Celebrating Diversity in Community: A Healing Journey of Self-Discovery and Shared Inspiration
A sharing of the Camphill Youth Conference in Mourne Grange
In May this year, 70 youthful individuals, driven by a shared desire for a life filled with community and meaning, met in Mourne Grange, Northern Ireland.
The International Youth Conference in Camphill, held during the Whitsun weekend, was the fruit of a year of work by a small group of passionate people led by the force and drive of Floris Lange and Mircea Panduru out of Mourne Grange.
Where the next Youth Conference will be held is not always clear, but this year it was not much of a question. Immediately after last year’s gathering in Newton Dee, Floris stepped forward and offered to organise the next one in her community. Her inspiration, motivation, energy, and determination made the decision easy for us all. Once the decision had been made, all others who had stepped forward to help had a clear task: to help Floris and Mourne Grange create an event that reflects the community and its wider landscape. Now that the journey is completed, I would like to share the story of it with the world. I do not feel this is an easy thing to do. A conference is formed out of the work of many, and informed by each and every unique and beautiful soul who has made the pilgrimage to the event. What emerges at any such gathering is an unforgettable and impossible-to-recreate space where a soul is formed out of the contributions of each and every participant. The participants leave changed forever, in small or large ways, carrying a new flame in their heart.
But, I also believe it is important to find a way to capture and share some of what happened. To try and recreate some of the magic that occurs when so many like minded individuals meet, I have gathered perspectives from a few people, all of whom played a different role during the weekend, to give a more complete picture of the event. It was Floris and her response to the call of destiny that brought forth this Youth Conference, and so it is her story that should be heard first.
Everyone who came to Mourne Grange brought joy, enthusiasm, and love with them. Each person played a vital role in the co-creation of a weekend filled with beautiful, authentic human encounters, and so as the story of the conference is told, we should also hear from the participants.
Finally, every conference has some individuals whose support is visible only in the smooth unfolding of the weekend. They work to enable others through their quiet work in the background. In the world of Camphill, even at conferences, they can often be found in the kitchen, preparing wonderful healthy food and making sure that clean dishes will be available for the next meal.
There were so many of these wonderful enablers in Mourne Grange, appearing at meal times with incredible offerings and again at the tea breaks. Providing music for the barn dance, guiding tours, ironing sheets, and so many other essential acts of service.
Support also came from much further, as other communities took on the extra work so that participants could be freed from their duties and come to the event. It would be impossible to name and thank them all, but they are not forgotten, and I am sure that all who attended, are filled with gratitude. I am equally sure that those who helped, did so with love and kindness and understand that this gathering was a great success thanks to their contributions.
Some of this support was also offered by a group formed out of people who came forward with a wish to see the Camphill Youth Conference remain a reality year after year. This group met with Floris and Mourne Grange with the simple question, “How may we help you bring this conference into being through your vision?”
The final perspective will be offered by myself, Nick, one of the members of the organising group supporting Floris, Mircea, and the Mourne Grange community.
Appropriately, my contribution to this article has been through an introduction, after which I step aside to give space for the testimony of others. I will briefly reappear at the end to wrap up the sharing and with a short look at the future.
Floris Lange, Camphill Mourne Grange:
Joining last year’s Youth Conference as a representative for Mourne Grange, I didn't quite know what to expect. A bit of fun, a few new ideas, and maybe some like-minded people?
From the first evening on, I was absolutely blown away by this group of young people, so full of passion for the world of Camphill and its future. There were so many individuals living a life so similar to mine, yet so different that we could talk and inspire each other for hours on end. At the end of day two, the fire inside me was fully lit, and I was determined to bring this event to my door and my home, Mourne Grange.
Soon after spreading the word to a few people, we started meeting on Zoom and in my community to confirm that this was actually possible and not just a conceptual fever dream. Soon, seeing all the organisers, their residents, children, and pets in our Zoom meetings became part of my routine. We put our heads together, laughed, discussed, and challenged our sanity to create something special and memorable.
Sadly, along the way, we also lost one of our members, Wetsho Mosokwe, from the Camphill Trust Botswana. A very kind soul, she was a driving force behind the theme “Celebrating Diversity in Community: A Healing Journey of Self-Discovery and Shared Inspiration," reminding us to not forget about the entirety of Camphill communities around the globe and about the differences and similarities we should be aware of, discuss, and celebrate. Determined to do her vision justice, we created a programme celebrating diversity with our heads, hands, and hearts.
As the conference was fast approaching and only weeks away, I found myself making dozens of phone calls, pulling in favours left and right, and panicking about what I possibly forgot. However, I also got so excited to see registrations flying in and where all our participants would be coming from. Soon I started to see all the little and big ways Mourne Grange was being prepared to welcome 70 people and how many people got involved to make this happen. Anticipation could be felt in the air, and when groups of young people started arriving in Mourne Grange, my fire was burning as brightly as ever.
Sonya, Newton Dee:
There were lots of very motivated people, they were smiling and very open, always happy to help, even if they did not know each other, just with very big hearts. That was very sweet.
In a very short time, we became a stable team. You could share everything, and someone would definitely understand you. You could have very nice conversations with people you usually would not meet. It was very interesting to meet people outside of your bubble, hear different thoughts, and rethink your way of seeing the world. In everyday community life, you don’t have the time to speak about Camphill so much, but here you have the time to see the whole picture.
I didn’t see the relevance of homemaking beforehand, but now I find it very important, and I enjoy it. It’s very important to feel at home. After I came back from the Youth Conference, I saw how the house was working together as a group. I saw that everyone was doing their bit according to their abilities; I couldn’t see that so much beforehand.
Vincent King, Vidaråsen Landsby:
I was privileged to attend the Camphill Youth Conference in May of 2024. The beautiful park grounds of Mourne Grange Community were inundated by a stream of young adults from all walks of life, and the village pulsated with life, laughter, and positive energy. The personal encounters were heartfelt, and the smiles were warm and genuine. The discussions, whether one-on-one or held in groups, were honest, searching, and deep. Our collective openness and vulnerability towards each other created an emotional and spiritually safe space, the likes of which I had never experienced before. I travelled home from the conference with a heart full of song, my spirit both proud and grateful to be part of the global village that is Camphill.
I hope that these testimonies helped give a small taste of the magical weekend in Northern Ireland. A weekend facilitated and hosted by the wonderful community in Camphill Mourne Grange, to whom we owe many thanks for their hospitality.
This space offered up by Mourne Grange gave many young people the opportunity to finally meet others who are also inspired by the Camphill movement. The feedback from participants, both this year and at the previous conferences, has been focused on the warmth and joy that come from meeting other young people who are filled with the same passion and driven by the same impulse. This meeting, for many, is a reminder that they are not alone and of their belonging in a global movement that is striving to keep the Camphill flame alive and re-invent it into the future.
The Youth Conferences are incredibly important, not only for the building of future relationships and connections but also to remind us that our community does not stand alone. It is supported in its labor by many other communities carrying out the same work.
As to those who have already trodden the path, the many who have kept Camphill alive for so many years, we owe you infinite thanks for your work, and we hope that reading about the activities of some of the youth within Camphill will help give you hope for the future.
That was the story of our Youth Conference in Mourne Grange, but as is our task as youth, we must now look to the future.
Once again, at the end of the weekend in Mourne Grange the question “Which community wishes to host the next conference?” was asked.
The enthusiasm of Floris clearly captured the hearts of many, as several individuals representing different communities stepped forward to offer their time, energy, and home. For the first time for any of us, we were in entirely new and incredibly exciting territory; we had multiple very promising-looking offers from enthusiastic and passionate people.
So, to decide where the Youth Conference would next land, we brought together all who had made offers and opened a discussion to help them decide where they felt next year's Youth Conference should be held.
It took very little time for a decision to emerge, and so we are very excited to announce that next year the Loch Arthur community in Scotland will be inviting the youth of Camphill to their home for an event filled with warmth, energy, and some of the unique magic that makes them the community that they are.
We are very excited to see what will emerge in Loch Arthur and promise to share all the details with you soon.