Finding Our People at the Ubuntu Worldschooling Hub

When we set out on our seven month world - schooling adventure, I knew we would learn a lot. What I didn’t expect was how deeply we would come to value community, and how a single place in the north of Spain would affirm the way we see connection, learning and life itself.

How I View Worldschooling

Worldschooling is one of those concepts that seems to mean something slightly different to everyone. At its core, it is essentially homeschooling while travelling, but each family shapes it in their own way, adapting it to suit their values, rhythms and needs.

Over the last few years, this lifestyle has really taken off, likely fuelled by the rise of remote work becoming far more accessible in certain industries. While families have been travelling and educating their children for decades, what has emerged more recently is the rise of community spaces that allow world schooling families to connect, learn together and find support.

To me, this makes perfect sense. We are only doing this as a seven-month experience, and even in that short time we have felt moments of loneliness, craving community not just for our children but for ourselves too.

That is where Worldschooling Hubs come in. They have been appearing all over the world, offering a sense of belonging, shared experiences and collaborative learning. I first came across the idea last year while planning our trip. We decided to try out the Ubuntu Worldschooling Hub in Cantabria, Spain, partly because Spain is our base and we have family in the north, and partly because we loved the values on their website which resonated deeply with our own ideas about community, generosity and connection.

So we took the leap. And wow… I am so glad we did.

A Space Built for Connection

It is the people who truly make a community, but having a well prepared environment certainly helps. This worldschooling hub is the result of a beautiful collaboration between Pas CoLiving (pascoliving.co) and Ubuntu (espacioubuntu.org), brought to life by Neida and Jossera from Ubuntu and Lulu and Oscar from PAS and their support crew Lara, Gabbie and Emilia. These incredible humans, educators, social entrepreneurs, community weavers, and all round wonderful souls, have blended their skills and passions to create a space where connection thrives and beautiful experiences unfold.

We had our own little cabin with two rooms, a bathroom, and a fully equipped kitchen, giving us a cosy private space. At the same time, we had access to shared community areas for working, educating the kids, cooking, and enjoying time together. We became part of the rhythm of daily life, feeding the animals, tending the garden, and pitching in wherever we were needed.

The worldschooling families were joined by digital nomads who were also seeking community, perfectly in line with the kaupapa (intention) of PAS. For us and our children, this was the cherry on top. Not only were there daily activities organised by Neida, Lara and often co created with parents, but my children also gained a group of new “aunties” and “uncles” of all ages who guided them in so many ways from cooking to surfing and beyond.

Learning in Community

One of the most inspiring aspects of our time at Ubuntu was the collective nature of decision making. Everyone’s voice, children and adults alike, mattered. This naturally led to a lot of learning about cross cultural communication, not always easy but always respectful. I loved watching the children connect with others from different parts of the world, navigating not only language differences but also different ways of doing things.

One simple yet powerful example was when they played a board game together. As each child explained how the game was played in their own country, they had to negotiate, adapt, and sometimes let go of “their” rules to create a shared version. It was like a little United Nations in action, a beautiful, organic lesson in compromise, empathy and respect.

The skills my children gained here went far beyond academics:

• Finding a role within a community

• Practising empathy and patience

• Understanding the power of gifting energy as a way to connect

• Using nonviolent communication (NVC)

• Deepening their connection with nature

• And much, much more

As a family, we chose to engage fully in community life, and we loved every moment of it. This hub was not just for the children, it was for all of us. We found our people here. We left inspired to make changes in our own lives so we can continue cultivating the “global weaver” energy we experienced at Ubuntu.

We miss PAS deeply, but we have realised that what Lulu, Oscar, Neida, Jossera and the Ubuntu–PAS community have built is something we now carry within us. The connections are for life. And we hope to continue this work back in Aotearoa New Zealand, while also nurturing our friendships across the globe.

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If you are curious about worldschooling or simply looking for a way to deepen your family’s connections while travelling, I cannot recommend the Ubuntu Worldschooling Hub at Pas CoLiving enough. It is more than a place to stay, it is a place to grow, to learn, and to belong.