Environment Week 2025

On June 4th and 5th, 2025, POPA carried out educational and exhibition activities with municipal schools in Santarém and Belterra. These activities marked the symbolic date of June 5th, the International Environment Day.

Students from Ufopa in front of Dom Macêdo Costa School, in the village of Alter do Chão. Photo by: Isa Kögler, 2025.

The exhibitions took place at Escola Municipal Dom Macedo Costa, in the APA Alter do Chão, and at the operational base of the Large-Scale Biosphere–Atmosphere Program in the Amazon (LBA) at km 84 of the Tapajós National Forest, which welcomed students from Escola Municipal Munduku Pajé Laurelino and Escola Santa Filomena. In these two locations, undergraduate and graduate students from the Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará (Ufopa) who conduct research within the PELD initiative brought educational materials from their laboratories and were able to share information about their research.

Students, parents, and teachers during the exhibition in the Tapajós National Forest. Photo by: Isa Kögler, 2025.

Considering that this date serves as a strategy to promote actions and reflections on the health of our planet around the world, the event was important to demonstrate how science produced in the heart of the Amazon has contributed to expanding knowledge about our biome and its mosaic of landscapes—and how this knowledge can support improving the lives of Amazonian populations who depend directly and/or indirectly on their relationship with nature.

Participants also had the opportunity to engage more closely with the scientific and academic environment, which may inspire children and teenagers to feel invited to pursue scientific paths.

“I like the environment because it's where I live. If I don't take care of it, I'm not taking care of myself.”Ana Vitória – Escola Santa Filomena, Prainha I, Tapajós National Forest.

Statements like Ana Vitória’s highlight how these children and teenagers already develop a critical view of the environment, and fostering these perspectives is essential for forming conscious adults.

Regarding the research themes presented, participants emphasized that they enjoyed learning more about the animals and plants showcased during the exhibition. They noted that sometimes they already recognize certain species, but in these knowledge-exchange spaces, they learn something new that they can later share with family, friends, and the community in general.

As student Pedro de Araújo from Escola Santa Filomena remarked:

“Every time we seek to learn more, we become more amazed.”

Student holding a snake specimen during the exhibition in the Tapajós National Forest. Photo by: Isa Kögler, 2025.

The principal of Escola Dom Macedo Costa, Patrícia Branches, emphasized the importance of the activity for the school:

“Without a doubt, these activities do spark students’ interest in science. It’s the contact, the discovery, understanding how research happens. It’s important and can also inspire students to pursue university studies and develop a sense of responsibility toward the place where they live.”

The event was only possible thanks to partnerships between the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (Inpa), the Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio), municipal schools, and POPA. More community-integration activities are planned for this cycle, reinforcing POPA’s commitment to biodiversity conservation, knowledge dissemination, and community strengthening.

Ana Paula Viana

Bolsista do POPA