Alqueva: Boosting the adaptation of the Montados cultural landscape to climate change

The impact of climate change on Portuguese society, economy and ecosystems has been felt, with particular gravity, in the south of the country. In this region, between 1955 and 2005, the average annual precipitation decreased about 190mm, while the temperature increase reached 1.3ºC.

EDIA participates in LIFE Montado-Adapt and Alqueva contributes to promoting the resilience of this territory. The project aims to mitigate the consequences of climate change in the Montados cultural landscape in Portugal and Spain, improving their economic, social and environmental sustainability.

Based on the premise that it is not possible to achieve sustainability with management systems that do not contemplate climate change, LIFE Montado-Adapt supports the implementation of the Integrated Land Use (ILU) in the regions of Alentejo, Extremadura and Andalusia. As it is a system based on adapting to current climatic conditions, its strategies for crop diversification, both agricultural and forestry, promote an increase in the productive capacity of properties and, at the same time, contribute to the reduction of territorial and demographic desertification.

The Coitadinha Homestead, in Barrancos, is the first demonstrative area of ​​this project, in which the first ILU is being implemented. It is in this cultural and highly biodiverse landscape that artistic work will be developed.