Work-study volunteering at Mata House
Summer 2026 – May 12th until July 9th
Next period: September 2026 (TBD)
Intro - A new way to be together
What helps us grow? What is the right environment for growth? We invite those who wish to experience living and working with others, for a self-learning growing experience, and to help maintain and develop Mata House.
We propose the following themes for exploration:
- Self-organizing groups – autonomy and collaboration
- Work/play, heal/grow, rest/challenge
- Self-awareness and self-observation
As human beings living in modern society, we find ourselves assigned into fixed roles, embedded in complex hierarchies, institutions and traditions. These social structures are often stagnant, inflexible, and unable to respond to the changing world; they may even be contradictory to healthy living, the environment and to real human needs.
Mata House aims to create something different – a group of self-aware people who are able to work together. People who are willing to make an effort, to take on the challenge to discover what a new human society can look like. People who are willing to compassionately, honestly, work together on themselves.
How can work be joyful, yet productive? How can we nourish our body, our heart, our joy, our connection, while “getting the job done”? How can we trust, relax while facing a challenge, and actually enjoy what we do? This is what we wish to explore. To enable it, we will use a communication framework called “Transactional Analysis”, which we will learn together.
The volunteering period also has a practical aim – to maintain and develop Mata House. This work will be our “research lab” to explore human relationships, connection, communication and collaboration.
Basic information
Work-study:
- The basic exchange is 25 hours work per week (5 days a week, ~5 hours a day), in exchange for living in Mata House, participating in classes, activities and the group process.
- The minimum stay is 14 days, but we prioritise people who come for 21 days or more. Most people take a while get into the rhythm of life in Mata House, to be able to give and receive more to the inner and outer process.
- You need to be healthy and enjoy physical work – You don’t have to be super-fit, just healthy enough to work outside.
Who can come:
- We accept people of all ages, and of all skill levels – We save some spots for people with relevant skills, but anyone can join. We only ask that you come open to learning new skills.
- You need to get to Portugal by yourself – we do not provide visa assistance or invitation letters.
The main language of Mata House is English, although there are usually speakers of other languages too.
Cost:
- Sharing in food costs – around 35 euros per week. We cook and shop together. We decide what to buy and collect from everyone in the house.
- Participation in utilities costs – 7 euros per week. As this is a non-profit, we ask for this partial help in costs for electric, gas, etc.
- Workshops & retreats – if there are events happening in Mata House while you’re staying, you can join at a 10% discounted rate.
- Daily classes and activities – are free for all Mata House volunteers and guests.
If you can’t afford to pay food/utilities, contact us. We have a few supported spots for people with specific work skills.
As this can be a unique and sometimes challenging experience, we ask that you go through a short acceptance process, see below.
Updates for 2026
Some important notes and changes for this period:
- In summer, while the house remains cool, outside it can get very hot. In winter there can be rain and mud. We try to accommodate but the work needs to be done – come with the willingness to work outside in these conditions.
- Some tasks that are related to maintaining the space used by the group will be done during working hours, while some are not included in the 5 hours of the basic exchange. For example lunch prep and bread making are part of work hours, but shopping and keeping the spaces clean are not.
- We often have open potluck Friday dinners, where we invite friends of the community and others who wish to see the space. Feel free to invite your friends.
- We will experiment with occasional silent periods as part of the schedule- deciding as a group when and how much.
Schedule
The work schedule is fixed, as many tasks are done as a team. The activities schedule, such as classes, integration, meditation, etc will be determined together as a group.
All activities except work are optional. We highly recommend participation, but it’s a free space, and every person can choose what’s best for them. However, if you don’t like meditation, dance, or group processes, we are not sure the stay in Mata House is for you… Feel free to consult with us if you’re unsure.
Our days will include:
- Morning classes – Optional. Starting at 6:30 / 7:00 / 7:30 according to the activity. Meditation / Movement / Dance / Yoga / Voice / Other.
- Work – working until lunch (see below) + each person will have tasks to do later in the day, such as water the garden etc.
- Learning and integrating – Optional. Various classes, and ways of integrating and processing what we experience. Volunteers are welcome to offer their own classes.
- Free time – Time to rest, relax, socialise, take walks, and do anything you wish.
- Saturday and Sunday – free. We sometimes go out as a group, to the beach, festivals, hiking or other activities.
- 7:00 – Meditation / Voice Practice / Dance (CDP)
- 7:30 – Prep + Breakfast
- 8:30 – Work
… - 11:10 – Meditation / Qigong
- 11:30 – Work
… - 13:00 – Sharing
- 13:30 – Lunch
- … Personal time
… Tasks
… Personal time - 19:30 – Group activity (Reading / Dances / Volunteer led class)
| Time | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connect | 07:00 | Meditation | Voice practice | Meditation | Dance (CDP) | Meditation |
| 07:30 | Prep + Breakfast | Prep + Breakfast | Prep + Breakfast | Prep + Breakfast | Prep + Breakfast | |
| Work | 08:30 | Work | Work | Work | Work | Work |
| Connect | 11:10 | Meditation | Meditation | Qigong | Meditation | Qigong |
| Work | 11:30 | Work | Work | Work | Work | Work |
| Connect | 13:00 | Sharing | Sharing | Sharing | Sharing | Sharing |
| 13:30 | Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | |
| Rest | ... | Personal time | Personal time | Personal time | Personal time | Personal time |
| Work | ... | Tasks | Tasks | Tasks | Tasks | Tasks |
| Rest | ... | Personal time | Personal time | Personal time | Personal time | Personal time |
| 19:30 | Sufi reading / dances | Volunteer led class | Activity + Friday Dinner |
The Work
You are welcome whether or not you have any special skills. You don’t need to be fit, just generally healthy, we accept people of all ages.
However, we do give priority to people with relevant work skills. If you’re new to this, we can teach you on the job.
Work will sometimes be in a group, and sometimes by yourself. We ask that you come with an independent and generous mindset – if you see something that needs doing, do it. Truly participate, be a part of Mata House, contribute when you can. We believe in maximum autonomy and self-responsibility in work, we don’t like to micro-manage.
We also ask that volunteers come with an open mind and a willingness to help with a variety of tasks. At Mata House, people don’t usually do just one specific thing all the time. The work changes according to the season, the needs of the land, and the needs of the community, so flexibility and a positive attitude are essential.
| Category | Examples of Tasks |
|---|---|
| 🏗️ Construction & Building | Create garage room Build garden shed + foundation, Build bell tents + platforms, Build huts, decks, stairs, rooms, Make access road, Making stairs down the slopes, Edge slabs + ladders |
| 🪚 Carpentry & Woodworking | Build shelves & cabinets, Build bunk-beds Deck / doors for studio |
| ⚡ Handyman & Technical Skills | Mosquito nets Handimen (/women) tasks such as electrics and other |
| 🌿 Gardening & Land Care | Dig + make raised beds Weed whacking + clearing trees + collect firewood Make animal winter pool and dig canals |
| 🏊 Pool & Facilities Maintenance | Pool maintenance Pave swimming pool tiles Seal balcony Paint shutters |
| 🍲 Community Support | Cleaning & cooking Shopping and running errands |
| 💻 Digital Projects | Website construction and design Content creation Photography Social media |
| 🌸 Retreats & Events | Helping with organizing events and retreats |
| 🎨 Arts & Creative Projects | Creative initiatives that help bring the spirit of Mata House to life |
How to get to Mata House
Mata House is located in a small village 10 minutes north of Torres Novas, Portugal.
- By car – Mata House is about an hour and 15 minutes’ drive from Lisbon Airport, or 2 hours from Porto.
- By bus – There are many buses coming to the area every day, either to Torres Novas, Fátima or Tomar. From Lisbon Oriente station it takes about an hour. See omio.com or other websites.
- By train – There are many trains from Lisbon Oriente station to Entroncamento, taking between 50 and 90 minutes. See cp.pt (Lisbon appears as “Lisboa”)
From these stations you can take a taxi. Torres Novas 10 minutes away. Tomar, Fatima or Entroncamento are 20-25 minutes. You can use Bolt or Uber, and we can help you find a taxi driver. If schedule allows, we might be able to pick you up.
Accommodations and surroundings
The number of volunteers in Mata House fluctuates. There can be as little as 4 people in the house, or as many as 20. Usually there are around 8-12.
Accommodations are in spacious, light and airy rooms in Mata House. The rooms have wooden floors, simple furniture, and there is a big balcony around the house. There are usually 2-4 volunteers per room, and dorms are separate for men and women.
Necessities such as towels, blankets etc. are provided. The house has central heating, and is naturally cool in summer. Every room has a ceiling fan. There is very fast internet WIFI, open to volunteers. .
The house has a big, beautiful garden, with lawn you can enjoy. The land is full of plants and trees. There is a big swimming pool which you are free to use.
Mata house is located in a small and quiet village. There’s barely any public transport, but there’s Uber and taxis that can take you to town. If you like going out every night, to shows, bars, etc., that’s great, but it’s probably the wrong place for you. But if you like quiet natural surroundings, with local activities, good people, and lovely walk trails, you’ll have everything you need.
On the weekends and afternoons we sometimes go somewhere together, to hike, bathe in the river etc, or a group organises to go to Lisbon, Tomar or other sites.
A note on mental health
It’s important to know that although Mata House is a place for healing, volunteer periods are not a therapeutic or convalescence space. We don’t have the attention or personnel to treat serious emotional hardships. The project requires people who are able to do the work, which may be challenging at times, as can living with other people.
If you are feeling very unstable, exhausted, or are recovering from a physical or emotional episode, this will probably not be good for you. Please take care of yourself, and find the right environment for your healing. We sometimes have retreats and courses, and the founder gives personal therapy sessions online and in person, which might be better suited for your needs.
Feel free to contact us about other possibilities, and thanks for understanding.
Acceptance process
We are looking for Seekers, people who wish to learn about themselves, who are responsible, active and like taking on new challenges.
You are welcome whether or not you have any special skills. However, we give priority to people with relevant work experience – such as construction, carpentry, gardening, and handi(wo)men skills.
We have volunteers of all ages, from 18 to 80. You don’t need to be especially fit. All you need to be is generally healthy, in body, mind and spirit.
If you’d like to volunteer at Mata House, please send us an email with some information about yourself: mata.house.portugal@gmail.com
We will send you our application form and continue from there. We apologise in advance that we have many more people approaching us than we can accept.
You can also find us on Worldpackers, but we prefer to get applications via email.
Hope to see you in Mata House
