The municipality of Arcos de Valdevez hosts, in September and October, the initiative "Making Peace with the Earth", a free program open to all that aims to reflect on contemporary environmental challenges and the relationship between humanity, territory and planet. The organization is the responsibility of several entities, including the University of Minho, through the Centre for Humanistic Studies, the School of Letters, Arts and Human Sciences and the Institute of Social Sciences.
The program includes conversations on Friday afternoons at the Himalaya Viva Science Centre Creativity Workshops, with specialists such as philosopher Oscar Horta Alvarez, geographer Vítor Ribeiro, architect Daniel Vale and geographer Rui Paes Mendes. Awareness activities are also planned in schools in the municipality and certified training for teachers.
The central event is the international conference from September 24 to 26, coinciding with the autumn equinox and National Sustainability Day, with speakers such as physicist Orfeu Bertolami, Paulo Magalhães and Denise Hosana Moreira. From October 12 to 16, the Autumn School takes place, an intensive 15-hour course for students, municipal technicians and civil protection agents.
According to Professor João Ribeiro Mendes, from the Department of Philosophy at ELACH, the initiative crosses science, education, philosophy and civic participation, contributing to environmental literacy and informed reflection on climate change, the Anthropocene and ecological challenges.
