Eco-Parlamento (Eco-Parliament)
Guimarães, Portugal
Best practice - Environment
The Eco-Parlamento (Eco-Parliament) of Guimarães, Portugal, is promoted by the City of Guimarães and the Landscape Laboratory and is aimed at elementary and middle-school students.
The programme is based on the concept of participatory democracy to promote reflection on the Sustainable Development Goals and the involvement of children and young people in environmental decisions concerning the city and country in which they live. Students participating in the Eco-Parlamento are divided into teams, in which they have to develop proposals to tackle sustainability issues that they have identified in Guimarães, in line with the SMART principles (specific, measurable and attainable, realistic/relevant and time-bound). These proposals are then developed in three sessions with the support of technical experts and presented for a final vote in front of a jury consisting of children, representatives from the city and academia.
The project builds children’s and young people’s soft skills in collaboration and democratic participation and increases their sensitivity to environmental and sustainability issues.
