Associação Unidos em Defesa de Covas do Barroso

Associação Unidos em Defesa de Covas do Barroso (AUDCB) is a non-profit organization based in the village Covas do Barroso, in the Barroso region, located in the northern interior of Portugal. It’s aims are mostly to:

1-) Protect the ecological integrity of the region
2-) Promote the socioecological heritage of the region
3-) Protect the region’s World Agricultural Heritage Site label from FAO
4-) Foster civic participation in the local population
5-) Promote partnership networks between local and regional entities

Our main activities are the following:

1-) Sociocultural dynamization of the village
2-) Organization of local and regional events for community input about the present and future of the region
3-) Organization of events to promote and protect regional heritage
4-) Dissemination of ethnographic archives on sociocultural and ecological heritage in the region

Our target audience is the local and regional population of Barroso’s region. It’s a rural and geographically isolated population, generally aged, with limited familiarity with technology and low levels of formal education. Additionally, civic participation remains low, reflecting broader challenges in engagement and social involvement. Through our efforts, we strive to preserve the unique way of life in Barroso and to empower the local and regional population, with specially young people, by fostering sustainable living practices and encouraging active civic engagement.