Torrão LAB at the European Startup Village Forum
A Rural Future Built on Innovation, Culture and the Right to Stay
On 29 October 2025, Foundation DaST and Torrão LAB took part in the European Startup Village Forum in Brussels. A presence following Torrão’s recent inclusion in the European Startup Village Mapping Tool. A presence generously funded by the event organisers.
Held at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, the Forum gathered leaders from the European Commission, OECD, Climate-KIC and innovation networks across rural Europe. With the theme “Unleash Innovation in Rural Areas”, the event highlighted the growing recognition that rural territories are essential spaces for Europe’s future resilience places where innovation, creativity, climate action and community leadership intersect.
Central themes resonated strongly with our mission:
• Innovation must reach every corner of Europe, supported by shared infrastructures and strong cross-regional networks
• Green and digital transitions will shape Europe’s ability to remain sustainable and competitive
• Cultural and creative innovation, arts, design and craftsmanship, is not marginal; it is core to tomorrow’s rural economies
• Governance and trust matter, lasting transformation is built locally, with and for communities
Torrão on the European Startup Village Map
Torrão is now featured on the EU Startup Villages Mapping platform, joining a network of rural territories pioneering innovative pathways for the future. Our entry, submitted by Foundation DaST, highlights:
• Torrão’s agricultural heritage and montado landscape
• Torrão LAB as a living laboratory for creativity, community participation and ecological innovation
• Partnerships with universities in Portugal and internationally, including Universidade de Évora, Instituto Superior Técnico, FBAUL, FAUL, and Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
• The emerging Convento da Terra as a community co-working and co-creation anchor
• Cultural programmes such as the residency with Teatro Nacional D. Maria II
• Our mission to build a regenerative, place-based, creative and inclusive rural economy
This listing does not represent an offical Commission endorsement of status – but it
formally places Torrão within the European movement shaping the future of rural innovation.
A Future Rooted in Place
More than a conference, the Forum confirmed that Torrão LAB stands at the heart of a growing European effort to reimagine rural futures.
Europe’s rural territories account for 37% of the population and 75% of total land, and the conversation in Brussels made one thing clear: rural areas are not peripheral, they are strategic.
By embracing creativity, community care, ecological stewardship and entrepreneurial imagination, rural places like Torrão can lead Europe into a more balanced, regenerative and human-centred future.
At Foundation DaST, we believe that living, learning and innovating from the land is not only possible, it is necessary.
We return from Brussels inspired, connected, and ever more committed to ensuring that the right to stay becomes a reality for rural communities everywhere.