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PTEN
Trienal de Arquitectura de Lisboa

Growing up with cultural volunteering

Date
14 MAY 2022 - 15 MAY 2022
Location
Various venues in Lisbon and Almada
Price
Free Admission
Cycle
11ª
Team
Curated by Aurora Arquitectos
Website
Co-Production
EGEAC, City Council of Almada
Additional info
The Almada City Council invited the Triennale's Educational Service to present the work developed with the Open House Lisboa volunteers, which annually brings together a multigenerational team of more than 300 people. The challenge materialised in the launch of Banco Local de Voluntariado, held on Saturday, April 2, at 2.30 pm, in Museu de Almada  - a building that integrates the list of spaces to visit in the 11th edition of the Open House (May 14 and 15). Joana Martins, coordinator of this programme and collaborator of the Triennale since 2017, attended the event on behalf of the association.

We embrace cultural volunteering for the immense added value it brings to those who do it, from the construction of a professional curriculum with a valuable humanistic side to the personal growth resulting from the skills acquired by working in teams and interacting with the participants.

The Open House cultural volunteering programme includes both general training sessions (this year in the beautiful setting of the Thalia Theater) and specific ones, with pre-visits to the spaces where each person is allocated, along with monitoring throughout the weekend by the tutors and coordinators of the geographical area. The event ends with a closing party for those who were involved in the immense logistical exercise that represents the simultaneous opening of almost 70 private and public spaces with specified access or security conditions.

In addition to the more evident volunteering of architecture students, it is extremely gratifying to see people from different areas and of all ages creating bonds of friendship that last beyond the event. It is with great satisfaction that we see many people who wish to repeat the experience after their first participation, taking advantage of their personal growth to take on more responsibilities.

Urban walk "In Praise of Wandering" © Egle Duleckyte

This is the only event in which the Triennale promotes volunteering on a large scale, in parallel with the 50 cities around the world where the Open House takes place, giving the opportunity to learn about practices and approaches through a close dialogue with numerous authors and areas of training. Experiences like this allow for greater resourcefulness to deal with unforeseen events, proactivity and determination. The job market is increasingly competitive, so any experience in cultural volunteering is a plus and can be decisive for future professional opportunities.