Folha Verde is a bilingual natural education project and intentional eco-community of over 270 people nestled in the mountains of Benfeita, central Portugal, supporting home-educating families and working towards environmental regeneration. Founded in 2018 and operating from a beautifully restored olive press, it combines forest school, permaculture, and community resilience initiatives.
Founded in 2018, Folha Verde is a natural education project and intentional eco-community based in a beautifully restored olive press in the mountainous Benfeita valleys of central Portugal, within the municipality of Arganil, district of Coimbra. The initiative brings together a diverse international community of over 270 people from across Europe and North America, united by their commitment to sustainable living and environmental regeneration.
At its heart, Folha Verde operates as an association supporting home-educating families through an innovative, bilingual educational model. The Jardim (kindergarten) welcomes children from age three, offering outdoor free play, storytelling, arts and crafts, and a deep connection with nature. The Big Kids group, for learners aged six to fourteen, facilitates small learning groups covering core areas of the Portuguese curriculum in both Portuguese and English, with an emphasis on emotional intelligence, collaboration, and communication. Once a week, all children participate in forest school experiences in a rich natural setting.
Beyond education, Folha Verde's transformative vision centres on establishing an official 'ecozone' within the natural basin formed by the surrounding mountain ridges. Acting as a living laboratory, the project demonstrates practical solutions for shifting rural economies away from environmental degradation and towards regeneration. Sustainability initiatives include renewable energy systems, geodome greenhouses, composting toilets, rainwater harvesting, and greywater systems, alongside active reforestation with indigenous broadleaved species.
Following the devastating wildfires of October 2017, the community displayed remarkable resilience through spontaneous self-organisation, coordinating relief efforts, tool banks, crowdfunding campaigns, and donations from across Europe. This response has since evolved into systematic frameworks for community resilience. The project operates from the Quinta do Vale educational hub and offers permaculture design courses, workshops, and volunteering opportunities, while working toward an official Eco-Freguesia designation with municipal support. Closely linked to A Fonte, a health and wellbeing centre in Benfeita, the broader initiative also hosts regular yoga classes, meditation, sound baths, and retreat spaces.
Our Goal
To establish a thriving natural education project and intentional eco-community in Benfeita, central Portugal, demonstrating practical pathways for rural regeneration, sustainable living, and community resilience through education, permaculture, and environmental restoration.
Our Wishes
The project welcomes volunteers, educators, and families interested in home education, as well as partners and supporters who can help advance its Eco-Freguesia designation and expand its community resilience frameworks.
