The first TUMO centre in Portugal now open
The memorandum of understanding for the opening of the first TUMO centre in Portugal was signed today.
First developed in Armenia in 2011 and currently active in Germany and France, the TUMO project seeks to empower young people to better deal with the challenges and opportunities of the world of work and life. The project is based on an innovative and collaborative educational concept in which young people aged 12 to 18 get the opportunity to acquire, free of charge, skills in 8 thematic areas at the intersection of technology and creativity. Students develop a portfolio of projects in areas such as 3D modelling, animation, game development, programming, music, graphic design, film and robotics.
The arrival of this project to Portugal is the result of an initiative by a set of partners (the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Altice Portugal, Coimbra Muncipal Council, Critical Software, Feedzai, la Caixa Foundation, Santander Foundation, Licor Beirão and Oxy Capital) that joined to promote this digital education project.
For Martin Essayan, Trustee of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, it is with great pride that the Gulbenkian Foundation supports “this innovative project, created by Armenians, just like our Founder, Calouste Gulbenkian. We are convinced that it will change the lives of many young people, providing them with the necessary skills to develop their interests and talents in areas of knowledge where learning opportunities are still very limited by social inequalities.”
The TUMO Centre will be housed in Coimbra’s iconic CTT building, which will undergo renovation work in order to prepare its 2,000 m2 for the reception of the first project participants in September this year.
The opening in Coimbra marks the beginning of a campaign to expand TUMO education centres throughout the country.