Nature and Education for All: CIRA Natura Project comes to an end

Associação BioLiving was one of the beneficiaries of PAPERA - Support Programme for Projects and Events in the Aveiro Region 2023 and, through this support, it was possible to carry out 18 activities and involve around 350 participants regarding the importance of protecting the region's natural and cultural values. Find out about the main results in this article.

The support of PAPERA - Support Programme for Projects and Events in the Aveiro Region 2023 - enabled Associação BioLiving to expand its mission "Nature and Education for All" this year, as part of the CIRA Natura project.

Some of BioLiving's objectives are to enhance the natural heritage of the Aveiro Region, as well as to raise awareness among its population about nature conservation and biodiversity. As such, the project proposed to the PAPERA 2023 programme focused especially on promoting activities that showcase the best we have in the Aveiro Region in terms of natural resources, biodiversity and opportunities for learning and association.

The objectives set at the beginning included:

• Educating the population of the Aveiro Region about the sustainable management of natural resources and the importance of biodiversity, by publicising some of Portugal's protected and rare species;

• Promoting conscious and active citizenship in the community, including young students in the region, as well as environmental associations in the region, showing how people can be more active in their communities;

• To combine the appreciation of the natural heritage in the Aveiro Region with the appreciation of its vast historical and cultural heritage;

• Promoting scientific culture and literacy in geographical areas with fewer social and cultural opportunities.

To this end, over the course of nine months, Associação BioLiving organised 18 environmental awareness activities of various types, such as fauna and flora observation, environmental volunteering, informal talks and the annual conference on sustainability and environmental management - BioFÓRUM.

The activities took place free of charge from March to November 2023, in the municipalities of Albergaria-a-Velha, Estarreja and Aveiro, and involved around 350 participants.

Throughout the project, various partnerships were established with local entities, to which we are very grateful, such as the Municipality of Albergaria-a-Velha and the Pateira de Frossos Interpretation Centre, AdRA - Águas da Região de Aveiro, establishments such as Mercado Negro Cultural Association, Café Amizade and Route 66, as well as the Biology Student Group and the Biology and Geology Student Group of the Academic Association of the University of Aveiro. We would also like to thank the volunteers who helped us organise the activities, as well as all the participants.

At the end of the project, we are certain that we have involved more people in the protection of the Aveiro Region's natural and cultural values and inspired local action to create positive changes in their communities, as we intend to continue doing in the future.

The CIRA Natura project was organised by Associação BioLiving, with the support of the Intermunicipal Community of the Region of Aveiro through PAPERA 2023.