https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/cadernosgeografia <p>The journal <em>Cadernos de Geografia</em> is published by the Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, University of Coimbra.This journal was created in 1983 and is the outcome of what had been planned for some time, for a journal that can cover all the topics that geography encompasses.The first issue was dedicated to Professor Alfredo Fernandes Martins, a distinguished Geographer from Coimbra’s Geography group, who also dreamed of the Institute launching a publication. Works of great historical interest and geographical interest by this author were published in that issue.The <em>Cadernos de Geografia</em> has been published in three series, which are easily distinguished by their appearance. The second series also has four special issues, the first is a tribute to Professor J. M. Pereira de Oliveira while the others contain the works that were presented at the first three <em>Colóquios de Geografia de Coimbra</em>, since the communications from the subsequent issues were included in the issue of the relevant year.</p> Imprensa da Universidade de Coimbra en-US Cadernos de Geografia 0871-1623 <p>Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a&nbsp;<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_new">Creative Commons Attribution License</a>&nbsp;that allows sharing the work with recognition of authorship and initial publication in Antropologia Portuguesa journal.</p> https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/cadernosgeografia/article/view/17968 <p style="font-weight: 400;">In 2004, after several years of high rates of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest, the Brazilian federal government set up the Permanent Interministerial Working Group on Amazon Deforestation to draw up a plan to combat deforestation in the Amazon. From this inter-ministerial group, the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon (PPCDAm) was created. The Plan was divided into four phases before ending in 2019 and being resumed again in 2023. The PPCDAm was divided into thematic axes, and was largely responsible for the low rates of deforestation in the following years. In addition, in order to corroborate this and other public policies, a list of priority municipalities for environmental and land control actions was published in 2007. The aim of this paper is to analyze the effectiveness of the PPCDAm and the list of priority municipalities in combating deforestation in the municipality of Altamira, PA. The focus of the analysis is the thematic axis Environmental Monitoring and Control, and the indicators involving areas embargoed by Ibama. In order to do this, the study compares kernel density maps of the embargoes carried out annually since the beginning of the PPCDAm with the official documents of the Plan, specialized literature and deforestation data.</p> Eduardo Luiz De Sousa Soares Copyright (c) 52 https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/cadernosgeografia/article/view/17889 <p>As faixas e mosaicos de gestão de combustíveis (FGC) são áreas delimitadas em instrumentos de planeamento de nível municipal, nos quais é programada a gestão de combustíveis no âmbito da prevenção e combate a incêndios. Apesar da sua importância, a concretização desta medida enfrenta constrangimentos pouco conhecidos, como a extensão das FGC, os recursos necessários à sua execução, a pequena dimensão dos prédios rústicos e o desconhecimento dos seus titulares. Este estudo analisou estes aspetos em 11 municípios com elevada perigosidade de incêndio rural nas regiões Centro e Norte de Portugal. A estrutura fundiária e o progresso do cadastro rústico foram analisados através de informação disponibilizada pelo Balcão Único do Prédio (BUPi). As FGC abrangem, em média, 4.845 ha (±3.058 ha) por município. Os proprietários privados são responsáveis pela gestão de mais de metade da área total em FGC. No final de 2024, o BUPi cobria cerca de um terço dos diferentes tipos de FGC. Nas FGC predomina o minifúndio, com maior fragmentação ao redor de aglomerados populacionais. Uma estimativa conservadora revela um custo médio de 1,09 (±0,92) milhões de euros e de 8.970 (±7.535) jornas de trabalho por município para realizar a gestão, uma única vez, nas FGC. Os resultados deste estudo evidenciam a complexidade e os desafios de implementar esta medida, reforçando a necessidade de maior racionalização na gestão e de adoção de estratégias mais sustentáveis, atentando na realidade fundiária e socioeconómica destas áreas.</p> Ernesto Deus Catarina Frade Joaquim Sande Silva Copyright (c) 52 https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/cadernosgeografia/article/view/17870 <p>This study presents an investigation that integrated a sociological analysis of the conditions in which the population of São Carlos (Brazil) finds itself in relation to environmental issues, along with an analytical study on the quality of water that supplies some neighborhoods of the city, seeking links between social vulnerability and the quality of services that serve these regions in relation to water, carrying out physicochemical tests, such as pH, alkalinity, and chlorine content. The main results showed that the populations residing in the most peripheral neighborhoods of the city are precisely those that present the lowest water quality indicators and that suffer the most from its scarcity, concluding, therefore, that a more comprehensive approach to this population is necessary on the part of public policies, since they are more susceptible to environmental risks and also those associated with water quality.</p> João Ribeiro Copyright (c) 52 https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/cadernosgeografia/article/view/17852 <p>Urban heat islands are a major challenge in the current context of climate change, intensifying heat exposure and related health risks. This paper presents a school-based research project that engages secondary school students in the study of UHIs using Earth Observation data and Geographic Information Systems within a Problem-Based Learning framework. The project was implemented between 2022 and 2026 in several European cities (Jena, Coimbra, Iași, and Turku) under the European Campus of City-Universities (EC2U) alliance. Students analyzed satellite-derived land surface temperature data, land use/land cover information to identify local UHIs, examine their spatial distribution and impacts, and relate heat exposure to urban form and vulnerable populations. Through hands-on GIS analysis, hypothesis-driven inquiry, and collaborative discussion, students developed data literacy, spatial thinking, and critical problem-solving skills. Despite the technical complexity the experience shows that secondary school students can successfully engage with geospatial methods when supported by structured pedagogical guidance and university–school collaboration. The project’s adaptability across different institutional and cultural contexts highlights its scalability and its potential to integrate geospatial technologies, climate adaptation, and urban drivers into secondary geography education.</p> Ricardo Almendra Copyright (c) 52 https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/cadernosgeografia/article/view/17798 Paulo Manuel Costa Lemos Copyright (c) 52