News Porto.

This year, the usual collection of food is not possible, owing to the sanitary context; as such, the campaign “Partilhar o Natal” [“Sharing Xmas”, free translation] is aimed at making up for that and advocates for companies and people to donate food and other items.

Upon proposal of Porto City Hall and with the support of the U. Porto, two trees – a copper beech and a Camphor tree – that stand at the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto (FBAUP) site, are now tree species considered to be of public interest by the Institute for the Conservation of Nature and Forests (ICNF).

The Ó! Galeria joins Porto Planetarium to present a collective exhibition themed ‘Cosmos: Uma Nova Odisseia Ilustrada’ [“Cosmos: A New Illustrated Odyssey”, free translation], based in the iconic TV series by Carl Sagan. The exhibit is already available online at Porto Planetarium website.

The company A Turma takes to the stage at the Theatre Carlos Alberto (TeCA), between 26th and 29th November. The theatre company presents three shows, with the premiere of Airbnb & Nuvens “Uma rádio novela” on Thursday, 26th November, directed by Manuel Tur with a text by Luísa Costa Gomes. The cycle includes the play “Alma”, directed by Tiago Correia, and concludes with “Wake Up”, a monologue based on a text by Eric Bogosian, and co-created by António Afonso Parra and Luís Araújo.

The Foundation Marques da Silva (FIMS) features two exhibitions on the work by the first Portuguese Pritzker Prize, Álvaro Siza; this is the chance to appreciate unpublished work by the renowned architect. “Siza – Inédito e Desconhecido” and “Mais que Arquitetura” are the telling exhibits that open doors to the Casa-Atelier and the Palace Lopes Martins. The exhibitions inaugurated on 17th October and can be visited until 17th April 2021, between 2pm and 6pm.

Porto municipal budget will be the highest ever in 2021. There will be 328. 5 million euros that reflect an “expansionist” and a “countercyclical budgetary policy”, emphasises Rui Moreira in the opening remarks of the report that will be voted on 30th November by the Municipal Executive. A new feature is tax property (IMI) reduction.

Porto Municipal Theatre discloses new ways of interacting with audiences. This is Double Trouble time and the first edition happens on 26th and 27th November, at Campo Alegre.

Rui Moreira, Mayor of Porto was a guest speaker at a national television show to discuss the pandemic context of the country. The Mayor advocated that the Government has to further its support to companies and families, to boost recovery and to build a stronger economy for the future, as soon as the health crisis is over.

Founders Founders, a co-working space in the city of Porto that helps boost start-ups is to expand in Porto and will inaugurate a new space in the parish of Campanhã, in eastern Porto. The new Founders Founders’ space, close by Campanhã Station, will have 4 thousand square metres, it will accommodate circa 300 people, from 12 startups. It is scheduled to open in the beginning of 2021.

Porto features the highest proficiency in English at national level, for the second year running, according to an EF- Education First study that discloses Porto not only as the best English speaking city in the country but also the 9th best in the world. The EF English Proficiency Index 2020 Report analysed data from 2.2 million non-native speakers of the English language, in 100 countries and regions.