Vila Boa do Bispo

Vila Boa do Bispo is a parish council from the North of Portugal, situated in the municipality of Marco de Canaveses, next to the Tamega River. The town hall serves a community of approx. 3000 people, providing diversified services in the areas of public infrastructures maintenance and improvement, Formal-Education for children and Non-Formal Learning activities for youth and disadvantaged adults, as well as post office, information and legal support services for all the population. The town hall also develops projects in several areas of interest, such as culture, heritage preservation, youth and sports, nature, and the environment.
The town hall has been implementing international cooperation projects in the fields of youth participation, community engagement, sustainable development, and cultural preservation. All this has allowed Vila Boa do Bispo to expand the impact of its initiatives, bringing in and sharing good practices for the development of innovative, inclusive, and sustainable policies.
On the field of education: 1- Management of several components of the local primary and pre-schools; 2- Organization of summer camps for children and youth every year; 3- Implementation of sustainability education policies (Green-Schools program, from the Blue Flag Association, and Usual Suspects Exhibition, raising awareness on littering); 4- Collaboration and organization of workshops and training courses (small and long duration) for youth and adults, mainly on the fields of sustainable development, culture and identity preservation, gender equality and community building (The Town Hall has been involved in several international projects funded by the Erasmus + and the Europe for Citizens
program, developing significant partnerships and networks in the above-mentioned fields).

Renewable Energy Cluster Member

With the support of the specialized company Coopérnico, the Parish Council of Vila Boa do Bispo constituted a community development cooperative named QUORUM together with the local Fire-fighter Association, the Social and Sports Associations and the House of People, aimed at creating and managing a self-sufficient energy system, powering the Parish Council social infrastructures/equipments (Fire-fighter Station, Sports and Cultural Centres, as well as the local elderly day-care facility). QUOROM - Sustainable Development is a Cooperative of Public Interest, a legal figure that is now used, for the first time, in the constitution of a Renewable Energy Community (REC). This figure allows the Parish Council to provide administrative support to the REC, while allowing public and private entities to cooperate, in the name of the public interest and energy democracy, in the management of the common good ‘energy’, without focusing exclusively in making profit. In fact, with the savings generated, the Parish Council intends to promote the expansion of the network, in a phased manner, not only in the village Vila Boa do Bispo, but to other surrounding villages and Parish Councils of the Municipality of Marco de Canaveses. The constitution of a formal entity to manage savings and gains in terms of electricity production, allows the division of these savings in a transparent way by all interested parties, but also allows to create the legal structure for this project to grow with all companies and housing that in the future want to be part of this renewable energy community

Country

Portugal

Type

mountains

Degree of urbanization

Town or suburb

population of 3050

Check out the village strategy:

Smart Village Strategy of Vila Boa do Bispo

Village Solutions

OMNIA – KnOwledge and Skills DevelopMent on InNovative Green EntrepreneurshIp Models for NEETs to Build CirculAr Economy

Two-year project (2022-2024) led by the Parish Council of Vila Boa do Bispo, which involves five entities from six countries (Belgium, Malta, Portugal, Spain, Romania and Turkey). The project is based on the development of knowledge and skills training courses through workshops, training and e-learning to promote the creation of opportunities for young NEET (not in employment nor education or training) to develop their own business models and ideas in the community, integrating the principle of circular economy. The project created specific e-learning and networking platforms with tailored curriculum, methodologies and materials, as well as an expert network consultation.

Economy | Environment | People

DESUWOW – Development of professional Skills for the use of Urban solid Wastes and Organic Wastes in agriculture

International cooperation program focused on the research and development of circular economy solutions for the waste produced in the rural context and aimed at developing new professional skills for its valuation and reuse. The project aims to promote innovation, entrepreneurship and employment in predominantly rural territories and to increase the quality of life of the parish. The consortium is composed of entities from Portugal, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Belgium and Serbia. Such opportunity allowed to keep expanding the knowledge on Circular Economy, while building the international network of the Parish Council and Municipality.

Economy | Environment | Living

#VBBZERO

#VBBZERO is Vila Boa do Bispo's strategy to become a carbon-neutral community. This has come into effect through two strands: #VBB_Florestas (forests) and #VBB_Água (water). These were two volunteering projects that gathered over 60 young volunteers for the identification of the community's natural heritage and assets. This has meant that the Town Hall has mobilized effort to make a prediction of the local CO2 emissions and ways to tackle them. This is why, for this matter, tree planting initiatives and awareness-raising campaigns against littering and for the promotion were carried out. This strategy showed how causes may bring youth together.

Environment | Living | People

Contact Information

Freguesia de Vila Boa do Bispo, jf.vilaboadobispo@gmail.com

https://www.jfvilaboadobispo.pt/conhecer

Mayor Carneiro Miguel, jf.vilaboadobispo@gmail.com