Author: Samuel Faucherre

Hello sailors!

After a long radio silence, we are thrilled to share updates with you on the refitting of Hawila, the advance of the project and the opportunity to sail together!

We’ve been busy onboard and the project has made huge advances the last year with few words from us. In addition to the never ceasing work on the vessel we have developed several collaborative projects allowing us to thrive locally and in Europe. Our vision has been refined, the core team consolidated and structuration of a cooperative initiated.

In a month, the vessel will be seaworthy to set sail towards the North Sea and the western Norwegian fjords. Join the voyage! Later, after a winter on the dry dock, Hawila will be ready to sail commercially across Europe with a cargo hold of 40 tons.

We need your support to make this happen! We are now at the shipyard in Gilleleje, and every penny counts to make Hawila seaworthy. Please donate for the refit! Besides, Hawila is in the process of creating a cooperative structure and will eventually invite new members from this summer. If you believe Hawila can make a change as a sailing cargo vessel and cultural and educative platform consider joining our internal mailing list to receive more info.You can also support us by sailing along this summer on one of the leg and enjoy the beauty of the Norwegian fjords.

We hope you are all doing great in your projects and wish to see you at sea this summer,

Fair winds!
Samuel, Gabriele and Robert

Hawila will set sail soon!

Donate now to support the last part of the refit
 We are writing to you from the deck of Hawila, hoisted up on the Gillelje slipway, where she arrived 10 days ago. We have gathered a large group of 20 skilled volunteers from our network and the artisanal carpenters from the CopeauxCabana collective to refit the vessel. Lots has been done the last years and this is the last step before setting sail for the entire summer. We made new booms and gaffs and serviced standing rigging, oiled and fixed the blocks, planked some of the hull, re-caulked nearly the entire hull, replaced a third of the deck and changed some of the deck beams, remade port side of the deck galley cabin, new bow fences, rebuilt entirely the main engine and onboard generator, rewired most of the electric system and, thanks to support of Victron Energy, upgraded the battery bank, upgraded our instruments, rearranged the space inside with new cabins and so much more! The ship will be put back at sea in a few days to finish the work above the water line and give it a final paint touch. After that, Hawila will be rigged with her original sails for test sailing and to take the sea towards Norway. On the way we will stop at the Risør trebåt festival form 3 to 5th of August and visit the yard where Hawila was built in 1935. 
We needs your support more than ever to make Hawila’s maiden voyage along the coast of Sweden, Norway, UK and France this summer, marking the initiation of our project before the final conversion as commercial cargo.

Would you consider donating any amount of money, big or small, to kick off the projects around Hawila?

DONATE FOR HAWILA’S SPRING 2017 REFIT

We thank you in advance for all your donation for Hawila’s refit!
Gabri, Rob and Samuel

Hawila: an educative and awareness platform

If you are interested in knowing more about the activity and would like to share it in your harbour, school or city please get in touch with us!
If you are interested in reading more about our workshop have a look at this blog post.

Internal developments
 The project with Hawila has undergone internal restructuration over the past months, and the future brings new exciting developments. The vision and our core team was refined: Samuel Faucherre, Gabriel Sutera, and Robert Weir are now responsible for directing the momentum of the project to ensure its continuity.
We are now in the process of forming a Cooperative which will own the ship outright. United under this Cooperative will come the three important aspects of our project – Trade, Culture and Education.  The Cooperative will be run by members actively working for the project. This structure gives a dynamic allowing member participation by votes on the direction of the project. Additionally, the Cooperative will allow the project to gain shareholder support from those not wanting to work directly with the project, but willing to contribute. These shareholders will be entitled to a vote and a voice in the cooperative, and will receive a return on their investment.

If you are interested in joining the future Cooperative, becoming a member or shareholder, please join our internal mailing list and we will forward you the business booklet when ready:

Join Hawila’s maiden voyage!

After five years Hawila will set sail again for an exeptional sailing voyage. Become a member of Hawila and support us with a daily fee to sail by contributing her through the stunning Norwegian fjords, the wild Northern seas, through the Caledonian canal, the legendary Scottish lakes, the Irish sea and more! Have a look at our planned sailing schedule and get in touch with us for more details (email booking@hawilaproject.org with leg code in subject). You will experience a real sailing voyage, hoisting and trimming the sails, sharing time with the captain and the crew, helping the cook and stopping in unique places linked to sailing culture. Most importantly, you will support Hawila to sail for the coming years!
 
 

NOTE: This is an expected schedule, the dates of arrival and departure might be adjusted according weather conditions or other unforeseen events as well as members participation.

After a restoration season of over 3 months of growth and serendipity, much has moved ahead under Hawila’s two masts!

Thanks goes to the power of determination, the positivity of learning from skilled carpenters and random encounters, and the enthusiasm of a volunteer crew working together throughout months.

Degradation processes are now under control, the state of the ship is preserved in the most important places, deck, galley, mizzen boom, bowsprit and topmasts. Aft and forward are sanded, caulked, oiled and renewed, important beams and planks from main deck replaced and restored. The port side wall of the galley was replaced and insulation optimized. One of its panels has become an ongoing experiment; testing the use of plexiglas and a ventilation chamber, as a potential solution to condensation.

Bow fences were replaced and decorated with nordic inspired carvings. Accurate measured drawings, (made for the ship by a cross-continental cycling architect) have already helped us during an initial survey towards regulating Hawila for future shipping activities! Ben and Leo, shipwright and sailor, our skilled volunteers invited for the season, pushed forward an incredible amount of positive changes.

As is the nature of this ship, many things are larger than imagined and plans are only a safety line in changing seas. Unexpected surprises balanced out the unforeseen issues and we move forward stronger for it.

We were happy, to be able to challenge ourselves and do things we’d never done before. To learn from knowledgeable craftsmen how to work skilled tasks and see woodwork in different styles from, allowed us all to get much more comfortable with wood ourselves. It was powerful to develop friendships and synergies with other projects that connect with what Hawila stands for, both in terms of restoration communities and social initiatives. Alongside the work, we kept Hawila’s space open to the public. With the support of Juan Pino, Mambe, Rebecka Maria, Ashti Abdo and the entire crew, Hawila’s space was transformed into a magic venue a handful of times. So we also had moments throughout the months to restore energies for the intense work, taking the occasion to update outside communities about the advancement of the project.

Winter will be the time for preparing and scheduling of activities for the coming year. To meet our goal of sailing within next summer, an intense timeplan is on the way. Works will start again in the beginning of spring 2017, so get in touch with us if you’d like to collaborate in the next restoration season!

Special heartfelt thanks to those who contributed to our work and  crew this summer and fall:

Leonardo Panizza, apprentice boat builder, Benjamin Cremades, traditional boat builder,  Etienne Mignon Le Vaillant, sailor and carpentry apprentice, Ales Milos Cerny, electrician and plumber, Robert George Weir, cook, Serena Abbondanza, deck hand and architectural drawings, Anoop Shekar architect and cook,  Yogan carpenter, Danni Masso, deck hand, Marielle Weber, deck hand, Lisa Geldys deck hand and assistant cook, Anton Corbal, deck hand, video maker, Cesar, deck hand, video maker, Mariana Bolano, deck hand, photographer, Alexandros Perellis, caulker, and all the amazing folks who dropped by to give us a hand!

May the darker times be good to you all, stay with us, we’ll keep you posted ! 

http://https://vimeo.com/168320233

In Kastrup Havn from the 13th-19th of June 2016, the historical sailing ship Hawila opens her deck to a new self-organized festival !
To all ye lovers of sea and sailing culture, emerging art, environmental awareness and community living, welcome!
By day, skills and knowledge sharing, in evenings a stage for artists and performers.
Access to the event is free, donation based, for all ages and sizes.

Our vision: a multidisciplinary platform in a most unusual place, a temporary experiment to support skillful practices, cultural integration, live arts and entertainment to the themes of: SAILING ENERGIES AND SUSTAINED ABILITIES.

PRICE: DONATIONS. Important! Though everything is of openly accessible, registration is needed to participate in some workshops, as they fill up fast. Check the detailed schedule for extensive information on an incredible week of inner/ outer nature, research and enjoyment; from sailing workshops to experimental performances and live concerts.

Find the ones you like, and reserve a spot through the following form : http://www.hawilaproject.org/registration-participants/ Feel free also  join our facebook event.

Bring your friends and lovers, your grandparents and children, your pirate parrots and flying dogs, see you there!

Throughout the summer of 2016 Hawila Project collaborates with professional artists of Copenhagen Dream House and abroad:

This year, “Hawila” is the vessel for nomadic performance project “Sailing City”, where acrobats, dancers, musicians and installation artists create events in collaboration with climate scientists, activists and engineers. A series of public events for all ages on the water and in harbor areas, the ship being a platform for exploring artistic dialogues around meaningful topics. The aim: finding new ways to communicate about the state of the planet and our own states of being. We seek a greater understanding of our part as residents in a global community, where actions in one place affect the climate of another.

“Sailing City” crew has roots in all continents (from New Delhi and Bangalore to Sidney, from Rome, Berlin, Bornholm to Ouagadougou, Quito, Qaqortoq and California) The project explores themes of climate change, lifestyles, and environmental justice through an artistic lens.

Read more about this exciting project, full description, calendar and artists here!

Next up in SAILING CITY calendar : (The event loop, duration around 50 min, starts at the announced times)

BLUE PLANET PORT midsummer.
June 17th and 24th and 25th at 9 pm + 10 pm
Additional Skt. Hans celebration is included on the 24th

Additional information on Sailing City’s Copenhagen Dreamhouse page.

“Sailing City” is a project supported by the Danish Ministry of Culture.
photos and video courtesy of Anton Corbal, Karina Tengberg, Alina Constantin

Summer will soon start again, and we are looking for volunteers to help restore the ship as sailing cargo once again!

From 1st of July we want to form a small crew of 10 people to work on Hawila’s rig and hull. We will keep the weekends for sailing and workshops.

You can apply here, deadline is the 20th of April!