show up in the rain) in the fine points of tree planting, and then the participants will work alongside our local crew to plant several hundred trees and other green things. During the rest of the time, participants will be free to do more organic gardening/landscaping and/or do your own meditation/yoga practice (which is just about all there is to do out in the forest at this time of year). Accommodation is limited, but considering that it's very wet, we don't expect many people to show up, so if you're that rare type of person who loves the idea of planting trees in the rain with Himalayan villagers, and you can enjoy the extreme weather conditions of the Himalayan monsoon, you have a good chance of being able to score a bed at the Dharmalaya Institute. 

For more information, or to register for the program, please visit the Dharmalaya website.