Greenheart News - Summer 2026

Chris Dews
Jun 28
6 min read

For those who wish to leave a positive and useful legacy after they have gone, there comes a time when we will need to make a feasible plan to ensure that our legacy should survive into the future. I have the feeling that for me, that time is Now!

Casita Verde Ecology Centre in Ibiza has always been a permanent magnet for people wishing to connect with friends and nature, and where they can taste some of our famous recipes, made from mainly local products. Since its foundation in 1993, the centre has received around 1,300 resident volunteers, many of whom were students from around the world and has seen more than 50,000 visitors during events and open days. With the invention of the ‘Greenheart’ symbol in 2001, Casita Verde was the destination for dozens of film crews to visit, showing the other side of Ibiza. (If my memory serves me well, I think I’ve been included in around 30 documentary films and reports from both local, national and International TV, as well as private individuals making their own documentaries for Youtube and other web-based outlets).

We have tried to convey to the outside world that living in harmony with nature is not only great news for the planet, but also for all those who can benefit from that message.

In this case, there is every reason under the sun, that Casita Verde should continue performing its one and only job as an eco-education centre, and that this can grow exponentially into a more promising common future for everyone involved or wishing to be engaged with a similar mission.

For the moment, and with the help of a few close friends, I’m managing to keep the Casita Verde structures and gardens in perfect condition. However, as I am not getting any younger, we need to realise that this situation will have to change in order to guarantee that the condition of the centre in general does not only depend on the physical and mental health of one person. This means that we’ll have to seriously consider involving more suitable staff, as we evolve our plans to gradually extend the educational offer and increase the number of school visits in a controlled and creative manner.

Obviously, for this to happen, we must make a coordinated action plan as well as start looking for viable funding sources, instead of being totally reliant on my pensions, plus some yearly maintenance subsidies from the Caixa Colonya bank, based in the Balearic islands.

In a recent meeting with some of the directors of the NGO ‘Creatives for the Planet’, (https://fortheplanet.global/) we discussed joining forces to offer both in-school classes and visits to Casita Verde, beginning next year. Together we are planning to make a convincing presentation (Power Point and or video), in order to secure funding for a pilot project, which would give us a much better idea of how to gradually increase the offer during the coming years.

This is part of an idea I have come up with to ensure that the Casita Verde Ecological centre will continue to be recognised and possibly even funded by the local island authorities, in conjunction with any available economical assistance from European sources.

Personally, after closing down the centre for Sunday visits, and discontinuing our offer to receive volunteers in 2019, I needed to have a break from the constant pressure of event and volunteer management, allowing me to recover my energy as well as to make an enormous number of repairs and updates to the existing infrastructure, which could not be done while we were still open to the public. So apart from the occasional pre-arranged private visits and tours from local senior schools, we more or less closed the door for any other activities.

If successful with our latest idea, we may also consider creating a ‘Foundation’, to run parallel with the existing NGO (Association Ibiza Ecologic), and give us much more opportunity to employ personnel, gather resources, and secure the existence of the centre into the future.

Casita Verde Ibiza

Apart from the above information, I’d say that the Casita Verde Ibiza has never been more organised, tidy and presentable in its whole history. The gardens have matured very well, as the trees and plants grow and spread to more areas of the farmland. There is still a great deal of maintenance to perform each year on both the buildings and gardens, but we’ve accumulated an enormous amount of tools over the last few years, so that the job of keeping everything in order has become much easier and less time consuming.

With the help of Steve Fox, our friend from Yorkshire who made the original Rocket stove constructions here in 2012, plus the kind gifts of building materials from Georgina’s boss Juanito Ramos, we managed to completely repair the leaking eco-pond and are patiently waiting for the autumn rains to fill it up again.

I’ve been working like a slave in the gardens each day since the springtime and have finally completed the majority of tasks that need to be done, so that the gardens stay beautiful through the dry summer months. Now it’s time to relax a bit, take out the kayaks and to go out to see other projects on the island, as well as continue to catch as many snakes as we can (we already caught more than 25 this season).

This year Georgina and I will go to Scotland for 12 days in August for our annual holidays, leaving my best friend Rassy from Munich in charge of the centre while we’re away, as we have done in previous years.

I only hope that with all the chaos going on in the world outside, that we are able to return to Ibiza without any problems!

Casita Verde Granada

Rey Aldana, the owner and director of Casita Verde Granada is presently working in his own farm, where he’s still busy improving the facilities as well as taking care of his olive and almond trees, ready to offer a better experience to the volunteers who will visit the centre starting next year.

Casita Verde Irlanda

Joanna Sweeney informs me that she’s had a steady stream of volunteers this summer, from WWOOF and Workaway, helping with various jobs at her centre and is now concentrating on her book launch and offering a special course at her eco centre. (see info below):

Join us for a 4 day immersive experience embodying the wildcrafting principles outlined in the book: Wildcrafting Pathways

Wildcrafting Pathways. Transformative retreat and book launch.

ONLY 40 minutes drive From Knock airport.

Regular bus service to location- stop at Castlebaldwin/ Conways Cross (Bus no: 572).

Dates: 13th -16th July 2026

What to expect:

Wood carving, myth, folklore of the land of Sligo with Samuel T Brett.

Immerse in authentic Irish traditions and culture with live Irish traditional performances including Seanachí, music, song and dance.

Mindful Natural Building – (Part 1 and 2) with Peter Cowman author of Sheltermaker and founder of Living architecture.

Creating purpose-driven, sustainable rural businesses with owner of Brú Moytura, Colum Stapleton.

Live DJ SET - Celebration, movement, and connection with Zaneta Klimkowska aka Sound_Skin_Soul .

Book Launch (FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC) of Wildcrafting Pathways. Transformative wisdom for a regenerative lifestyle with Joanna Sweeney. Join in the first launch of the book. Talk & reading. Q&A. Signing & celebration.

I can offer members of your organisation a discount of 10% on booking if they get in touch with me to help give something back to you all. The current price is a very reasonable €380 including workshops/ food and accommodation for 4 days. See link to book :

(https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/wildcrafting-pathways-transformative-wisdom-retreat-tickets-1990970544494)

Meanwhile, I continue to participate in the meetings of the local Water Alliance (https://alianzaagua.org/es/) and the Zero Waste Alliance (https://plasticfree.es/en), but also arrange to meet with people interested in presenting projects related to our movement.

If you would like to visit our centre for a guided tour during the cool season, (see the section about ‘tours’ on this website), organise a weekend conference about environmental subjects, or want to know how you can be a more eco-conscious citizen, please get in touch by email, sending your request to chris.greenheart@gmail.com, or by calling our main office on +34 608838190 (English and Spanish)