The construction of the Mata-du-Paraíso Scout Park was initiated by the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira with co-financing from the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR). This initiative was undertaken in response to the lack of infrastructure to support the scouting movement in this municipality.
The intervention area is located in a wooded zone, whose topography features flatter sections on the northeastern and southwestern borders, while the central part of the territory has steeper slopes.
For this reason, the buildings are designed in the northeastern part, where the slope is gentler, which facilitates the creation of connections for auxiliary infrastructure. This allows the remaining area to be freed up for camping and outdoor events. An arena area near the northeastern border is also proposed, which utilizes the natural slope of the terrain to create an open amphitheater with wooden slat seating, ensuring a wide and unobstructed view of the landscape and surroundings.
The building complex includes two separate blocks of toilets and changing rooms, designated for women and men, as well as a third building allocated for washing facilities. Small concrete structures for field kitchens are distributed throughout the camp, supporting the camping areas.
Given that the project consists of buildings with simple functions, programs, and forms, the choice of materials and construction systems follows the principles of clarity, simplification, as well as economic and structural efficiency. At the same time, the architecture expresses a modern language that is consciously and deeply connected to the natural environment. The synthesis and simplification of the architecture do not diminish the character of the volumes and spaces; on the contrary, they enhance it, contributing to an adequate correspondence with scouting practice.
Among the materials used, wood stands out, applied in the form of glued laminated beams, OSB composite panels, and carved and autoclaved wooden posts. Concrete, polycarbonate facade cladding, and galvanized roofing are also used.

