Sintra forest worker rises from prisoner to team leader

António Santos, 61, has transitioned from serving a sentence for violent crimes to becoming a forest operations team leader at Parques de Sintra-Monte da Lua. Having acquired chainsaw skills while incarcerated at the Sintra Prison Establishment, Santos joined the public company as a chainsaw operator after his release.

Currently, Santos manages a team of three younger colleagues, overseeing the maintenance of 1,000 hectares of forest in the Sintra mountains. The company reported that five former inmates currently hold positions in forest cleaning, maintenance, and gardening through work protocols established between the company and the Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services (DGRSP). Three of these individuals serve as team leaders.

A recent protocol signed in February allows five inmates in open regimes from nearby prisons to participate in forest maintenance, aiming to combine social reintegration with the management of the local cultural landscape.