ROOTS. Learn where you live

Portugal
Learning on the island
Câmara Municipal Vila do Porto. Municipio de Vila do Porto is a
public, non-profit organization and a local government. Its objectives
are defined by its attributions and competences. We are the
only municipality on Santa Maria Island. Our island is the thirdsmallest
of the Açores (100 KM landmass). While there are 5.000
people living on Santa Maria, in the 1950s we once had 18,000
inhabitants, but the population dwindled because of mass family
migration incentives from the United States and Canada.
Município de Vila do Porto is responsible for safe-guarding local
heritage through protective building schemes, but also coordinating
cultural activities on the island—ensuring citizens have
access to free, vibrant cultural experiences.
Our values can be described as:
-provision of equal access for all citizens to the cultural activities
promoted by Município de Vila do Porto
-boosting inhabitants quality of life by fostering an active citizen
ship
-provision the necessary conditions for cultural associations, art
organizations, informal artists collective to achieve a sustainable
and vibrant cultural ecosystem.
29