I'd like to meet:
It is true that a picture is worth a thousand words, but we'd still like to take this opportunity to explain what the Tribewanted concept is all about, and how you can get involved if you like what we are doing. After reading through the information below, you should be well on your way to understanding how Tribewanted works.
About Tribewanted
Tribewanted is both an online and real island community. The aim of Tribewanted is to build a simple sustainable village on Vorovoro Island and a buzzing online community. When you join the tribe you can choose when you visit Vorovoro and, unlike any other adventure holiday, you can take part in the project online before and after your island stay. Tribewanted.com launched on April 3rd 2006 and the tribe’s ‘first footers’ landed on Vorovoro on September 1st 2006 for the start of a three-year adventure.
There are three levels of tribal membership you can buy:
Nomad (7 night island stay to be used within one year of purchase)
Hunter (14 night island stay to be used within two years of purchase)
Warrior (21 night island stay to be used within three years of purchase)
* In February 2007 the tribe voted for longer stays on Vorovoro. You can now book up to 12 weeks stay on Vorovoro. This can be arranged through the island booking system once you become a member. Any member buying three weeks or more automatically gains Warrior status.
* In June 2007 the tribe voted for all membership rights to continue for the entire length of the project. This means that no matter whether you have purchased a Nomad or Hunter membership, all members of Tribewanted will be able to access the online community and exercise their right to vote right up until the last day of the project on 31st August 2009.
Join the Adventure!
Dreams. We all have them, everyday of our lives. But how many actually come true? We had a dream about an island (we know we’re not the first) where we could bring travellers to build a sustainable community in partnership with local people.
A community that people could visit and participate in; a community that would not destroy its surrounding environment but look for ways to blend with it; and a community that would become a focus for a global network of discussions about how to protect our planet, have adventures and more dreams. We dreamt about using the internet as a way of making it work. In April 2006 it was just a big dream. Not anymore.
Where on Earth is Vorovoro?
Type these co-ordinates into your computer: Latitude 16º20'32.70"S, Longitude: 179º18'52.64"E. This is where we will call home for the next three years. In plain English -
Vorovoro is off the north western coast of Vanua Levu, Fiji. The island, Vorovoro, is owned by Tui Mali and forms part of the Macuata district in northern Fiji.
What is tribewanted trying to achieve?
Is tribewanted an adventure holiday? Is it a social experiment? Or is it trying to change the way we look at the world?
Tribewanted is a community adventure with a purpose. So what’s the purpose of the adventure of Vorovoro? To realise that through a unique experience we must consider our impact on the planet more – in how we travel and how we live. So tribewanted is a chance to say ‘yeah, of course I want to see the world and have a good time but I want to do that without trashing the planet’. In this regard,
we hope our project can promote the benefits of responsible travel
to a global audience.
It’s all part of the process…
For us Vorovoro Island represents a bigger idea. The idea is to do with what is going on around us. We are all part of a process. Some call it globalisation, some call it a shrinking world, our Mum’s call it ‘life’. The scariest consequence of this current process is the climate crisis we face and what it means. This is a process that can be changed by us but we, as a global unit, need to act fast in realising the
GREEN DREAM .
Technology rocks…
This globalisation process is creating technologies that really are changing the way we do things. One technology is doing this more than any other: the internet. Some people think that the internet is a good thing, some think it is a bad thing. We think it can be a brilliant thing.
Tribewanted is trying to use the power of internet technology to unite like-minded people who actually go and do something positive back in the real world. So online communities are not just for chatting and sharing music anymore, now you can chat, share music, and vote on issues that affect the sustainable development of a real island community and then go there yourself!
An internet and an island community – how does that work?
Well this is the experiment! Tribe members debate and vote on island issues online with the guidance of the on island team and elected chief. The Tribewanted island team and elected chief work alongside the local community to build the village infrastructure. Visiting tribe members can choose to take part with whatever is going on Vorovoro during their stay. Members share their Vorovoro experiences online so those that have yet to visit get to feel like they know this little island and community pretty well even before they go.
For us a tribe is a group of people bound by place and purpose. We’d like to build tribes of people who are bound by ideas and want to do something with them. The internet and an island are two great places where a tribe can gather to share ideas and enjoy an adventure. Ok, so ones a little warmer than the other but…
Who is in the Vorovoro Tribe?
In the first 6 months,
over 1000 people joined the tribe from 25 different countries aged 17 to 60. They are a diverse group of people that range from students to retirees, engineers to teachers, and just about everything else in between. There is no such thing as the "typical" tribe member
ON Vorovoro tribe members mostly…
Build. Sleep. Swim. Trek. Dance. Fish. Snorkel. Read. Play. Teach. Sing. Farm. Blog. Cook. Pretty much anything really. It is up to each member how much they get involved with the project work. Use your time on Vorovoro to chill-out or sweat it out, its up to you. The only thing we ask is that everyone washes up their own plate. Fair enough?
OFF Vorovoro tribe members mostly…
Gather. Blog. Chat. Debate. Vote….and have the occasional drink. So far Tribewanted gatherings have happened in 4 different continents.
Creating a Climate Neutral Island
Being a responsible global citizen means reducing ones impact and offsetting the rest. Tribewanted is working in partnership with
CLIMATE CARE to make Vorovoro
climate neutral. The biggest impact by far, however, will come from the air travel of Tribe members, and
we hope that through Tribewanted.com we will spread a key message – if you fly, offset. Tribe members will also see the exciting potential of living lightly on the earth, and understand some of the sustainable technologies that Climate Care’s projects promote.
Tribewanted BBC Documentary
Since April 2006 Shine television have been following the tribewanted story. The 5-part observational documentary series will be shown on the BBC in 2007.
The documentary follows the tribewanted team and members as they take on the challenges of running a project from a deserted island and online at the same time. Tribe members can decide whether they wish to be part of the documentary and share their Vorovoro experience.
Island Development: The story so far…
In the first few months on Vorovoro the people of Mali, the team and the tribe members have built:
Three compost toilets complete with coconut swinging doors
A kitchen complete with stone oven and recycling units
The ‘Great Bure’ (big Fijian style house) and a mini bure
Two sky-view bucket showers in the woods
A 3 water-tank, guttering, and hand-pump rainwater catchment system
A bunk house
Two outdoor dining tables
A wood store
A floating pontoon and jetty on the south side of the island
A small farm where fruit, vegetables and chickens are thriving
Renovated one of the family houses and added recycling unit to the village
Cleaned-up the main beach and village
A new 10,000L water tank
A loft at each end of the Great Bure
A Chief's bure
A family bure
It’s been a good start...
Keeping Up To Date
What kind of internet project would it be if we didn't keep you up to date with what is happening on Vorovoro, as well as other important issues affecting tribe members? Not a very good one! That's why each Friday we publish an online newsletter which covers all the important stuff every week. Check out our
TRIBAL NEWSLETTER Questions, Questions and More Questions
Naturally, we understand that you may have questions that we haven't covered on our website, but don't despair. Our team on the ground in Fiji is more than willing to help out with anything you would like to know, so just shoot them an email at
[email protected] . If you do send us an email though, we ask for your patience due to the fact that we only have limited internet access at this point in time.
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