At SplashLab, the monitoring of the Ria Formosa takes place directly in the field, with teachers guiding students through data collection and analysis. Through citizen science, students observe real-world processes and understand how information is gathered and used to study the environment.
monitoring
COASTWATCH
CoastWatch Portugal is a citizen science program that encourages the participation of students and volunteers in coastal monitoring, helping to identify environmental impacts and promoting awareness for the preservation of marine and coastal ecosystems.
COASTAL CLEANUP AND MONITORING
Ria cleanup and monitoring activities, particularly in the area adjacent to the salt pans, have been carried out by our school over several years, whenever conditions allow. These actions are scheduled mindfully, aimed at the period following heavy rains and winter tides, yet before the start of the bird nesting season, to minimize any impact on the surrounding environment.
The area is accessible via a dirt path and is frequented by salt and traditional fishing workers, nature tourists, outdoor enthusiasts—engaging in activities such as walking, running, and cycling—and those who visit for leisure.
MONITORING (SUMMER)
The monitoring activity carried out in June focused on a transition area between the lagoon system and the urban area of the village of Fuseta, characterized by a constant human presence. This space is used daily for leisure, tourism, and as a support base for artisanal fishing, with various infrastructures concentrated along the waterfront.
AND NOW?
We will continue the monitoring campaigns, strengthening the work already underway and seeking to establish greater regularity in field trips to consolidate comparable procedures over time. We intend to expand the observation area to the entire Fuseta zone, including the mouth of the Tronco stream, which flows through several agricultural fields. The final outing, scheduled for December, had to be postponed due to rain and will now take place in January.
Citizen science opens doors to various ways of continuing the work developed, giving greater meaning to classroom activities and allowing them to contribute to something useful and shareable. Projects such as Invasoras (Invasive Species) or Ilhas Barreira (Barrier Islands) emerge as two possible follow-ups, among many others that the School Cluster’s teachers may explore, according to their interests and disciplinary contexts.
With the ProBleu funding, the school acquired a wide range of instruments suitable for fieldwork with students. The list of this equipment is available to any teacher in the School Cluster who wishes to develop monitoring or field observation activities.
The "Invasoras" website is an information and citizen-science platform about invasive plants in Portugal. Its initial development took place in 2013 as part of the project "Invasive Plants: a threat from outside," co-funded by the European Union (QREN/COMPETE) and Ciência Viva — National Agency for Scientific and Technological Culture. (invasoras.pt)
The coordination and management of the platform involve research teams from institutions such as the Centre for Functional Ecology – Science for People & the Planet (Dept. of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra) and the Coimbra Agriculture School (Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra), working together with the community to map, disseminate, and study invasive species through contributions from citizen-scientists.
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The "LIFE Ilhas Barreira" (Barrier Islands) project is an initiative co-funded by the European Union's LIFE program, aimed at the conservation of barrier islands and their habitats, particularly those linked to the Ria Formosa. The project's main coordination is carried out by the Portuguese Society for the Study of Birds (SPEA), which leads actions for the protection of seabirds and habitat restoration, in partnership with several other institutions such as universities (University of Algarve, University of Coimbra), the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF), RIAS – Ria Formosa Wildlife Rehabilitation and Research Center, and other technical and scientific partners.
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