Yesterday, October 22, took place the official inauguration ceremony of Zambujal 360 , the project that made the Zambujal neighbourhood, located in Alfragide (Amadora) parish, the first social housing neighbourhood “ambassador” of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) at the UN. Luz Saúde, as part of its social responsibility activities, is one of the institutions supporting this project implemented on site by Ad Gentes (Association of Consolata Lay Missionaries) and recreational association CAZAmbujal. Zambujal 360 started in 2023 and views extensive intervention (360º), with educational actions through art and health destined to the local community; preservation of common spaces; promotion of sustainability at the level of health, educating for the importance of physical activity as key-factor for welfare; promotion of social, economical and environmental sustainability; and dynamization of local commerce. Every SDG counted with a sponsor and financing entity associated to activities of global citizenship, such as guided tours, education for schools and companies, implementation of sustainable business models, and education for development. The exterior walls of 17 buildings in the neighbourhood – one for each SDG – were painted by plastic artists invited, transforming Zambujal in some sort of open-air urban art gallery. “Luz Saúde, assuming its role as a driving force for the social, environmental and governance aspects that make up the concept of sustainability, supported the painting of a gable relating to SDG N.º 3, Good Health and Well-being,” explains Artur Vaz, member of the Executive Committee of Luz Saúde. The artistic intervention was carried out by cartoonist Pedro Ribeiro Ferreira. The artist painted some sort of cartoon strip talking about the basics in health prevention: the sun and the importance of vitamin D, physical exercise along the streets of the neighbourhood, good sleep, supervised pregnancy, and following the recommendations of health professionals were a few examples chosen by Pedro Ribeiro Ferreira to illustrate SDG 3. He said that he wanted to convey “a strong and practical message, with the childish twist of a cartoon”, making it a funny and much commented mural. Local action for global transformation The inauguration gathered representatives from the 17 sponsor entities of the project in an atmosphere of celebration, in the vicinity of CAZAmbujal. After the lunch provided by Ad Gentes missionaries and musical moments offering much joy, ensued the formal part of the ceremony, with speeches and the delivery of diplomas to the 17 entities that have sponsored and made Zambujal 360 possible. Vítor Ferreira, president of Amadora city council, stressed that by becoming the first social housing neighbourhood ambassador of the UN’s sustainable development goals, Zambujal 360 represents the concrete materialisation of such development: “If the 17 SDG are a clear roadmap for humanity, each step across the Zambujal neighbourhood echoes the steps of the UN’s goals. The project catalyses the way Zambujal relates with the community. Today, many people visit the neighbourhood to meet the project, which implementation establishes bridges of inclusion.” For Vítor Monteiro, president of CAZAmbujal, to talk about the neighbourhood is talking about “union, resistance, and hope”. “There are plenty of stories of overcoming, of people who do not give up believing in a better future, mirrored in every mural of this project. This is a seed of future, a future that grows in the heart of this community. We express our thanks to all partners walking this path with us; together we are transforming the world.” Mário Linhares, president of Ad Gentes, explained that the idea of the project began to germinate in 2002, when he went working in the neighbourhood with the Consolata Missionaries. “Many partners believed in it right from the beginning and others joined along the way. Today we are here to inaugurate something particularly important for this whole community, for all of us”, he reminded. Luís Araújo, representing the entities sponsoring Zambujal 360, thanked all those who have collaborated in the project and gathered in the inaugural action: “17 corporate entities have believed and decided to invest in a great idea to build a new project. Such projects require financing and there should be companies willing to invest. This is a special day for a multicultural social housing neighbourhood where inclusion is the watchword.” The final words in the ceremony were pronounced by Serri Aldis and António Ferrari, respectively the general director and the communication advisor for Portugal of United Nations Regional Information Centre: “We thank you for sharing this project with us. This is about building communities. The project is an example of how local action can generate global transformation. The 17 SDG are a script towards social development, breaking down barriers and stereotypes, and the first social housing neighbourhood ambassador of SDG has a transforming impact on the world.” And he stressed the coincidence of the inauguration with the 80 years of the United Nations celebrated this week: “What could be better than such a project to mark our shared commitment towards sustainable development goals, not leaving anyone behind?”. The ceremony was closed with the raising of the SDG flag by all the partners, still having the time for a guided tour through the urban art gallery the neighbourhood has become.
