Online Conference

In 2020, the national Fab Labs meeting would take place in Torres Vedras, from July 16 to 19, at the Lab Center space, organized by the Association LAB OPEN FAB LAB, a non-profit association. This event would have the support of the Torres Vedras City Hall and the United States Embassy, in partnership with other Fab Labs, schools, companies, teachers, inventors, manufacturers, associations and institutions.

However, given the current pandemic situation, the challenge posed to the organization was to promote activities in an online version by video conference. Thus, although the face-to-face event has been postponed to for 15-18 July 2021, we decided to accept the challenge and organize a webinar version of the event that will take place on the 18th and 25th of July 2020.
Both in this webinar version and in the face-to-face version, scheduled for 2021, the main objective will be to discuss ways of implementing FAB LAB environments in a school, bringing together teachers, directors, town councils, companies, professionals and FAB LABs.

This meeting will begin with a series of lectures, where Fab Labs coordinators, teachers and project leaders will share their experiences. On Saturday, July 18, we will have the presence of the keynote speakers who will be addressing educational perspective of a Fab Lab: Hanne Voldborg Andersen, Fab@school Denmark (Denmark), Miquel Carreras, coordinator from the FAB LAB of the Lycée Politecnic, Barcelona (Spain), Michael Stone, Public Education Foundation (USA), Tom Dubick, Charlotte Latin FabLab (USA), Liz Whitewolf, Fab Foundation (USA), Francisco Mendes, Hardware City (Portugal). Later, the meeting will be closed by Fernanda Rollo, a research professor at the FCSH of Universidade Nova (Portugal). On Saturday, July 25, the themes will be more focused on Fab Labs, including safety in a Fab Lab, the business management of a Fab Lab and finally its relationship with the scientific and business community in Portugal. The guest speakers: Mikko Rajanen, University of Oulu (Finland), João Feyo, OPOLAB (Portugal).

The event also has workshops on digital prototyping, 3D modeling and printing, electronics, robotics, programming and stop motion animation. This year we will have a “Fab Experience” where participants are challenged to complete a project, in teams of 5, working remotely and individually by videoconference, and also guided by videoconference by two members of the FAB LAB community, they will be immersed in the informal learning environment , simulating the use of a FAB LAB carrying out a collaborative project. All activities are designed for all types of audiences, with a special focus on those who are taking the first steps in the use of these technologies and methodologies in professional and educational contexts.


This event is also aimed at education professionals. The Teachers participants will have the opportunity to meet the national community of FAB LABs and participate in various workshops/projects introduction to digital production, programming, robotics, modeling and 3D printing, among others. It is intended that this sharing of knowledge, where teachers and educators at all levels education can participate, result in a strategic orientation annotated in a document to be delivered to the Portuguese government, with concrete, pragmatic ideas and strategies on how to create a school based on collaborative and cooperative environments based on projects, which characterize the FabLab movement.


In numbers, for 2021, we will have 11 keynote speakers, 10 trainers, 20 mentors, there will be 40 volunteers, 5 consultants and 5 observers. We will present 11 lectures, 10 workshops and 10 projects. The event will be represented by 5 nationalities and people from all over the country.
This year’s webinar, will happen in the 18 and 25 july 2020, and we will have 9 main speakers, 4 trainers, 8 mentors, there will be 4 interns, 5 consultants and 5 observers. We will present 11 lectures, 3 workshops and 4 Fab projects. Experience. The event will be represented by 5 nationalities and people from all over the country.