João Rodrigues, founder Projecto Matéria
"The greatest wealth of any people or culture is people
Bishop Rui Sousa studied at the Catholic University with the most famous of Madeiran clerics, the current Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça. But when he returned to the island, he had such progressive ideas that he was exiled to a small parish, Prazeres, close to Calheta and far from the main urban centres — and decision-making — of the island.
Anyone who sees him in the stable, staff in hand and hat on his head driving the flock, will not suspect that Tiago Melim, 38, worked for several years sitting at a computer.
Our focus are the producers that are passionately committed with what they do. They are the keepers of the land, well fare and knowledge. They are the ones who will make all of this endure through time.
Alípio Santos has stopped being a long-haul driver for many years but continues to drive to some extent. In this case, his flock of sheep, all of the same local breed: Black Bragançana Galician Churr.
“To be a miller you had to know carpentry, masonry, weather, everything. It was very complex, so knowledge passed from father to children,” explains Paulo Horta.