Since the beginning of A ROCHA, in 1983, science has always played a very important role. A ROCHA, as a nature conservation organization, has in its objectives to work for the protection and the correct management of natural areas with conservation value. Among the work carried out in these almost 40 years, A ROCHA has databases of bird studies, both ringing and
Bernice Goffin was a Master's student who came from Wageningen University in the Netherlands. For six weeks she was at our Center and collected data from our wild bird ringing database, namely the Pied flycatcher. In addition to this data, she also collected our daily weather data available since the beginning of the 21st century. Unfortunately, her work indicated something we already suspected. Here's what she wrote: Many bird species that migrate long distances are in decline partly because of environmental changes, such as
by Katya Egorova Microplastics are one of the most uncontrolled pollutants in our oceans. Microplastics can range from 1-5mm, making them hard to remove. It is no longer possible to clear the oceans of them completely, but it is still possible to contain the continuous spread. Our research is conducted by collecting sand samples from the beaches in Lagos, Alvor, Portimão and Ferragudo. To see a more detailed picture, sand samples are taken at several sites of each of these beaches throughout
My name is Katya and I am from Russia. I was born in Siberia in Yakutsk. Last year I decided to move to Saint Petersburg, Russia to discover a new place and spend several months there. I’m a financer and worked in the investment and finance area for 2 years, but I wanted to try myself as a volunteer and be a part of an environmental project. I found an interesting A Rocha project about microplastics, which not only contained the study of the topical
THANK YOU We want to thank all our donors for supporting us at all times, and especially at this critical stage. To all our huge THANK YOU!
For the last 34 years A Rocha has been receiving volunteers from all continents, from many different cultures, backgrounds and ages. Many have returned and tell us how important their experience was, and how they missed the people and A Rocha life. For us, many hold a special place in our memories for the way they contributed their gifts, skills and knowledge. For non-profit organisations like ours, it would be difficult to function properly without the help and dedication of volunteers. Our work and
The academic year 2018-19 began with the participation of A Rocha in the Week of Education and Initiatives of Volunteers in the Algarve - SEIVA, organised by the Portuguese Environment Agency, where we offered two activities in English. In October, we were once again honored for our participation in Environmental Water Volunteers with the merit award and the designation of Project Ambassadors. We started a new project "My Beach" with the indispensable help of Amigos d'A Rocha. This project is the responsibility of the
This year A ROCHA became part of the Erasmus+ project “Enhanced ENTREpreneurial attitude in adult education for a better LABour market integration” (2018-1-SE01-KA204-039048). In order to reduce unemployment, entrepreneurial education is considered a key factor for competitiveness and employment, social inclusion and personal development. In order to adapt to this need, a new type of attitude, initiative and responsibility are required. The valorisation of entrepreneurial attitude will improve traditional education, preparing people for life and offering the opportunities to adult people to find their
Rosary Sá Pereira, she was known as Rosarinho amongst her friends, was not only the first Portuguese team member of A Rocha Portugal but also the first Coordinator of the Environmental Education program we provide for 27 years now. With her knowledge of marine biology, she pioneered, leading the activities undertaken with schools and the local community. She was an excellent professional, a pastoral person, available to listen, to advise or just to share silence. A faithful friend, with a very particular sense of
On October 1st, A Rocha received a certificate of merit from the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) under the direction of Dr. Francisco Teixeira, director of the Department of Communication and Environmental Citizenship of the APA / Lisbon. A Rocha received the certificate for our contribution to the Environmental Volunteering for Water Project during 2018. In addition to the certificate of merit, A Rocha was also awarded the designation of "Ambassador" partner for our collaboration since the beginning of the project, recognition that makes us