BREAK THE LONELINESS OF 100 AGED PERSONS

Help us break the loneliness and improve the quality of life of 100 ELDERLY people from 4 villages of Trás-os-Montes - Portugal.

Help us break the loneliness and improve the quality of life of 100 ELDERLY people from 4 villages of Trás-os-Montes - Portugal.

If I didn't come to teach screen printing, I'd lie down and stay in bed. - Master Orlando, 70 years old.

THE BEING OF SUPPORT

The elderly people in the rural communities of interior northeastern of Portugal (Trás-os-Montes) live alone, isolated, feel useless and have low self-esteem. A problem with consequences for the physical and mental health of the elderly, which represents a high economic cost as over 75% of the costs of the SNS (National Health Service in Portugal)) are for treating diseases of the elderly. To compound the problem, younger generations have emigrated or moved to large urban centers, leaving villages aged and "forgotten".

PROJECT

Project that fosters active ageing, intergenerationality, civic and family participation and the physical and mental well-being of the elderly. Pedagogical villages value the know-how, crafts and life experience of seniors, making them the “Masters” of the Villages: seniors are who best safeguard the know-how of the past and who also best know how to pass it on. Guided by them, visitors follow a circuit through the streets of the villages, listening, observing and trying with their hand at the arts and crafts.

The existing infrastructures in the Pedagogical villages are made use of and the expertise and life experience of their older inhabitants, the Masters, are valued. The Masters have the role of teachers of the countryside and receive visits from schools. Visiting specific places on the itinerary through the villages, the Masters share their wisdom and way of life: clay and pottery, decorative boxes of straw and lace, making homemade bread, working in the kitchen garden, taking care of the donkeys and other domestic animals, the art of the old trades, hunting for chicken eggs, visiting the cowshed, weaving, gathering herbs, herding sheep, speaking Mirandese, playing traditional games and pranks and much more.

GOALS

- Combat their loneliness and the isolation of 100 elderly people from 4 villages of Trás-os-Montes through intergenerational relations: the project makes the elderly occupy an active role in the community. Older people feel useful and committed to fulfilling the role of Masters and imparting their knowledge to new generations.

- Promote community ageing through exchanges between children / young people who develop new ways of seeing the world and older people who gain a new usefulness for their knowledge and a new role for the routine of their daily activities.

- Occupy the elderly in a rural context and without having to leave the comfort and safety of their homes, performing activities and dynamics that are significant for them.

YOUR CONTRIBUTION WILL ALLOW:

Raise financial resources to boost the Pedagogical Villages project during the year 2020.

Do you identify with our cause? Help us with your donation!

About the author

WHO WE ARE

Azimute is a non-profit youth association created in May 2002 and has its main offices in the Montesinho Natural Park, village of Portela in Bragança. The principal purpose of Azimute is to organize and promote activities related to active ageing, intergenerationality, youth, the environment and culture.

Some emblematic projects: Centre for the Interpretation of Nature; Pedagogical Villages; “Já Deste Muitas Tampas?” (bottle cap fundraising); Seeds with Life; Pedagogical Village Plus; Book “Drizzle and the Guardians of Native Seeds”; Stories & Memories…

Azimute was created by a group of young students, with activities related to the environment and environmental awareness workshops, hiking and adventure sports. In 2003 it remodeled an old primary school located in the village of Portela, where it was the Interpretive Center of Nature and the headquarters of Azimute. In 2006 Azimute started the “Já Deste Muitas Tampas?” (bottle cap fundraising) Solidarity campaign, donating to institutions and individuals orthopedic material worth over 16,000€, resulting from the delivery of 30 tons of lids and plastic bottles. In 2011 comes the Pedagogical Village of Portela, a social innovation project that promotes active ageing in the community, valuing the rural elderly and increasing their social participation. There are currently 4 Pedagogical Villages, 2 in Bragança and 2 in Vimioso, benefiting from this project 100 seniors. As part of the Seeds with Life project, Azimute published the book "Drizzle and the Guardions of Native Seeds" and offered 700 books to children in the 3rd and 4th year of Bragança and Vimioso.

Budget and due dates

Your contribution will allow you to raise financial resources to boost the Pedagogical Villages project during the year 2020.

The Pedagogical Villages project is covered by the Cultural Patronage, and by supporting the Pedagogical Villages project through the granting of cash donations, they benefit from the tax incentives provided for in the Tax Benefits Statute (EBF).

Images