I’m a sucker for off-grid DIY content. And a double-sucker for commune documentaries. And this post is about a project that scratches both those itches.

Project Kamp is a sustainable living community in the hills of central Portugal. The unique thing about this cooperative living situation is that they’re sharing the process of reclaiming the land and growing an environmentally friendly community via their YouTube channel and open source modules. As with any project, there are ups and downs but week after week they make progress on tackling their list of problems challenges (which they address every 8th video) while maintaining their core values.

When it comes to making decisions on how to grow or what projects to tackle, Project Kamp prioritizes environmental sustainability above nearly all other factors. That work manifests in installing solar panels, water management, repairing old buildings, waste management for dozens of people using outhouses, converting abandoned trailers into housing using recycled materials, and a lot of chopping down mimosa trees (an invasive species that starves out native oaks). It’s encouraging to watch a group of like-minded folks working to build the kind of world they want to live in.

At the time of writing, they’re on Episode #165 and while you don’t have to watch them all (it’s a lot of chopping mimosa trees), I do recommend going back in time a bit to watch the land evolve over time. I dropped in at Season 2 but the quality goes up in Season 3 and can recommend either as a starting point. From the outside looking in, Project Kamp seems like a bunch of sweet people trying hard to build something that lasts. If I was twenty years younger with no kids and still had a back, I’d probably consider applying to stay there.