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.”
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.
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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