Olivia Grundy

Member

Olivia Grundy has spent more than the last decade of her life traveling around the world and living abroad. Since her first trip working at a summer camp in the USA when she was 20, she has travelled solo around South East Asia, Eastern Europe, Morocco, South Africa, India, Argentina, the Azores, Hong Kong and, most recently, Spain.

Yet for Olivia, travel is more than a collection of cool photos and countries ticked off the bucket list. Each trip is a pilgrimage; a sacred journey of self-discovery and unlearning. Travel has been her soul food and her medicine, without which she wouldn’t be who she is today. 

Originally from Lancashire in North West England, Olivia currently resides in Madrid, where she has worked as an English teacher since 2014. Olivia is very grateful for the work-life balance that teaching English has afforded her, as it has allowed her to participate in many different multi-cultural and creative activities which have enriched her life immeasurably.

Until recently, Olivia worked at an English academy in the city centre, teaching people from all ages and walks of life. However, now she has decided to take a leap of faith and begin teaching online, which allows her to work for herself and follow her dream of starting a sustainable project with her partner in the countryside, combining art, permaculture, and education.

Olivia aspires to live a more self-sufficient life close to the Earth, in harmony with its natural rhythms and cycles. She dreams of growing her own food and living more communally. Olivia loves the city, but she has come to realise that she feels more herself in nature and yearns for a deeper connection with the natural world.

But this means going even further off the beaten path than she has been before, which comes with many fears and uncertainties. Yet Olivia believes that our dreams are sacred and exist within us to be realised. Dreams are what give our lives meaning and purpose, and without them, we can feel lost, and life can lose its colour. She doesn’t know how her dream will come about, but Olivia is sure that she will make it happen, one step at a time. 

Right now, Olivia is studying permaculture to prepare herself for this change in lifestyle and is very much inspired by what she is learning. Olivia also enjoys spending time in the community garden in her neighbourhood where she enjoys connecting with the plants and the people there, as well as putting her permaculture studies into practice.

Olivia is very excited to be starting this new chapter of her life and is writing about the process on her blog, Shared Earth Living. She hopes that by sharing her journey, she can encourage others to follow their dreams and inspire them to live more authentically, boldly, and courageously.

It is Olivia’s conviction that a more beautiful world is possible and that we, the people, are the co-creators of it. She aims to help sow the seeds of change to help make this vision become a reality. As well as on her blog, you can find her on Instagram and Facebook at @shared_earthliving. Feel free to say hi!