Portuguese Soul Issue 28

SPRING/SUMMER 2025

Twenty billion pairs of shoes are produced worldwide every year. Around 90% of them are made in Asia, in particular in China, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

This is not a reasonable state of affairs. First of all, because it calls into question the principles of free, fair and balanced trade, which are essential for the development of modern societies.

But the issue goes deeper. It results in overconsumption, particularly of low-quality products.

It is time to change course and find new alternatives, to promote production excellence and responsible consumption.

In Portugal, we set out on this path some time ago. It began with the signing of a Green Commitment, endorsed by more than one hundred companies, which are responsible for half the footwear production in Portugal. Optimising processes, promoting energy efficiency and combating waste were identified as priorities. This was followed by the Bioshoes4all project, which aimed to develop a new generation of products. It is the largest ever investment project in the sector in Portugal.

In a world where words are often a substitute for actions, the footwear sector is investing more than 100 million euros to create a major benchmark in the development of sustainable solutions.

There is a time in life when words have to be turned into action: to get one’s hands dirty and do the work, to go for it. Not necessarily in a different way, but to prepare the ground for new solutions to appear on the horizon.

In this edition of Portuguese Soul, we use the theory of the four classical elements to rethink the way we are evolving. Although this idea was superseded by modern science, it contributed greatly to the formation of modern thought, influencing philosophy, alchemy, medicine, as well as astrology and the occult.

— Paulo Gonçalves, Editor-in-Chief

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