CONTEXT
Urban aquatic ecosystems are extremely relevant connectors between people, animals and plants, making cities more biodiverse and sustainable. Yet, these ecosystems are often confronted with lack of space, cuts of vegetation, artificialization, and other urbanisation processes. This degradation can lead to numerous disservices to humans in regard to emerging pathogens, decreasing disease resistance, climate change impacts and other health concerns in cities.
OneAquaHealth aims to improve the sustainability and integrity of freshwater ecosystems in urban environments. By investigating the interconnection of ecosystem health and human wellbeing, the project will identify early warning indicators and enhance environmental monitoring with AI-assisted tools. As a result, the project will support decision-makers in finding adequate and timely decisions as well as effective measures to restore aquatic ecosystems health and promote OneHealth.
By filling knowledge gaps and by adopting the One Digital Health (ODH) principles, policy instruments for the management of urban aquatic sites can be improved substantially. The project will develop digital tools – an Environmental Surveillance System, a Decision & Support System and a CitizenScience App to raise awareness and to engage all relevant stakeholders to jointly achieve thriving ecosystems and healthier communities for the future.
PLAY FOR RIVERS (Theatre Show)
As a partner in this project since January 2025, Marionet has been responsible for developing a participatory theatre piece, as well as for filming a video for future promotion. This creative process, which culminated in the staging of the play “Play for Rivers” in May 2026, was informed by a series of interviews conducted with people living in the vicinity of urban streams and/or who regularly use these natural spaces for various purposes.
UP THIS STREAM (Theatre and Science Workshops)
Over five days, children and young people become observers, researchers and creators, setting out to discover the hidden life of urban streams. Using a scientific questionnaire for observing a stream, developed with the support of MARE, the group learns to observe the water, the banks, the sounds, the animals, the plants and the relationship between the city and aquatic ecosystems. Each response gathered in the field becomes material for theatrical games, scene composition, movement and collective creation. Straddling science and imagination, the workshop culminates in a short final presentation where a new perspective on the streams that run through our daily lives is shared.
WATER VEINS (Documentary)
The documentary accompanied the production and the performance of ‘Play for Rivers‘ and includes excerpts from interviews with Coimbra residents who regularly use or frequent streams in the city. ‘Water Veins | Rediscovering urban stream ecosystems’ guides us through the development of a theatre play and a series of testimonies from citizens of Coimbra that underline the past, present and future importance of urban stream ecosystems.
