ElevateBraga
A conference unlike any other, in Braga
We are delighted to welcome you to Elevate Braga, a yearly conference unique of its kind, in the beautiful city of Braga.
Bringing together inspiring national and international speakers, Elevate explores some of today's most pressing issues: sustainability, the environment, animal welfare, food systems, waste and health.
Together we examine how plant-based solutions and our everyday choices can create a powerful ripple effect for people, animals and the planet. We challenge the status quo, question existing policies, and inspire meaningful action towards a healthier, more compassionate and sustainable future.
Alongside the conference, the Elevate Market takes place, with free entry for everyone.
Let's Elevate together — for our health, our planet, and all our human and non-human friends.
What happens over three days
Each day has its own centre of gravity. Come for one, come for all three.
The essentials
The Elevate Market
Running alongside the conference, the Elevate Market is open to everyone with free entry — no registration needed. Plant-based food is sold by the stallholders, alongside local makers, producers and creators. Come to eat, stay for a session.
Program
Please arrive 15 minutes before a session starts. All three days at Biblioteca Lúcio Craveiro da Silva.
Interpreters
Every session runs in Portuguese and English, interpreted live by:
Art competition for schools
Elevate Plant Based invites secondary school students to show us the state of our planet — and the future they want.
The theme is the environment, animal welfare, agriculture and fast fashion. We want work that portrays where our planet stands in these areas, made in any technique: drawing, painting, collage, mixed media, even sustainable fashion.
Every entry is exhibited at the Biblioteca Lúcio Craveiro da Silva across the conference weekend, with the student’s own explanation displayed beside it. Students present their work to the public and to the jury, and again at the closing session on Sunday. Winners receive prizes offered by our local partners.
We are glad to send the full rules, or to visit your school and present the initiative in person.
The rules
The judges
Two guests of the conference will judge the entries and present the prizes.
Speakers
Photos, bios and links are being added, and more names are still to come.
Register
The conference and the market are both free. Registration helps us keep a seat for you. The Saturday dinner is the one ticketed part.
Reserve your place
Message or email us and we'll confirm your registration.
Discover Braga
Staying for the conference? This is how to find your way around the city while you're here.
There have been many versions of Braga. Once a Roman city known as Bracara Augusta, it later grew into one of the most important Catholic strongholds in the Iberian Peninsula, earning the nickname "City of the Archbishops". Today it is one of the fastest-developing municipalities in Portugal — and home to the Elevate Plant Based Market and Conference.
Getting here
Braga sits in the heart of the Minho, in northern Portugal, about 55 km north of Porto and 76 km from the Spanish border — a 50-minute drive.
Places to stay
A spread from sleek to simple, all within reach of the venue.
Places to eat
Vegan and vegetarian spots around the city, for the meals that aren't at the market.
Some of the information on this page comes from Go Ask a Local.
Last year at Elevate
Photographs from the 2025 conference in Braga — panels, workshops, and guests joining from around the world.
Photographs by João Rodrigo Correira.
Sponsors & partners
Elevate runs on the support of municipalities, organisations and local businesses who want this conversation to happen.
Support Elevate 2026
Sponsorship is what keeps entry free and the market open to everyone. We have packages for businesses, producers and organisations, and we're glad to build something that fits.