In a world yearning for renewal, Marta’s vision for Floresta das Lebres stands as a beacon of hope and inspiration. Her journey to create this regenerative sanctuary is deeply rooted in personal legacy and a profound connection to her past. Drawing strength from her great-grandmother’s trailblazing spirit and her own experiences of healing and growth, Marta has channeled her passion into a project that not only honors her ancestors but also seeks to safeguard our planet for future generations. Floresta das Lebres is more than just a sanctuary; it’s a living testament to resilience, community, and the transformative power of caring for the Earth. In our conversation, Marta reveals the heart and soul behind her mission, sharing insights that illuminate the path for others who dream of making a meaningful impact in the environmental realm.
What inspired you to create Floresta das Lebres, and how did your vision for a regenerative sanctuary come about?
I have been trying to make a difference in the world ever since I can remember being a person, creating this project has ultimately been an alignment of all my processes so far in life, all my passions, and what I feel the world needs most right now, to protect Earth for our future generations. My great-grandmother was the first inhabitant of this area, and she was a really unusual woman for her time, she separated from her abusive husband and built the house, where I now live, for her and her 2 daughters, upon receiving inheritance from her grandfather, she became one of the few people in the area who could read and write, started one of the first business of selling milk door to door with her 2 daughters, and started collecting special varieties of staple food trees and cultivating the land. She was known for helping many people. My grandmother and mother unfortunately allowed themselves to become victims and perpetuating cycles, allowed their husbands to destroy much of what she had done. I am the only one in the family that feels the responsibility of honouring and continuing her legacy. She is my greatest inspiration.
My paternal grandmother whom I spend a lot of time with as a child, and was the kindest and most scrappy person, reusing everything and living almost with no money, is the second. I also feel in Portugal, land, has been mostly destroyed over the last 100 years. As the owner of 1.6 ha, I feel its my responsibility to look after it the best way I can and also serve as an example mirror for others. Most importantly, I have 2 amazing children, and I worry about the future for them as the prediction is people will be rationing water within 15 years in Portugal. Everything I do since my first child was born, is try to be the best parent and example I possibly can to them. Floresta das Lebres is how I have come to believe I can do that. Yes I do it for nature of course. But really the biggest reason is a basic as I just want to the best parent I can.
I lived in the land when I was child, but was an immigrant in UK, India and Greece over 10 years. I returned with COVID and with the land now in my name, I started feeling what should I do with it. I believe through all the covid bad times, I started connecting and appreciating this land a lot then, noticing the small things, the seasons, the natural regeneration from having been abandoned for over 10 years. And the vision started happening. Mostly it comes from contemplation and I also swear my ancestors and land itself started speaking to me and telling me what they wanted and needed from me. After 3 years of contemplation and lots of feelings, the whole vision was formed in my mind. However, its been evolving, with every person that I shared my idea with, the vision grew stronger and gained more nuances, as I learn more and more about nature each day. So, all the people that I have connected with and have visited, are also little big parts of why the vision come to be, and also my inspiration.
Can you share the story behind the name “Floresta das Lebres” and its significance to your project?
The name is inspired by my great grandmother, her name was Joaquina Lebre, an insight into the hares (Lebre) that once made these forest home, and also by the fact that we have many wild rabbits that live in the forest. Unfortunately, no longer hares, as their numbers were great diminished in Portugal due, to hunting, so I also dream, of making this ecosystem so great once again, that they will return.
What challenges have you encountered while developing and running a regenerative sanctuary in Portugal, and how have you overcome them?
This question would give a book haha, the biggest challenge is lack of financial support towards small scale projects both from our government and EU, but this is also very freeing. As someone with very limited resources and who could be considered to be part of the group of people living in extreme poverty, I have constantly challenged myself to find ways to pursue my vision with no money, this is where the project became community focused. In our local, international and online communities, I have found the support, information and inspiration to keep overcoming all the obstacles and keep exploring new pathways and ideas towards what the project is now versus how it started 16 months ago (when I participated in a business ideas context that triggered my business development plan).
Current obstacles, are finding ways to involve, greenfluence and impact all my communities more, constantly trying to communicate in 2 languages and be a bridge between Portugal and outside, and also Portuguese laws when it comes to nature protection (most laws work towards destroying nature).
Social media and content creation has been a huge help for all of these. I always feel my greatest task is communication and spreading the seeds of regeneration and nature protection. I have gathered the support of 1500 followers across platforms in little more than a year, and that gives me great encouragement towards continuing to address and overcome challenges through it.
How do you balance the demands of your sanctuary with other aspects of your life?
I am terrible at this, but I keep trying. Nature and the processes I get to witness first hand, serve as a constant reminder to flow, to follow my rhythm, to adjust to circumstances and make the best of not so positive circumstances when they occur, and to keep striving for balance. One of my goals, is for the forest to home as many species as possible, creating balance and harmony for all creatures, trees included. One of the consequences, has been the end of my relationship with my partner and father of my children, recently, who didn't support me or the project at all, so I guess I didn't really balance things well at all. However, I also feel the project ended up being a mirror to our relationship, and to find balance sometimes, things have to die so new energy can come in. What helps me is taking time to rest or pause whenever needed, having a supportive network of friends, more and more looking after my health, through learning about and consuming medicinal plants from the forest. Did you know pine needles have 5x more vit C than an orange? Being a mom and having quality time with my kids is also sometimes challenging, so I deal with that pressure, by involving them as much as possible, in my projects and ideas and spending as much time as possible with them in the forest. I also practice meditation, often go for walks and support my community whenever I can. And of course prioritizing and being as organized in my plans as I can.
In what ways has your personal journey influenced the creation and management of Floresta das Lebres?
Like my forest, I am a child of abuse mostly due to my fathers abuse and my mothers negligence. I slept in this forest a few times I was expelled from home when I was younger. I feel my regeneration as a human, a woman and mother, is deeply connected to the forest. Its impossible for me to say where do I end and my forest begins. I feel we are one. And this idea of human + ecosystems regeneration, I feel its key to all problems happening in the world right now. Like I said in the beginning, the whole project feels like huge alignment of everything I always chased, interested me or dreamed about. Here, everything is possible. It reflects my experiences and the people I have met living in India, Greece and the UK, my love for animals, trees, plants and fungi, my passion for activism, my responsibility as a human being to do very I best I can with the life and body I have been granted, my journey of personal development, my healing that led me to briefly work as mindfulness and meditation coach years ago, my leadership skills, my desire to connect with other humans, and most importantly my mission as a mother to the best parent I can possibly be to them. I am very grateful that covid destroyed my mindfulness coach dream in Greece and brought me here, even if that was a tormentous time for me. I have complete faith that the Universe has and had my back all along even if when i was younger i felt I had nothing at all.
How does the work you do at Floresta das Lebres address environmental issues and contribute to a sustainable future?
Real sustainability is one of my big guides, and it's ever evolving, as I learn, experiment and discover more. As of now, I feel the biggest contribution is communicating all that we are doing and discovering, communication is the key to the collective power of change. The idea of using the land the best way I possibly can, and creating balance and harmony, is in itself the solution, in my modest opinion. Saying that, my actual concrete actions whilst steward of this land are also important contributions. I am exploring the balance of letting nature do its thing (conservation) and holistic and slow intervention (regeneration) - in the latter my goal is to create a botanical agroforest that is home to as many creatures possible (a sanctuary) - I believe any project that involves physical land needs to be working for biodiversity right now - this is creating a resilient and diverse forest that in time will act against drought and help supply water to the underground aquifers, also recycle air and store carbon, improve soil fertility and mycelium networks (essential for forest and land health), I'm recording biodiversity with over 200 species recorded from all the different kingdoms, Im also managing the land holistically and am careful with human overuse when it comes to visitors, focusing on 3 specific small areas for people gathering and creating small trails for circulation.
I also believe welcoming campers and vanlifers, and hosting regular events that promote connection to nature and nature education is one of the most important contributions. I have welcomed over 500 people in the forest since the project began, and all of them have been expressive in how much they have learned and have been impacted on, which is how I know this matters maybe more than everything else I am doing. I am also producing honey and creating the basis to start producing food and support my local community with regenerative foods (foods that are produced whilst regenerating the soils, promoting biodiversity and without any pesticides. Regenerative Food needs to replace the Organic Food concept as soon as possible. Organic is not always regenerative as it's often done in monoculture (which deplete soils and halter biodiversity).
What role has mental health played in your journey, and how do you manage stress and maintain well-being while pursuing your goals?
I’m a survivor, I was abused in my childhood, emotionally and physically by my parents, sexually by people close to the family. I grew up believing my role was to serve others, that I had no worth. I used to ask God to kill me in my sleep often when I was a child. I developed something like Stockholm Syndrome about my parents for a while. I was also a child worker and worked a lot for my parents, since around 7 years old. Until I was around 20 years old, most of my inner landscape was suffering and lack of connection with myself. I self harmed in teenage years and had strong suicidal ideation around the time I first became pregnant and during the first year of being a mother.
I believed my child would be better off without me then. Im ok with talking about this now, but this part has been particularly hard for me, I think it’s the first time I write/talk about this. Before my pregnancy I had survived 3 serious suicide attempts, being hospitalized in one of them. My mental health, self confidence and self care mostly defined my life until 2 years ago. Since becoming a parent, I threw myself into the journey of healing, self-care and connecting with myself and my children. For 1 year I explored every therapy that I could, being suggested that I had borderline personality disorder, adhd, and chronic depression and anxiety. I now believe, even though I have been through horrible things and experienced horrible symptoms, I am not chronically sick.
Even though I still have to work daily in my personal development and watch out for triggers and abusive behaviour from others. Accepting this will always be a reality for me, I deeply believe, that I have indeed healed myself from all the trauma, as even with the worst situations now, I turn them around very fast and positively for myself and my children, for example separating 1 month ago. The first thing that helped was accepting that it was not my fault, and anybody that would go through what I´ve been through would have experienced similar things to me.
Through my therapies, I discovered that the secret recipe against poor mental health, is focusing on good sleep, healthy food and adequate exercise. I also discovered mindfulness and meditation, which has now become automated responses for me after years of practising. My spirituality which drifted away from any religion, and now, believing all beings are connected to each other and to Earth, and that the root cause of suffering is the disconnection caused by our collective greed for comfort, has also helped me maintain good mental health and self confidence. I take pride in my journey and even though I sometimes still wish none of it had happened to me, I now also believe, it happened for me, I would not be who I am, and so proud of it, if I had not gone through it. I now accept and love myself for all that I am. I also discovered that I am nature, and nature and her lessons are always there for me to continue to learn from.
Can you describe a pivotal moment in your project that significantly impacted its direction or your approach to it?
There have been 2: the first was after 3 years of contemplation and feeling my land, to participate in a business ideas contents by a local start up hub - this made me realize I didn't need anything to start, just my passion, time and energy. This triggered everything positive that happened to my project since April 2023.
The second was being accepted into the incredible course “Mastering the Art of GREENfluencing” by my ultimate green and woman idol, Margarita Samsonova and her team Behind the Greens, which I am now a part of on the side of running my project. Doing this course, connecting with one of the best, if not the best, green community on Earth, and receiving direct mentorship, and all the love and support from Marga, has unlocked a new level of confidence in myself, and reignited beliefs that what I am doing really matters, as well as, so many new skills, perspectives and inspiration that have been transforming my project and communication deeply, into becoming a reference, more than local and national, truly global. The impact of all of this and the opportunities for myself as a leader, communicator and educator, as well as, for my projects' mission, and really making a difference into creating a sustainable future for all, have been beyond my wildest dreams and are unfolding every day.
What advice would you give to other women who are passionate about starting their own environmental or regenerative projects?
Believe in yourself and focus on the solutions you want to create. Don’t think that you need this or that. I’m proof that all you need is your time, energy and communication. Share with anyone and everyone what you want to do, this is how you can validate your ideas and also gather infinite support, but don’t expect those closer to you to get on board right away. If you feel unsupported or alone, keep doing what you feel is your purpose, as you do that, people will support more and more. If at time, questions come, appreciate these moments for deep reflection and allow yourself to discover how you can align more or better with your purpose. Use social media to spread your seeds. Social media can be a good place, use it and contribute towards it becoming a better place for all. Ask for help and support of whoever you think may be interested in your vision, no matter how ‘big’ they are. You are big too. Focus on learning anything and everything that may be of help to you. Work on your personal energy, balance and organization. Becoming a leader is a journey, not a destination. Trust your journey and don’t be afraid to pause to rest or regenerate, you and your mission need this space, so new ideas can unfold. If you have a vision for something that can help protect our home, know that you already have mine and many others unwavering support. Remember success is only not giving up!
How do you engage and inspire others to get involved with or support the mission of Floresta das Lebres?
I tell everyone and anyone about what I’m doing, both in real life and through social media. I listen and act on their feedback and ideas. I create content and focus more and more on how I can do this better so the message is more impactful and reaches further away. I accept trade instead of money, for most of my initiatives, so the project can be accessible to all and try for my activities to be as inter-generational and inclusive as possible. I’m also crowdfunding and created a conscious tree adoption programme to help gather both community and financial support.
I invite everyone to help me reforest the forest by coming over to plant trees or seeding sintropic agriculture nests. Sintropic nests is where we seed in density and diversity, because like people, plants do better when they are together and own their natural diversity. I also tend to seed these nests at the end of my activities and collaborate with local projects to seed them anywhere and everywhere I can, as I did a few weeks ago, at the end of a voluntary local beach clean up, to help a massive area that burned down regenerate faster. These nests in particular have been very meaningful and symbolic for all that have done this with me. A symbol of what our communities can look like in the future.
What are some key lessons you’ve learned about resilience and adaptation through your work with the sanctuary?
The main one is that there is no point doing anything if you are not involving your community. Nature as also taught me important lessons like: you can’t control the weather, but you can prepare for it, accept the seasons of life and embrace and appreciate the energy of each one; people are like plants: we need each other, water, sunshine and fertile soil to thrive; all things matter, specially the small ones; to pay attention to the present moment, this is how you notice how important the bees, the ants or mice are for the balance of the ecosystem; that sometimes being burned by hot sun, or get eaten by animals is exactly the boost you needed to shoot towards the sun; that everything has its cicle, and that life and death are a non-dual concept - in forests no energy is ever wasted, everything is always used and transformed towards collective evolution.
How do you stay motivated and connected to your vision, especially when facing challenges or setbacks?
I connect with my forest and I let it guide me. If needed I ask for support. I take setbacks and obstacles as learning and growing opportunities. My plans have changed so much from the original plans 16 months ago, for these reasons, and I´m so grateful it’s been so. I couldn’t be prouder of everything I have achieved in the past year. I also sometimes use vision boards and oracle cards. I accept that setbacks and challenge are normal and in the days that I seriously consider giving up, I try to remember to look back at my path, and embrace myself with grace and respect for everything I am and have done so far in my life. I am a big dreamer, and allow myself to dream as big as I want.
What impact do you hope Floresta das Lebres will have on the local community and the environment?
The impact that I already created has been amazing, inspiring many into following my footsteps in different areas of my action. But I hope in the future to create, (legally) the first private protected area in my region and the whole center of Portugal, I hope to expand my project to 100 hectares (currently is 1.6) and make it open to the public permanently and managed by a like minded group of people. I hope to contribute to reforest properly the seaside forest of my childhood, a huge area that was burned down by loggers in 2017 and has the worst possible reforestation plan by the government currently. I hope that the forest will became a place many people will come to heal, get together, eat from nature, and inspire the use of native plants and other species of interest anywhere and everywhere. I hope to restore the underground water table, contributing to future water availability for all, and also regenerate a water way that has been abandoned for long.
I hope to contribute with many of the things I´m doing becoming part of schools curriculum, both local and national. I hope my sanctuary will create the conditions for many species that have been long gone to return, like deer, hares, foxes, wildcats, birds of prey, to name a few. The forest is located in between a residential and industrial area, so I also hope, that in time my forest will be able to be a barrier to further industrialization and also absorb and recycle all the water and air pollution generated nearby. I also want to become a food production center, composting centre and site for repurposing rubbish collected from local clean up actions. I hope the forest will a place that unite my whole community into fighting together against climate change and for a real sustainable future for all. My ultimate goal is to create a village for 100 households that jointly managed the forest for all, a natural school and natural healing centre.
How do you approach the balance between your personal life and your commitment to the sanctuary?
More and more I’m coming to believe, this too is a non-dual concept. My life and the forest sanctuary are deeply intertwined. I do know, to grow and create more impact I will need other people to help with different aspects of it. What I can do on my own, will always be limited. What I can do with like-minded people, is infinite abundance.
What advice do you have for women looking to make a difference in the environmental or regenerative fields?
Women are the natural leaders of our world. If you have an idea, vision or project, start it, if you don’t, use your voice to support other women or projects. I guarantee that wherever you are in the world there is already someone doing something worth supporting in your area. If by any chance, there really isn’t, and you feel you are the only one who cares about the environment and regeneration, to me, that means, you are the one who should start it. Remember communication and community are the most radical and impactful actions we can take, in this strange times where people, are starting to loose the precious ability of communicating, and connecting with others. Know that you are not alone, and you already have mine and many others unwavering support.
Interesting links for my project are:
Home | Floresta Das Lebres (needs an update on my family status, i havent done this publicly on my project yet)
Floresta das Lebres (@florestadaslebres) • Instagram photos and videos
Floresta das Lebres is sanctuary for plants, animals and humans (buymeacoffee.com)
