By promoting environmental, cultural, and economic education around the Montado, we are creating conditions for this heritage to remain alive, relevant, and sustainable. Educating means inspiring change, strengthening identity, and preparing for the future.
The Montado de Sobro e da Cortiça territory is home to higher education institutions that have been strengthening their connection to the enhancement of endogenous resources and applied research. Of particular note are the University of Évora and the Polytechnic Institute of Portalegre, which carry out research and promote knowledge transfer in areas such as agriculture, forestry, biodiversity, and technological innovation.
These establishments are also partners in projects that seek to respond to specific challenges facing the Montado, from the sustainability of agroforestry systems to the enhancement of cork and this ecosystem as a whole.
Vocational training linked to the Montado de Sobro e da Cortiça plays a central role in the future of the territory. The project’s Action Plan includes several initiatives aimed at training workers, businesspeople, and young entrepreneurs, from the transmission of traditional techniques to the introduction of innovative methodologies for sustainable management and production. Among these initiatives, the intention to create a CINCORK (Cork Industry Professional Training Center) hub at the Cork Oak and Cork Observatory stands out. which will serve as a center of excellence for technical and professional training in the cork industry, and the Mais e melhor Montado (More and Better Montado) initiative, which includes a study on the impact of climate change on the productivity of cork oak trees and the vitality of the Montado; in addition, the development of knowledge transfer content and the implementation of the strategic communication of the CCSC – Cork Oak and Cork Competence Center, aimed at training/informing agents in the sector.