MAR Shopping hosts photographic exhibition on biodiversity and nature conservation

MAR Shopping Algarve believes that a Meeting Place can be more than just a consumption space. Biodiversity is an urgent topic, but it rarely makes its way from scientific reports to people's daily lives, which is precisely why it is so important to reach those who pass by, those who shop, and those who live here. From May 21 to 27, the center hosts the photographic exhibition "A Look at Natural Heritage," by Luís Filipe Ferreira, a lecturer at the Polytechnic Institute of Santarém and a researcher in Biological and Agricultural Sciences, which can be visited for free during opening hours. The exhibition opens to the public on May 21, one day before International Biodiversity Day.

For Ana Antunes, director of MAR Shopping Algarve, "biodiversity is not a distant topic: it is in the landscape that surrounds us, in the species that share our territory, in the balance we depend on. Bringing this perspective to the Meeting Place is a way to bring the community closer to a reality that belongs to all of us."

With around 400 photographs, the exhibition explores the biodiversity of some areas of the Natura 2000 Network in Portugal (coastal landscape, wild flora, orchids and birds, agrobiodiversity, and invasive exotic species that threaten native ecosystems). For some species, the threat status is indicated according to the criteria of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Luís Filipe Ferreira's work results from decades of pedagogical and scientific activity and now reaches the public in an accessible format, aiming to promote environmental literacy and participatory citizenship. With initiatives like this, MAR Shopping Algarve reaffirms its alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and its commitment to the community it serves, investing in projects that inform, raise awareness, and mobilize those who pass by.