Rachel Ramirez uses a variety of printmaking techniques to explore the concept of 'nature' and its relationship with human beings. Her work is informed by her interest in cabinets of curiosities, anthrozoology, natural history and the cultures of the Far East and Portugal.
She creates and performs multidisciplinary stage works, with strong community engagement, educational focus, and a thematic connection to nature and environmental awareness. She has led inclusive and intergenerational dance projects aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, as those supported by the municipality of Loulé and its Environmental Centre
Rodrigo Veloso is a young Portuguese accordionist who began musical studies at age 11 with Professor Nelson Conceição. He has won several national and international awards, including 1st prize at the 2024 World Accordion Contest. His work explores the connection between traditional music, contemporary expression, science, and environmental protection.
Nelson was born in Bordeira, Faro, a place full of great accordionists. He has performed in several countries and his last album “Descobrindo-me” won the IPMA (International Portuguese Music Awards) in USA. As director of "Terra de Acordeão" research project on great authors/accordionists of the Algarve region, he has co-authored several publications and produced tribute albuns. He has extensive teaching activities and his accordion students have won several international prizes.
Sofia studied urban design at Columbia University in New York before moving to Loulé, the land of her family, where she co-founded Oficina Poeta Azul, a sustainable craft and design studio, and the Colectivo 28 store. Her first poetry collection “O Labirinto das Duas Árvores”, was published in 2025 by Editora Urutau. It explores her connection to her rural heritage. She is currently working on her second poetry collection about the relationship between women and landscape.
Sarah is a coordinator for the multi-lingual poetry and translation festival Casa dos Poetas in Silves and has served as chair of PELTA (Portuguese-English Literary Translators Association). Her poetry and translations have been published in literary journals and anthologies in the UK and Portugal. Her translation of the play “The Door Closed and the House was Small” by Ricardo Neves-Neves was performed at “Out of the Wings Festival 2022” in London and published with Inti Press, 2023. She is currently working on her first poetry collection and is always on the lookout for new projects and collaborations that integrate her love for language, literature, community and nature.
Cristina’s artistic journey began in early childhood with accordion studies, later expanding into contemporary dance and professional vocal training from 2011 onwards. She studied with renowned vocal teachers in Portugal and internationally, including New York, Marbella, Boston, and Florida. She has performed widely in Portugal and abroad (France, Canada, USA), in concerts, festivals, television programmes, and multidisciplinary projects. She has collaborated closely with accordionist and composer Nelson Conceição in works such as “Eis o Algarve”, celebrating regional heritage and tradition. In 2025, she released her first original song, “Voar”, as part of the PAUSA project (piano and voice).
Yasmin da Silva is a young Portuguese fado singer from the Algarve who recently received four golden buttons on Portugal Got Talent with her performance of a classic Portuguese song, propelling her to the semifinals. She has performed across Algarve venues, on national TV, and in concerts in Portugal and France, combining traditional fado with a emotional presence.
Committed with sustainable development and inner development, Jacinta Fernandes has extensive experience teaching in the areas of Environment, Ecology, Landscape, and her interdisciplinary approach integrates knowledge from the social sciences and humanities and work in environmental education, environmental psychology and health psychology. Mariana Chícharo is a young psychologist and a Yoga and Mindfulness Therapy’ student. Through yoga and meditation related exercises, they propose to practice awareness of the present moment, to build connections with our-selves, to the others and the environment.
Urban Sketchers Algarve is a collective of artists and enthusiasts dedicated to on-location drawing as a way to observe and document the Algarve’s built and natural landscapes. Part of the global Urban Sketchers movement, the group values direct observation, visual storytelling, and community engagement through sketching in situ, often in coastal, urban, and cultural settings.
OceanArt: Science to Art is an interdisciplinary art exhibition from CCMAR, the University of Algarve (UAlg), and the Peace and Art Society (PAS), coordinated and curated by researcher Teresa Cerveira Borges, and endorsed by the UN Ocean Decade. It brought together scientists and artists to raise awareness of ocean challenges such as habitat and biodiversity loss, pollution, excessive human exploitation, and climate change impacts. In 2024 and 2025, 13 artists worked together with scientists, and later displayed at UAlg, at the Forte de Beliche, Sagres, several artworks (painting, sculpture and photography), together with the related scientific information, in order to mobilise citizens to protect and restore our Ocean. A representative sample of artwork is planned to be exhibited at the University of Algarve in the Penha Campus Library, as a parallel event associated to the We-Ocean
This space is a safe haven for creativity and a synergy between sports and art. More than a skate shop, it's an art gallery and an artistic studio for workshops and experiences. It provides a creative place for the Algarve's artistic community. Located on the Rua do Mercado Municipal de Loulé, it is a center guiding and promoting art and artists from the Algarve.
Belonging to the Group Coral Ossónoba, one of the oldest associations still active in the Algarve, the choir's repertoire is diverse, ranging from sacred and religious music to contemporary music. Since 2014, the Coral Ossónoba has been conducted by maestro Nuno Sequeira Rodrigues, also responsible for the association's artistic direction. In its 46 years of existence, the Coral Ossónoba has performed more than 550 concerts in Portugal and internationally. The following pieces stand out from their repertoire: Carmina Burana (Carlos Orff) and Coronation Mass K.317 (W.A. Mozart). In 2002, the association was awarded the Gold Medal of Merit by the Faro City Council, and in 2018, it was honored by the Federal Government of Brazil with the Order of Rio Branco. Currently, the choir has about 45 members.
Artpoints is an artistic collective that develops participatory cultural experiences where people, art, and the environment connect in a direct and meaningful way. Alex Cueva, director and founder of Artpoints, is a cultural manager and performing arts professional with experience in designing and coordinating workshops and cultural initiatives at the
intersection of art, science, and technology. He has coordinated, among others, the workshops of the Fundación Épica de La Fura dels Baus, and has carried out artistic direction in cultural events such as the European Performing Science Night and the AIR Festival of Manifesta 15,
featuring ten international visual and sound artists
L’Última Merda is a collective of young mediators based in Catalonia dedicated to facilitation of creative processes. Its members come from diverse backgrounds and specializations across the performing arts, culture, and social sciences. The collective is formed by Elaine Grayling, Nil Martín López, Judit Martínez Gili, and Abril Pérez Mitchell. Since 2021, L’Última Merda has developed performative methodologies to activate critical thinking and to explore new ways of relating to one another—beyond productivist and market- driven logics. In response to the widespread theatre-world mantra “don’t think, act!”, they believe that acting is the best way of thinking, and that listening is the most powerful tool for building, in a horizontal, collective, and diverse way, a different future.
On this occasion, Judit Martínez Gili, journalist and cultural manager, and Abril Pérez Mitchell, performing arts creator and researcher, will represent the collective by proposing a series of
facilitated dynamics. These sessions aim to co-create and experiment—through an artistic and holistic lens—with the idea of being part of the planet we inhabit.
Attendance at the We-OCEAN workshop is free of charge but requires prior registration, which will be considered a a firm commitment to attend all three workshop days. Acceptance is conditioned to the number of applications, after consideration of the data and statement of interest provided at registration, and will be notified the first week of April. There is no need to register if you wish to join the live streaming of the conferences and debates, a link to the streaming platform will be published in this web several days previous to the workshop.
Registration deadline: 31 March 2026 (early registration is strongly encouraged).
