A growing queer community in Alentejo, Portugal.
About Us
“We are Vale das Borboletas, translated from Portuguese as 'the valley of butterflies' — an emerging queer-led community in the beautiful southwest of Alentejo, Portugal. We’re building a safe, life-affirming place where people from all over the world can be fully themselves, flourish in their uniqueness, and contribute to something greater than themselves: a regenerative, intergenerational, and loving community.”
Ronny & Wende - Founders
Off-grid and Off-script.
Who we Are
We are a diverse and international group of unique people, with community members from different backgrounds and generations. The project is founded by Wende and Ronny, two experienced queer elders who have each lived a life of resilience, creativity, and care.
We refuse to go back into the closet — and yet, we also know how to work wisely and sensitively within the broader region we live in.
A Return to What Truly Matters.
Our days unfold organically. We live slowly and with intention, following the rhythm of the land. We grow food together, cook and eat as a community, build with our hands, rest under the stars, and share stories around the fire.
While Vale das Borboletas is proudly queer-led, our invitation is open to all who value diversity, community care, and a life beyond judgment. In a time when many feel isolated or unsafe simply for being who they are, we are planting a flag of love and resilience.
A sanctuary.
Vale das Borboletas is the continuation of a long-held dream: to create a sanctuary rooted in diversity, care, and connection. It’s a response to the violence of invisibility, of judgment, of being told you’re too much or not enough. It’s also a powerful “yes” — to authenticity, creativity, and community life lived with dignity and pride.
A note from our Founders
Hello Friends,
I’m Ronny Steur — queer artist, creator, horseman, and founder of Vale das Borboletas, a queer-led
regenerative community in rural Portugal.
Born in Hoorn, the Netherlands, in 1970, I grew up on my parents’ recycling company — where sustainability
was simply a way of life. I began my career as a hair artist, working across Europe and the U.S. for major
fashion and beauty brands. Even then, I was drawn to the intersection of creativity and responsibility: green
fashion, plant-based beauty, and working in harmony with nature.
At age 29, after several surgeries and a time of deep personal reflection, I set out on a two-year journey of rediscovery. It was during this time that I found unexpected inspiration in the world of classical dressage. I became a working student for top riders across Europe, eventually moving to the U.S. to train and perform with Friesian horses. What began as curiosity turned into a profession — I spent nearly a decade importing and training Friesians, presenting them at shows and exhibitions across the States.
And yet, something in me still searched for balance.
Returning to the Netherlands, I reconnected with my first love: hair artistry. I became a master stylist at one of Amsterdam’s most renowned salons — spending mornings with my horses, and evenings bringing out the beauty in people. It was a life filled with craft, but during the stillness of the COVID lockdowns, a new vision began to bloom.
I got in my car and drove south — eventually arriving in a remote, abandoned village in Portugal. I saw potential, peace, and a place where everything could come together: sustainability, creativity, nature, and queer community.
That’s how Vale das Borboletas was born.
A queer-led, off-grid, regenerative space for those who bloom a little different.
A place to live, heal, grow, and create — together.
A space to remember forgotten crafts, like natural dye-making using the same plants Rembrandt once used for his iconic blues.
A vision rooted in nature, but with a wide-open heart.
Today, our valley is home to queer residents from around the world — the U.S., Brazil, Canada, Portugal, the Netherlands — each drawn by the same desire:
To build something real, rooted, and radically free.
Ronny Steur - Founder of Vale das Borboletas
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Welcome friends!
At the heart of Vale das Borboletas lives my dream: to create a place where everyone can be
fully themselves — without judgment, without masks, in complete authenticity.
As a trans and queer woman with a wide, open heart, I co-founded this project to offer a sense of safety,
visibility, and inspiration so that my queer family can truly thrive.
My own life has been shaped by resilience. As an older queer person, I use my lived experience to guide and support young adults in recognizing their worth, their power to create, and their freedom to live from the heart. To me, following your heart — especially in your work — means being good at what you do, with passion, honesty, and care.
I express myself through three main channels: as the mother or co-founder of this project, as a queer gardener who tends the land with sensitivity and intuition, and as a counselor who listens deeply — with empathy, curiosity, and an open mind.
I bring warmth into my relationships, as well as emotional and intellectual intelligence. I’m fearless when it comes to taboos, but always gentle. I can be both fierce and soft, fiery and calm — and I know how to help transform conflict into connection.
Even when I wasn’t always loved by others, I never stopped loving the world and the people around me. And it’s from that deep, steady place of love that I welcome you into Vale das Borboletas.
Wende Brand - Co-founder of Vale das Borboletas
Ronny Steur
Wende Brand