Municipality of Gouveia and REN bring together 800 children to celebrate the International Day of Forests

The municipality of Gouveia and REN will bring together 800 children at the Senhora dos Verdes Park in Gouveia to celebrate the International Day of Forests. The joint initiative will take place on 21 March, and includes a day of recreational and educational activities and workshops concerning environmental protection and education for the children of the 1st and 2nd cycles of primary school.

The action of REN and of the Municipality of Gouveia will take place throughout the day and will involve around 800 children and young people from the municipality of Gouveia. We highlight the plantation of 1,000 indigenous trees during the afternoon, in one of the corridors where REN's energy transmission infrastructure goes through, and the educational initiative 'Heróis de toda a espécie', which will gather over 100 children of the 3rd and 4th years of the Gouveia School Group. The activities seek to raise the communities' awareness regarding biodiversity protection, preservation of Portuguese forests and preservation of threatened or endangered animal and plant species.

For Luís Manuel Tadeu Marques, Mayor of Gouveia, the partnership with REN improves the capacity for intervention in the school community. 'The environmental awareness programme developed by REN fits perfectly with the objectives of the municipality of Gouveia. We want to alert children to the need to protect the forest and through them reach their families, with simple messages of environmental protection and preservation.'

For Margarida Ferreirinha, REN's Director of Communication and Sustainability, this is the best way to celebrate the Day of Forests and teach new generations to change habits and behaviours, showing that one can learn while playing and simultaneously help the environment.

On the other hand, REN's director also mentions the fact that, within the scope of the management of the energy transmission lines' corridors, the company planted around 750 thousand trees over more than 1500 ha over the last five years, which is equivalent to planting around 300 trees per day. She also emphasises the expectation of reaching the first million trees planted by 2018.

The municipality of Gouveia and REN seek, through this action, to increase the environmental awareness of children and young people through fun and educational activities that reinforce the children's involvement and the youngster's sense of responsibility towards the forest.

REN - Redes Energéticas Nacionais, with the support of the Nature and Forests Preservation Institute and of the Directorate-General for Education, launched the educational initiative 'Heróis de toda a espécie', with the goal of raising the communities' awareness regarding the protection of biodiversity, the preservation of Portuguese forests and the preservation of threatened or endangered animal and plant species.

This initiative, which has already reached over 750 children in the 3rd and 4th years of the first cycle of primary education, seeks to educate true ambassadors for this cause. Designed to complement the schools' programmes, this programme uses an interactive and dynamic approach, promoting environmental awareness and a sense of responsibility among the young.

To enable access to all content, the website www.heroisdetodaaespecie.pt was created in which, in addition to teaching materials to be used in the classroom, educational games, trivia and news are also available.