It is time to design new ways to internationalise goods and services produced in the interior of the country - this is the main message that the Aldeias do Xisto territorial brand, the scientific and technical system, and the national public and investment support sector reiterated   at the meeting at the University of Aveiro on 9 December. In recent years, the Aldeias do Xisto have become a territory of experience, a living laboratory where scientific and empirical knowledge intersect with people and places, helping to qualify and position local resources with demanding publics and markets in terms of nature tourism and social responsibility.

PROGRAMME

9 December 2015
Rectory Central Building of the University of Aveiro

• 4pm - Guest reception
• 4:30pm - Opening of the session by the Rector of the University of Aveiro, Professor Manuel António Assunção
• 4:40pm - Rui Raposo, Director of DECA- Department of Communication and Art, University of Aveiro
• 4:50pm - Paulo Fernandes, President of ADXTUR - Schist Villages Tourism Development Agency
• 5:10pm - Ana Abrunhosa, President of CCDRC - Regional Development Committee for the Centre
• 5:20pm - Pedro Machado, Head of Turismo Centro de Portugal
• 5:30pm - Maria João Veiga Gomes, Deputy Director, Institutional Relations and External Markets Department of AICEP - Portugal's Agency for Investment and External Trade
• 5:40pm - Francisco Providência, Designer - Visiting Associate Professor, University of Aveiro
• 6pm - Rui Simão, Coordinator of ADXTUR - Schist Villages Tourism Development Agency

20 January 2016
• School’s Guided tour

17 February 2016
• Universities and Polytechnics Guided tour
• Meeting on "Rural Design

A joint strategy is underway between ADXTUR and the AICEP-  Agência para o Investimento e Comércio Externo de Portugal  , which will be translated into a protocol, to, in the coming years, strengthen with its delegations abroad the capacity to market goods and services produced in the interior of the country. On 17 February, when a meeting on Rural Design will be held, the Aldeias do Xisto will receive other schools, universities and polytechnics from all over the country at the UA, continuing to challenge the Academy to reflect on culture and national identity and to contribute to the social and economic renewal of rural territories.

The Agricultura Lusitana exhibition and what it represents in terms of its ability to establish links with these international audiences, and which will be on show until 17 February 2016 at the AU, has already represented Portugal at the EUNIQUE 2015 in Germany, established links in Paris during the International Cultural Heritage Show, and consolidated Portugal's representation at the World Craft Council. The importance given by the Embassy of Portugal in Germany, AICEP, CCDRC and TCP, entities all present at the inauguration of EUNIQUE 2015, was unequivocal and demonstrative of the recognition of the potential of this strategy for the development and affirmation of the country. The Agricultura Lusitana project counted with the participation of more than 150 people, including artisans, designers, teachers and students from 9 national design universities, specialists from different areas and inhabitants who, for one year, generated arguments to idealize and produce goods and services significant of our rural identity and culture.

Linking knowledge and local communities  in a rural environment to generate a new economy

The Agricultura Lusitana exhibition will be on display at the Central Building of the Rectory of the UA until 18 February 2016. During this period, the Aldeias do Xisto will host several institutional partners, as well as other schools, universities and polytechnics from all over the country. The challenge for them will be to integrate a strategy that has been drawing attention to rural culture and, from there, looks at reality, projects new avenues and produces goods and services. The Aldeias do Xisto propose a broad reflection on the future of the rural world and explore the possibility of a contribution to the strategic development of the territory in schools and the scientific community. And also the opportunity to attract new actors capable of integrating and qualifying the social and knowledge base, generating new opportunities for a resurgence based on nature, economy, social infrastructures and personal well-being.

Aldeias do Xisto mission and objectives

The mission of ADXTUR - Schist Villages Tourism Development Agency is to generate territorial attractiveness, stimulating a sustainable and integrated social and territorial development. ADXTUR has initiated a process that seeks to reverse a vicious circle of economic and social decline in this territory, which is among those facing the greatest difficulties in Europe. In this sense, its role as an agent for experimentation is linked to its core mission. Given the difficulties to be faced, and the specificities of this territory, finding opportunities requires exploring paths less travelled. With all that this implies, this territory and the intervention of ADXTUR constitute a living laboratory that calls for continuous reflection on the strategies adopted and the processes underway, as well as on the results achieved.

The Aldeias do Xisto in designing their future have as their main objectives:

• Increase institutional capacity to intervene in the territory.
• Mobilise knowledge to consolidate the strategic positioning of the brand and its internationalisation.
• Seek opportunities for a dynamic and sustainable rural resurgence.
• Convene multiple domains to integrate the action plan.
• Attract new actors for economic and social development.
• Stimulate new links between local actors and the outside world.