Eternal Forest is a long-term art and ecology project founded in 2018 by artist and poet Evgenia Emets, working towards a global network of 1,000 forest sanctuaries, each protected for 1,000 years, through regenerative design, community stewardship and ecological research. Its first sanctuary is being established at Faia Brava in the Côa Valley, Portugal, in partnership with the Faia Brava Association.
Eternal Forest wants to create 1,000 interconnected forest sanctuaries around the world, each protected for 1,000 years and stewarded by local communities. Artist and poet Evgenia Emets founded the project in 2018. It works across ecology, art and collective memory, combining regenerative planting, site-specific ecological artworks, scientific research and traditional knowledge to build lasting bonds between people and land.
The first sanctuary launched at Faia Brava in November 2025. Faia Brava is Portugal's first officially designated private protected area, part of the Natura 2000 network, an Important Bird Area, and inside the UNESCO-recognised Côa Valley Archaeological Park. The 1,000-hectare reserve takes in wild cliffs, native cork oak and holm oak forests and traditional farmed land. Griffon vultures, golden eagles, wildcats and Garrano horses live there, among other species. The inaugural planting also marked Faia Brava's 25th anniversary and the start of a long-term partnership between the two organisations.
The Faia Brava sanctuary is conceived as a living artwork: a forest planted through regenerative artistic design that brings together environmental research and progressive stewardship. Artist residencies, educational activities and phased planting will continue over the years ahead. In the Côa Valley, Palaeolithic engravings bear witness to a human artistic relationship with nature stretching back over 25,000 years, and the project draws a line from that ancestral past to a sustainable future.
A crowdfunding campaign raised €6,750 for the seed phase at Faia Brava. Eternal Forest is now raising €480,000 to formalise the organisation, build a dedicated team, develop strategy and business models, and support committed forest sanctuaries worldwide. Art sales, donations and community collaboration are all ways to take part.
Our Goal
To establish 1,000 interconnected forest sanctuaries around the world, each protected for 1,000 years and managed by local communities, combining regenerative ecology with living artistic practice.
Our Wishes
Eternal Forest welcomes collaborators, donors and partners to help grow the movement, whether by buying art, contributing financially, volunteering, or joining future forest sanctuary initiatives worldwide.
