Rios que nos Levam event at Marvila Library, Lisbon

Rios que nos Levam [The Rivers that take us] was the final event of the Bauhaus of the Seas Sails Lisbon Pilot. Organised by the Locals Approach Association – one of the pilot’s Ocean Ambassadors – in partnership with the Lisbon Municipality, the event was held on Sunday, 9 November 2025 at the Marvila Library. Conceived as an open and participatory gathering, Rios que nos Levam placed the Tagus River at the centre of collective imagination. Its hosts brought together local residents, community organisations, researchers and public authorities, inviting them to collectively consider how the river can nourish not only the city’s ecosystems, but also its social, cultural, and food systems.

The programme unfolded over the afternoon and evening, beginning with an informal welcome coffee that fostered a relaxed and inclusive atmosphere. This was followed by a co-design game inspired by the Local Development Manual – developed by Locals Approach – in which participants were distributed across thematic tables and collaboratively defined priorities, ideas, and future strategies for the project. Each table engaged with a guiding question: how can the Tagus River and the local community reshape the ways we eat, live, and experience the city? Through conversation and collaborative activities, these tables became spaces for exchanging ideas, memories, desires, and future visions for Marvila and for Lisbon more broadly.

The event concluded with a participatory dinner-experience inspired by the landscapes of the Tagus and the memories of the territory both on land and over the water. Designed as a moment of celebration, listening, and continuity, it also aimed to affirm the potential of community-driven processes to rethink the city from the river outward, and establish guidelines for future replication initiatives that build on the work developed in the region during the Bauhaus of the Seas Sails project.

Locals Approach team leaders: Gonçalo Folgado and João Martins
Chef: Carlos Matos
Photos: Hugo Santos

Photos: Hugo Santos

Photos: Hugo Santos

Photos: Hugo Santos

Photos: Hugo Santos

Photos: Hugo Santos