The three-day Bauhaus of the Seas Sails project conference will take place from Tuesday, 26 to Thursday, 28 September in Oeiras, Portugal.

On Day 2, Wednesday, 27 September 2023, the city of Oeiras is organising a public event "A Walk to the Sea" which is open to everyone interested in the project and the topic of the sea and ocean literacy.

The "A Walk to the Sea" event is a series of guided walks in Oeiras, where groups follow local experts in history, nature, navigation and other disciplines, as well as community representatives and artists, to discover original perspectives of the city and its connection to the maritime heritage and aquatic ecosystems.

Different tour guides and community representatives will guide the groups through different landmarks in Oeiras such as the Ribeira da Laje, the Jardim Municipal de Oeiras and Praia de Santo Amaro.

Before the walks , we will meet up at 16:30 at Cascata dos Poetas, Jardins Palácio do Marquês de Pombal for refreshments and Interaction with Eden X, an installation by Joana Pestana and Mariana Pestana at 16:45.

EdenX is a digital platform that experiments ways of dialogue between humans and non-humans about the river, its constituents and their rights. The conversation can be watched both in real time or in deferred mode at the installation located on the Marquês de Pombal Palace Gardens in Oeiras or via the edenx.pt website.

The walks will start at 17:30 at the Palácio do Marquês and end 19h at Praia de Santo Amaro de Oeiras.

After the tours, the participants are invited for the "Mar Urbano Lisboa" documentary screening at 9.30 PM, that will take place at the Eunice Muñoz Municipal Auditorium.

[There will be several tours available in Portuguese and English that will happen simultaneously, so please choose only one specific tour when selecting your ticket.]

Walks

Walk 1

Carlos Alpedrinha ANCORAS – Associação Náutica Clássicos de Oeiras

Sea and Heritage Route – Lateen Sailing on the Tagus River

The walk starts at the Palácio do Marquês de Pombal and continues along the Lage stream to the River Tagus; it proceeds along the seafront promenade to the Oeiras Marina, where the group boards one or two traditional or classic boats operated by ÂNCORAS – Associação Náutica Clássicos de Oeiras. We will sail (weather permitting) to the Lighthouses Directorate, where we will disembark and finish this seafaring route. Participants will learn about places linked to maritime activity and heritage, in particular related to the defence of the Port of Lisbon and the Tagus Bar. , In line with promoting ocean knowledge and literacy, this route will highlight development-enhancing elements in the territory.

Walk conducted in English

Registration limit: 20 people

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Walk 2

João Paulo Medeiros MARE (Centre for Marine and Environmental Sciences) / ARNET (Aquatic Research Network)

To Sea or not to Sea – What we can Sea more beyond rocks and sand?

Wherever the ocean meets the land, from long sandy beaches to wide mudflats and steep rocky shores, an intertidal zone exists. Here, marine organisms arrange themselves, vertically and horizontally, to guarantee their survival in a dynamic ecosystem. The adaptation strategies found in intertidal residents, either mobile or sedentary, are highly diverse and reflect their need to compete for space, avoid predators, secure body moist and stand up to wave energy in a high challenging environment. The intertidal zone is thus a critical interface between terrestrial and marine ecosystems, whose ebb and flow of the tide determines the rhythm of life cycles and behaviours of many animals, both marine and terrestrial (including people!). Despite the recognized importance of these areas, there are still gaps in the conservation of the vast group of intertidal species, many of which are threatened by habitat destruction, climate change, pollution, fishing, among others. The main goal of this initiative in the aim of the program “Walk to the sea” consists of taking a closer look at the riverside area of the municipality of Oeiras and see what it has to offer beyond the beaches, walking areas and other leisure areas and raise awareness of the importance of intertidal zones.

Walk conducted in English

Registration limit: 20 people

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Walk 3

Marco Ferreira Vasco da Gama Aquarium

Down by the river

Rivers are, perhaps, the most influential geographical feature for the development of civilization. Likewise, they are extremely important in the intricate web of life, sculpting animal and plant communities of entire regions. In this walk we will look at these flowing bodies of water and debate how humanity has changed them to suit its needs, what impacts are we observing and how communities try to work to minimise or revert these effects.

Walk conducted in English

Registration limit: 20 people

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Walk 4

Maria João Leão Programa Ciência + Cidadã (IGC, ITQB NOVA, Municipality of Oeiras)

Oeiras Experimenta

Participants in this walk will be able to get to know Oeiras Experimenta, a Citizen Science project coordinated by ITQB NOVA in close partnership with the Gulbenkian Institute of Science and the Municipality of Oeiras, which is organising a living laboratory at Quinta do Marquês do Pombal with the participation of citizens. This project aims to study the impacts of climate change on the growth and productivity of plants that may be more resistant to adverse conditions, such as chícharo (a kind of pea/chickpea), sorghum and national varieties of rice, as well as learning more about the microbiome of bees. Participants in this visit will be able to talk to the researchers involved in these trials and taste chícharo pastries, rice cakes and sorghum during a picnic that aims to publicise the food potential of the plants being studied in Oeiras Experimenta.

Walk conducted in Portuguese

Registration limit: 20 people

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Walk 5

Patrícia Portela Writer and performance maker

Going on a date with the planet

We don’t walk because we like the landscape, we have come to like the landscape because we walk. We regularly walk in gardens, down valleys, through forests, along orchards, and that’s why we know that an apple always falls down from a tree in a direction perpendicular to the ground.We walk to contemplate, and perhaps to conclude that the most vertiginous thought we might ever entertain on a walk is to realise that perhaps life is only found on this Earth. Guest: Nicolas Fernando de Warren, Professor of Phenomenology. Sound design: Miguel Abras

We kindly request the guest walkers to bring their own smartphone and respective headphones.

Walk conducted in English

Registration limit: 20 people

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Walk 6

Pedro Cardoso Nautical Activities Centre, Paço de Arcos School Group

Stand Up Paddle Lesson

Participants in this floating walk will have the opportunity to get to know the AEPA/CMO Nautical Activities Centre and see the full scope of the experiences that young students from Oeiras have here on a daily basis. They will also be able to appreciate some of the artistic works based on the maritime theme. In the second part of the visit, participants will be invited to take part in a Stand Up Paddle lesson. The class will begin with a presentation of the equipment needed for the activity, followed by an approach to the proper techniques, carried out on the beach and ending with a short walk along the Oeiras coastline, where they can enjoy the pleasure of gliding over the ocean waters and appreciate the coastal landscape from a new perspective.

Target audience: General public with the physical ability to practise sport.Materials needed: Swimsuit, flip-flops, T-shirt or lycra and towel.Location: Praia dos Pescadores (Paço de Arcos) at the sports training centre of the Paço de Arcos School Group.

Registration limit: 15 people

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Walk 7

Sara Almeida Environmental Management Division, Municipality of Oeiras

Guided tour of Oeiras’ riverside biodiversity

Starting from the Marquês de Pombal Palace Garden, the route will follow the course of the Laje stream to its mouth at Santo Amaro de Oeiras beach, passing through a gradient of terrestrial-riverine-marine habitats. During the walk, topics such as the ecological importance of these habitats, the species they contain and what we can do to preserve them will be discussed. There will also be the chance to observe various species up close, from the most common plants and insects to native fish and both shorebirds and seabirds. This activity will be prepared and guided by technicians from the Environmental Management Division of the Municipality of Oeiras.

Walk conducted in Portuguese

Registration limit: 20 people

A Walk to the Sea + Mar Urbano | Bauhaus of the Seas Sails in Oeiras