Our motivation
Have a look around and you will soon see there is a lot of potential lost in the world. We move around displaced people, abandoned places, wasted materials, scattered knowledge. How did we arrive at this point? Uprooted and cut off from the cycles of nature, our world and ourselves are but a shadow of what we could be. We feel grief for what led to this state. We fear what may come of it, and rage at what makes it so. Yet, we still dare to dream. We dream to tap into our lost potential and to find ways of working together.
This is why we created Casa dos Sonhos.
Who we are?
Casa dos Sonhos has been an emerging dream
In 2019, Fabian Deppner took initiative to create the ground for its manifestation: together with his partner Rabea Herzog, they are now part of a growing group of people sharing and shaping this dream.
At present, Rabea and Fabian’s focus is to create the organisational fabric as well as the infrastructure and the physical spaces for the unfolding of Casa dos Sonhos.
Alongside them, the team currently consists of Bernd Walter Mueller and Juuna Kastrup and is supported by other dedicated people who are building autonomous projects within the frame of Casa dos Sonhos, such as Nuno Mureno – a talented gardener that spreads his colourful touch in the gardens of Casa dos Sonhos – and Paul Voigt – a carpenter that knows how to use wood in stable construction as well as in carving art pieces that portrait the beauty of this material gifted by nature.
Our principles and goals
Casa dos sonhos is the name of an encompassing project that takes place in four pieces of land in the south of Portugal: Arrabacinha, Vimieiro, Quinta do Coito Grande and Monte Novo da Serra.
Through Casa dos Sonhos, we create safe spaces for the development of the fullest of our potential according to three principles:
- Relentless Learning
- Consensual Exchange
- Unconditional Love
These principles are our roots. From regenerative housing units to the wellness center, from the food hub to our carpentry: every project in Casa dos Sonhos is rooted on the common basis of practising consensual exchange and unconditional love. The challenges we face on the way and the mistakes we make are taken as a possibility for relentless learning.
Our guide is the natural world
~ Casa dos Sonhos
Like a tree, Casa dos Sonhos grows from its roots towards a set of goals aimed at regenerating our surroundings and ourselves in a spiral of growth inspired by the abundant function of nature. These are our goals:
- We grow food in a regenerative manner that exceeds the members’ needs by 2 times.
- We provide regenerative living conditions that exceed the members’ needs by 2 times.
- We use non fossil energy sources for all our needs.
- We take responsibility for all our plastic waste by either recycling it or depositing it on our own land.
- We ensure that rain and sewage water finds regenerative infiltration possibilities on our land.
From the firmness of our roots, we allow ourselves to develop and adapt to the needs of the present. Casa dos Sonhos activities, products, workshops and projects are part of an ever evolving dream that we now share together with many others.
In the heart of Alentejo, we believe we can be a regenerative presence for nature, our community and for our own selves.
Do you want to share this dream with us?
Dragons & Elephants
Dragons and Elephants Ltd is a Portugal-based company created to facilitate and support the various activities of Casa dos Sonhos – a project aimed at promoting ecological, local and personal development in South Alentejo.
Dragons and Elephants was created in 2019 to provide consultancy services on Regenerative System Management and later expanded its scope to encompass the activities of Casa dos Sonhos. The headquarters of Dragons and Elephants are located in Quinta do Coito Grande – Colos, Portugal.
Cooperativa Integral da Terra
Cooperativa Integral da Terra is a cooperative based in the coastal region of southern Portugal that aims to develop a social local economy by assisting local producers and small businesses to work with ease, free from bureaucratic concerns and supported by a local network. Many of the services and activities of Casa dos Sonhos operate within the legal framework of this cooperative.
Get involved
Are you up to realize your dream and be part in the co-creation of Casa dos Sonhos’ regenerative vision?
There are a few different ways to get involved.
Services & Activities
The services and activities that we offer at Casa dos Sonhos have been carefully designed to create safe spaces to get in touch with your full potential and to enhance regeneration of our local community and environment. We believe that internal healing goes hand in hand with outer healing and loving care for all that surrounds us.
Future projects
These are a few directions in which the large dream of Casa dos Sonhos is likely to unfold.