The Future Begins Now: Portuguese children celebrate child participation

Blog by Eurochild Board Member Sérgio Costa Araújo, reflecting on his participation in the annual EAPN Portugal event held in the Porto region, entitled “O Futuro Começa Agora!”, now in its ninth consecutive year.

The event welcomed 13 groups of children and young people from schools, organisations, and projects from all over mainland Portugal and the islands who, through different forms of artistic expression, celebrated their right to participate. The themes were diverse: mental health, violence, discrimination, intergenerationality, diversity, bullying, interculturality, digital citizenship, fake news and much more.

I had the privilege of delivering the final notes at this inspiring event, joined on stage by some truly remarkable children, young presenters from the European Parliament’s Ambassador School Programme. Together, we brought the day to a close in a tone that resonated with the children in the audience, reflecting on what stood out most vividly across the many presentations.

One of the key elements I highlighted was the extraordinary work being done locally by organisations and professionals to promote participatory mechanisms for children, which are fundamental to the institutionalisation of children’s democracy.

I highlighted the importance of continuing to invest in a more positive climate during the development process of children and adolescents, particularly in the most vulnerable territories where children are particularly affected by inherent risk factors. We need to continue the efforts to build local capacity in terms of participation instruments; of placing the realisation of children’s rights to play, leisure, sports and culture, and healthy eating at the centre of concerns.

Moreover, I called for a collective effort to promote well-being in the digital environment and to strengthen support for mental health from an early age.

The event brought together a vibrant network of organisations and schools from across Portugal: CigaGiro - E9G (Braga), Escola Secundária Quinta das Palmeiras - Covilhã (Castelo Branco), EnsiGuarda - Escola Profissional da Guarda and Escola Secundária Afonso Albuquerque - Projeto Brilhantemente (Guarda), Escola Monsenhor José Galamba de Oliveira (Leiria), Instituto de Apoio à Criança (Lisboa), Universo das Oportunidades. E9G (Portalegre), Sinergias E9G and Escola Secundária de Gondomar (Porto), Associação ONE – Onde Nasce a Expressão and Escola Básica e Secundária de Santa Cruz (Madeira), Agrupamento de Escolas Dr. Ginestal Machado (Santarém), and Escola Básica D. Luís de Loureiro/AE Infante Dom Henrique (Viseu).

The atmosphere throughout the day was electric!