In 2023, artistic expression is back in the Greater Côa Valley and art returns to the wild in this region. The “CÔA – Corridor of Arts” festival will have its first edition taking place in the summer of 2023, in the Greater Côa Valley. A festival that seeks to connect artists with communities in this natural environment, in order to co-create works of art that have integrated the landscape itself, using natural materials and respecting its natural decay.

The duo of photographers Blue Nomads, composed by the couple Susana Silvestre and Ricardo Ferreira, spent two weeks carrying out a photographic mission in the Greater Côa Valley, with the goal of capturing through their lenses the work carried out by Rewilding Portugal, as well as all the natural heritage of the surrounding region. In their own words, let’s travel through this article with this incredible duo to learn more about their experience.

Over a period of one year, the Greater Côa Valley and its rewilding areas have been receiving an artistic residency, which is nothing less than a journey that covers the entire Côa Valley, and in which the objective will be , at the end of the entire creative process to develop an “impressionist video-sonic poem”, by the artist duo Antony Lyons and Bárbara Carvalho, who won the competition promoted by the Endangered Landscapes Programme.

The Sorraia horses that now live in Vale Carapito and Ermo das Águias and that will soon also be introduced to other properties in the Greater Côa Valley rewilding area, have an important mission to fulfil that has been lost over the ages with the extinction of the large wild herbivores in the landscape.

Migrations are one of the oldest processes in the animal world, being seasonal movements from one place to another. There are different reasons why animals migrate. For example, some species migrate to take advantage of seasonal availability of different food sources, others to escape the harsh climate for part of the year, or for breeding reasons. In the Greater Côa Valley there were, there are, and there could be again several migrations of birds, fish and mammals.

Rewiding Portugal and the Municipality of Sabugal came together to carry out the second edition of the nature photography contest “Rewilding Photo Contest”, in an edition that brings many news and new prizes. Comunidade Cultura e Arte will be the communication partner of this photographic contest and submissions are now open.

Rewilding Portugal, together with Rewilding Europe and Nature Tourism Development, developed another training for nature guides after the success of the training carried out in 2021. This time within the scope of the LIFE WolFlux project, the training, focused on wolf tourism , intended to train nature guides that already exist in the territory or intending to develop this activity, related to this emblematic and endangered species, so that responsible tourism can be carried out in relation to it in this territory.

Rewilding Portugal, to celebrate the second World Rewilding Day, organized an interpretive tour of two of its rewilding areas: Vale Carapito and Paul de Toirões, with the aim of making known its work and the actions it has been developing in the field, as well as to alert to the need to use this approach in the landscapes of Portugal and Europe.

On the 10th and 11th of March, Rewilding Portugal brought together the partners of its nature-based and sustainable tourism network, Wild Côa Network, in a “fun trip” that served to create more bonds between the partners, allowing them to develop partnerships and concerted tourist offers. A network that operates in the Greater Côa Valley, on the wildest side of Portugal.

Last Saturday was marked by the award ceremony for the first edition of the nature photography contest Rewilding Photo Contest, a contest by Rewilding Portugal held in partnership with Comunidade Cultura e Arte. Practically all the winners and honorable mentions were present, on a day that was also used to make known Vale Carapito, the first rewilding area in the region.