Portugal presents eLTER sites during Ecology Day

Each year, the different LTER-Pt partners prepare dissemination events for the general public to promote knowledge and generate discussions about the role of ecologists within LTER sites, as part of an Ecology Day celebration.

Ecology Day emerged as a celebration of the 150th anniversary of ecology in 2016, marked with a roundtable at the European Parliament in Brussels. The 14th September was the chosen date since it coincides with the day Ernst Haeckel defined ecology as a science. Since 2017, this day has been promoted by the Portuguese Society of Ecology (SPECO), in association with the European Ecology Federation (EEF). This year the celebration ran from 13-17 September.

Two sites, Ria de Aveiro and LTER-Estuaries, offered activities for the general public. For Ria de Aveiro, this involved screening an LTER video, followed by a general discussion. The activity, entitled Ria de Aveiro as a Natural Laboratory, was organised in the Centro Ciência Viva of Aveiro to be accessible for all. Meanwhile LTER-Estuaries offered a quiz to test peoples’ knowledge about the Minho, Mondego and Mira estuaries, that are part of the LTsER Estuaries platform. This online activity is updated quite often in order to promote better scientific literacy on different estuaries.