House Details has had a social mission since day one, since its foundation.

The publishing house operates on a deliberately small scale, with a highly specialised focus. By publishing only a limited number of books over the years, we are able to maintain the highest standards of quality control. Because of this small scale, its social mission represents a significant portion of its profits. The social mission is a fundamental part of House Details — the continuation of the publishing house would be impossible without this philosophy.

Do you have a spirit of helping? Do you have good ideas?

Would you like to collaborate with us in this social mission? Visit us in person and talk to us – please note that this invitation is not for submitting funding applications, but rather to join us in building better realities, without financial reward—just as we strive to do ourselves.

Thank you very much.

Donations — House Details

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House Details 2 | 3

In the second edition we had the honour of being able to support Adriana Carvalho with €450.

Adriana has cerebral palsy, is blind and has epilepsy. Her level of disability is 100%. She has already undergone surgery on her eyes (four procedures), as well as on her pelvis and spine.

We are grateful to the Associação Salvador, as it was through a search on their website that we became aware of Adriana’s situation.”**

Quer que eu ajuste a tradução para um tom mais institucional (como num relatório) ou mais humano e solidário (como num texto de apresentação da revista)

For more information and further donations, contact her father: +351 939 427 021  |  22.10.2018

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House Details 4 — Volume I

In this edition we had the honour of being able to support Rui Rosinha with €450.

Rui was one of the Castanheira de Pera firefighters who were burned in the fire of 17 June 2017 in Pedrógão Grande. After being evacuated, he was only anaesthetised and intubated several hours later; it took 10 hours to reach the Hospital da Prelada (Porto). Due to the extremely high temperatures and the lengthy evacuation, he remained in an induced coma for two and a half months to undergo surgeries and clinical procedures; 20% of his body surface was burned with deep second-degree and third-degree burns. He suffered multiple organ failure, was placed on ECMO life support and had four documented cardiorespiratory arrests. During six months of hospitalisation, he underwent 16 surgeries.

He was left with severe axonal sensorimotor polyneuropathy, resulting in intense pain in the lower limbs, loss of strength, and atrophy of muscles and nerves, among other symptoms. The brachial plexus in his left arm was severely damaged, resulting in limited use and mobility.

He has an 85% disability certificate and depends on a third person for several daily tasks. His wife suspended her professional activity to support him. Rui will be proposed for early retirement in the future, with an approximate amount of €270. He believes that the Portuguese Firefighters’ League will support him upon retirement by compensating for the remaining difference from the salary he earned at the time of the tragedy. Rui is no longer covered by the insurance company.

For more information and further donations, contact his family: +351 963 939 265  |  16.04.2019

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House Details 4 — Volume II

In this edition we had the honour of being able to support Anabela with €450. Due to the severity of the situation, we transferred the amount on 19 June, before the launch of the magazine (December).

Anabela has already fought three tumours and is now facing very advanced cervical cancer. The last resort, as reported on television, is specific vaccines in Germany.

For more information and further donations, please contact the family: +351 934 955 200.

22.07.2019

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House Details 5 — 1ª Edição

Having learned of a case through television, the donation was initially intended for a young patient receiving treatment at the IPO in Porto. However, following the family’s refusal, we contacted the nearest IPO (Portuguese Oncology Institute), in Lisbon.

When I requested the collaboration of Dr Célia Rosa to identify a situation we could support, I mentioned that I could also seek the help of a retired nurse I know, Maria Victória Osório Mourão, who had worked for decades at that Institute. Today 93 years old, she is a person I hold in the deepest respect and affection.

Dr Célia suggested supporting the IPO patient residence, as there was a significant shortage of televisions in the rooms. In that building, very needy and extremely ill people are housed, often alone in Lisbon, most of whom come from outside the district. Fate would have it that, the day before our conversation, Dr Célia had received the list of rooms in that residence without televisions. Fate also ensured that the cycle was completed, as the nurse Maria Victória—who humbly refuses praise and repeatedly tells me she does not possess the value others (rightly) attribute to her—had decades earlier been the very person responsible for creating the residence Dr Célia was referring to.

At the time, the nurse had earnestly requested from Dr Vitorino Magalhães Godinho, Minister of Education (as the IPO was under Education due to its research activities), the creation of a residence for patients (and their families). She emphasised that, especially for people from outside Lisbon, it was impossible to commute daily while undergoing exhausting and harsh treatments. She also highlighted the financial hardship faced by many. On that day, a residence for nurses was being completed on IPO grounds. Nurse Maria Victória showed it to the Minister, who was visiting another part of the Institute, and urged him to allocate it for patients instead. The request was promised that very day and later fulfilled by the government.

Fate ensured the cycle was complete, and so we made our modest donation in the name of a remarkable woman, responsible for a good that is impossible to quantify, and whom many consider an angel at the Portuguese Oncology Institute. We know our contribution is small and that Nurse Maria Victória deserves a public recognition event, but, if all goes well, the cycle will not end with this action alone.

How many lives have been saved over the years thanks to her extraordinary work? By allowing so many young patients to remain hospitalised and survive, how many children were born? How many grandchildren came to know grandparents who were admitted to the IPO before they were even born? And the children of those saved patients—how much happier were they, becoming better parents and thus giving rise to happier children themselves? This donation is possible thanks to you, the reader. I hope you understand that in this story, there is a part of you. In this donation, there is a part of you, and in the televisions at the IPO and the comfort they provide, there is a part of you.

Warm regards,
Nuno

This time, a donation of €570 was made, which allowed the purchase of three televisions and their respective wall mounts.

Photo above: Nurse Maria Victória Mourão, the ‘little angel’ responsible for the creation of the patient and family residence at the IPO.

IPO Contact (Lisbon): Dr Célia Rosa — (+351) 217 229 800  | Ext. 1947  |  July 2020

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House Details 5 — 2ª Edição (2.º Donativo)

In this 2nd edition of the magazine dedicated to architect Souto de Moura, we had the honour of once again being able to give a donation to Mr Rui Rosinha, amounting to €570 (€450 in Dec 2020 + €120 in Jan 2021). The first donation was made in House Details 4 vol.1 (2019).

Rui was one of the Castanheira de Pera firefighters who were burned in the fire of 17 June 2017 in Pedrógão Grande. After being evacuated from the site, he was only anaesthetised and intubated several hours later; the ambulance took 10 hours to reach Hospital da Prelada in Porto. Due to the extremely high temperatures to which he was exposed and the lengthy evacuation, he remained in an induced coma for two and a half months in order to withstand the surgeries and clinical procedures; 20% of his body surface was burned to a deep second and third degree.

He suffered multiple organ failure, had to be placed on ECMO life support, and experienced four documented cardiorespiratory arrests.

During six months of hospitalisation, he underwent 16 surgeries. He was left with severe axonal sensorimotor polyneuropathy, resulting in intense pain in the lower limbs, loss of strength, muscle and nerve atrophy, and other symptoms. His brachial plexus in the left arm was severely damaged, leaving the arm and hand on that side with poor function, little strength and mobility.

Rui has an 85% disability certificate. He depends on another person for dressing, putting on shoes, personal hygiene, bathing, and even for preparing food on his plate.

He receives a meagre €488/month from the Portuguese State as a pension, despite almost losing his life and suffering extremely serious injuries (with the consequent family suffering) for the rest of his life, all in the service of Portugal and in defence of the heritage and well-being of all Portuguese people.

It would be impossible to live on this amount. The Portuguese Firefighters’ League, recognising this, grants Mr Rosinha a monthly allowance of €282.

Thus, a man whose life has been practically destroyed—while saving others and serving his country—ends up receiving little more than the minimum wage.

We believe that what Mr Rui Rosinha did for all of us was far from the minimum.

For more information and further donations, contact his family: +351 963 939 265  |  January 2021

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First House Details Charity Auction

Two copies of House Details 5 – Special Limited Edition – Collector’s Edition auctioned

In this first live online charity auction, held on 11 March via the House Details Instagram account, €191 was raised through the sale of two copies of House Details 5, Collector’s Edition, limited to 10 units with several extras, created exclusively for these auctions.

We are deeply grateful to architect Eduardo Souto de Moura for his generosity in signing the magazines and for allowing the publication of his project. Our thanks are also extended to the house owner, Dr Pedro Mendonça, to the collaborators of architect Souto de Moura, and to engineers Manuel Pedro Melo, Adriano Cardoso and Marta Cardoso. Without the publication of their work, these auctions would never have taken place.

The money was donated to the Associação Pontes de Caridade, which belongs to the Parish of Our Lady of Fátima Church in Lisbon, as it was to them that we turned for information about the most disadvantaged people.

The amount was used to pay the pharmacy bills of Mrs Maria de Fátima Conceição Dias, aged 73, who receives a pension of €274 (she never had an “official” job, having always been a housewife), lives alone and suffers from several health problems. We are fully aware that we cannot significantly change her life, that this is only a very small help.

The money was handed over to Mrs Maria dos Prazeres, who works at the Associação Pontes de Caridade, on 16/03.

Link to the website of the Patriarchate of Lisbon

https://www.patriarcado-lisboa.pt/site/index.php?cont_=160&tem=77&id=182

For more information and further donations: Association contact +351 96 931 87 15  |  March 2021

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Book — Álvaro Siza in Detail — Volume 1 — First Edition

Donation: €1,000 (2nd edition: €2,600)

With this donation, we had the honour of being able to support Mariana by contributing to her physiotherapy sessions.

Mariana is a determined young woman with a winning spirit; she makes a point of overcoming every difficulty. We are therefore fully confident that she will be an inspiration to many and that she will achieve all her goals.

Case description: Mariana is a 17-year-old girl who suffers from muscular atrophy and arthrogryposis, a condition that currently prevents her from walking. (For now!!!!)

We are grateful to Associação Salvador (www.associacaosalvador.com), as it was through them that we became aware of Mariana’s situation.

For more information and further donations, contact her mother: +351 913 531 141 — 16.06.2021

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Book — Álvaro Siza in Detail — Volume 2

Donation: €1,000

As in March 2021, we delivered this new donation to the Associação Pontes de Caridade, which belongs to the Parish of Our Lady of Fátima Church in Lisbon, as they have extensive knowledge of the most disadvantaged people.

The amount will be used to purchase walkers and other accessories, as well as medication for people who would otherwise not have access to it. Sometimes, the lack of these medicines prevents them from leaving their homes (due to mobility difficulties and other issues) and from carrying out essential activities in their lives. 

Link to the website of the Patriarchate of Lisbon (with the association’s details):
https://www.patriarcado-lisboa.pt/site/index.php?cont_=160&tem=77&id=182

For more information and further donations: Association contact +351 969 318 715 — May 2022

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Event at FAUP (featuring Siza, Souto de Moura, A. Madureira, N. Teixeira)

All donations from House Details come from its profits. But on this day, House Details wished to inaugurate, through this type of event, the collection of donations from the audience, destined for institutions of recognised merit. A donation box was therefore placed at the entrance of the auditorium, under the care of the bookshop of the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto (FAUP).

The box was opened by staff from the FAUP bookshop, who counted €3 (donated by the audience). House Details added a further €150, bringing the total donated to the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Porto.

Dates: Event 09.06.2022 • Donation July 2022

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Book — Álvaro Siza in Detail — Volume 1 — Second Edition

Total Donation: €2600 — €1300 to IPO Porto (monetary transfer) + €1300 to IPO Lisbon (television donation).

Date: December 2022

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House Details 6 — Grants for working students (First Edition 2023)

Total Donation: 5,000€

A call for applications for scholarships aimed at working students was announced through House Details’ and Técnica Livraria’s social media (Facebook and Instagram). Posters were also sent to be displayed by student associations and architecture groups in several architecture schools across the country. In addition, flyers were distributed and posted directly on students’ desks, with the help of friends and fellow students.

Unfortunately, only five applications were received.

• To student no. 25037 of the University of Évora, a scholarship of 4,500€ was awarded, given the extreme level of hardship faced in every aspect of life.

• To student no. 201001152 of the University of Porto, a scholarship of 500€ was awarded.

We thank all five candidates for sharing their stories, journeys, and challenges with us. To each, we recognise the merit of their excellent academic performance and dignified way of living, both deserving of distinction. We are certain that life will reward them with success at every level.

The announcement of the scholarships began in March, House Details 6 was launched in May, and the funds were delivered in June.

Date: May 2023

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House Details 7 — Grants for working students (Second Edition 2024)

Total Donation: €5000

As in the first edition, House Details made available €5,000 for the award of scholarships to working students.

All student unions and architecture societies from every faculty were contacted more than once. If you did not see this announcement posted, on social media, or receive it by email, this was due to a decision made by your colleagues. Unfortunately, House Details notes that this is the second consecutive year in which this has happened. Most did not even reply. The necessary collaboration was not obtained from the two largest student associations of the national architecture faculties.

The awarding of the scholarships took much longer than expected, due to the need to carefully assess a large number of applications, more than 100 (except from Lisbon and Porto, where fewer than 10 people applied):

• €2500 (tuition fee payment, Feb. 2025) – Student of the University of Évora: Gaspar Manuel Ginga

• €1678.78 (tuition fee payment, Feb. 2025) – Student of the University of Évora: Henrique Manuel Francisco

• €497 (tuition fee payment, Mar. 2025) – Student of ISCTE: Bruna dos Santos Galego

The remaining amount will also be awarded.

Many thanks to all our clients, who made all this possible — The House Details Team

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