OASIS Local Participatory Action – Lousada

PLACE: Casa das Videiras, Lousada

DATE: 26th June 2024

PARTNER: Municipality of Lousada

On 26th of June of 2024, the winEU.rur Local Participatory Action took place in Lousada, aiming to develop an EU Strategy of participative governance for the protection, promotion, and valorization of traditional agricultural vineyard landscapes. To gather a wide range of perspectives hence enriching the quality of the event, the 14 participants attending represented a mix of project stakeholders, government authorities, educational institutions, rural youth, women, and civil society organisations. The session took place at the Casa das Videiras Environmental Education Center, and the atmosphere was designed to encourage open communication, with the space adapted to include whiteboards, posters, and other materials for group work, as well as refreshments and snacks to maintain a relaxed environment. The session followed the first five phases of OASIS methodology:

  1. Appreciative

gaze This exercise aimed to identify and map out the best practices already being implemented in the region from an appreciative perspective, focusing on three main themes: Sustainable tourism for the promotion and valorization of European vineyard landscapes; Innovative technologies for managing socio-cultural tourism in scattered locations; Sustainable management measures for socio-cultural tourism.

A lot of the practices identified revolved around farms and vineyards that opened doors to the community and showed environmental concern, and festivals that decentralised culture.

  1. Affection

At this stage, participants individually reflected on what it was that they liked the most about the practices identified prior: Farms that protected the environment and had regenerative practices, while offering an array of activities that allowed visitors to get to know the products, productions methods, accommodation or cultural events. And festivals in more genuine regions of the country that celebrated traditional practices and community spirit while embracing a youthful and modern approach, mixing cultural trends, activities or hosts.

  1. Dreaming

Attendees were asked to individually write down their vision of what a future where sustainable tourism thrives alongside innovative technologies seamlessly managing cultural experiences in these scattered sites would look like.

  1. Care

They were then challenged to come together within their groups to illustrate and collectively describe a future rural territory, combining their individual dreams. It was clear that all groups envisioned territories where the community worked together and was proud of their products, preserving the surrounding environment with precision agriculture, renewable energy and regenerative systems, maintained healthy forests, and welcomed visitors with fun profitable activities.

  1. Action

To conclude the process, participants were asked to individually identify an action they could take to help realise the “collective dreamed territory,” in line with one of the three EU Strategy values. Some participants felt limited on what they could realistically do individually by lack of resources and time, although still tried to be ingenious about it. The action voted as most promising was the “Route of Tradition”, aimed at creating gamified environmental and cultural tours, with participants completing challenges that linked them to traditional agricultural practices. Other notable actions included promoting ecosystem services, valuing native plant species near agricultural areas, and creating seasonal menus featuring local food in local restaurants.

In the final evaluation, participants expressed high levels of satisfaction with the session, particularly appreciating the clarity of objectives, the methodology used, and the choice of venue. Suggestions for improvement included reducing printed materials, extending the session over multiple days, and involving more stakeholders from other regions. Overall, the event was deemed a success in fostering collaboration and generating actionable ideas for the future of traditional vineyard landscapes.

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7 responses to “OASIS Local Participatory Action – Lousada”

  1. Cláudia Vanessa Silva

    An inspiring day! It’s wonderful to see motivated individuals working to improve their territory and protect our vineyard landscapes. I was delighted and pleasantly surprised by the environmental care reflected in all the participants’ proposals, showing that the municipality’s efforts in education on this topic are truly paying off.

  2. Emma Taylor

    Love the idea of seasonal menus! Delicious way to celebrate local flavors and support the community 🌱🍴

  3. Anonymous

    The activity was super well though through, and the participants’ different backgrouds made it all the more interesting.

    This should be replicated in the decision making processes, with a variety of different levels of involvement

  4. Anonymous

    Very interesting project and good environment.

  5. Madalena Teixeira

    I really liked the session, and the way the activity was conducted

  6. Mariana Cardoso

    I think that Oasis approach is super interesting and gave me a practical perspective of how to brainstorm with dynamism and creativity

  7. Pedro

    I agree that gamifying tourism in rural areas will attract new, and captivate current visitors to this regions. It’s urgent to modernize how we visit and engage with old traditions, but make it while preserving the core values and unique aesthetic of the places . Great ideas !