On 28 April, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, welcomed Ambassador Grace Chang, Representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Centre in Portugal, to a meeting held in the Civil Engineering Museum, at Alameda campus. The session aimed at identifying opportunities for academic and scientific cooperation with Taiwan institutions.
“This is an important moment to reinforce Técnico’s position as a School open to international cooperation and to create impact through teaching and research”, said Zita Martins, Vice-President of Técnico for International Affairs. She highlighted the School’s international dimension, noting that around 15% of the students are from abroad and one third of the PhD students come from overseas, as well as a network of over 700 mobility agreements established with partner institutions.
The meeting included discussions about new opportunities to enhance mobility and develop joint initiatives for the future. “We want to attract more students and encourage academic mobility, creating the conditions for sustained collaboration between the two parties”, said Rui Mendes, Director of International Affairs at Técnico, adding that “this is a partnership with great potential for growth”.
On her first visit to Técnico, Grace Chang emphasised her interest in deepening institutional relations and promoting synergies between scientific and industrial systems. “We believe it is possible to complement skills and identify areas of common interest”, she said, also adding that “we aim to take an active role in building bridges between Taiwan and Portugal” and to “find the right channels to connect institutions, encourage the involvement of students and researchers, and promote joint projects”.
The practical aspect of the collaboration was also highlighted during the visit to Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores – Microsistemas e Nanotecnologias (INESC-MN), a research unit affiliated with Técnico, where the delegation was briefed on ongoing research in areas such as magnetic sensors, advanced electronics and new materials. Among the examples presented were technologies related to photonic chips and high-precision devices, with industrial and scientific applications, which aroused interest in the context of Taiwan’s industrial sector.
The visit to INESC-MN was attended by Paulo Freitas, President of INESC-MN, who highlighted the potential of “international collaboration in technology transfer and the development of solutions with industrial applications”.
