Catarina Barata, a professor at Instituto Superior Técnico and a researcher at the Institute for Systems and Robotics (ISR-Lisboa), was one of the first mothers who benefited from the measure that allows professors to take time off from teaching in the semester immediately following the end of their parental leave (for professors who have taken at least 100 days of parental leave). When she became pregnant ‘I wasn’t very comfortable doing it’ because I had just signed a contract with the school, but colleagues encouraged her and she decided to go ahead. ‘It allowed me to prepare various proposals for research projects, which I wouldn’t have had time if I’d been busy preparing lessons, teaching, tutoring students, etc.’, she explains. The measure had been in force since 2017 but nobody has enjoyed it yet.

On 26 November, as part of the Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo Awards ceremony, Técnico will present a new phase within the measure: it will be applied automatically to mothers or fathers who meet the 100-day requirement.

‘The idea is to mitigate the negative effects parental leave can have on the long-term research activities of university professors, to promote equality and non-discrimination between men and women and to support a better balance between professional, family and personal life and to protect maternity and paternity,’ explains Rogério Colaço, president of Técnico.

Catarina Barata emphasises that the ‘extra time’ provided by the measure has allowed her to prepare classes for a new subject she will be teaching, as well as to apply for funding for research projects. ‘Otherwise, something in my personal or professional life would have been jeopardised,’ she adds.

‘I think the measure supports reconciling work and family, and protects maternity, as the people who request it need time because they are less available. This time will help a lot in the transition between being on 100% leave with the child(ren) and returning to work. Not having to teach helps us get back to work more calmly, resume projects, and gives us more flexibility and also to have time for our children’, says Ana Carvalho, a professor at Técnico and researcher at Centre for Management Studies at Instituto Superior Técnico, who also benefited from this measure in 2023/2024. ‘It helps a lot to return to work, as we are many months away from professional reality. In my case, I had many new colleagues and I had to adapt to the new reality, and get back into the rhythm of work, projects, etc., and the measure allowed me to have more time to advance on some of the issues that were left behind,’ she adds. ‘I also took advantage of this time off from teaching to apply for a new line of support for individual research and development projects – RESTART – a 50,000 euro funding programme launched by FCT in 2023 for those who have recently taken parental leave, whose objectives intersect with those of this measure approved by Técnico as they also help to enable a competitive return to research activities in new circumstances.’

To make the process easier, the Técnico Management Board has decided to take on the cost of hiring a professor to fill the gap of the person taking time off. Previously, the expense was borne by each Department.

The initiative involved the Diversity and Gender Balance group ‘Gender Balance@Técnico’, which annually delivers the Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo Award.

8th edition of the Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo Award honours three Técnico alumnae

The 8th Edition of the Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo Award public ceremony will take place on 26 November, at 5 pm, at the Congress Centre of Instituto Superior Técnico. The award, established in 2016 by Técnico, aims to promote gender equality and recognise the crucial role that women play in all areas of engineering. Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo was an Engineer and a distinguished alumna of Técnico with a high impact on Portuguese society and policy her whole life, being the first woman who held the position of Prime Minister of Portugal.

The winners of the 8th edition are engineers Sofia Canteiro Aparício and Eduarda Correia Vaz (Young Alumna category) and engineer Carla Pepe Lewark (Role Model category).

The jury of this year’s was composed of Alexandre Bernardino, Beatriz Silva, Cristina Sernadas, Elsa Abranches, Isabel Marrucho, João Ramôa Correia, Pedro Brogueira, Raquel Aires de Barros, Rogério Colaço and Teresa Peña.

The Award has the high patronage of His Excellency the President of the Portuguese Republic, professor Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. The award ceremony will be attended by the Minister of Environment and Energy, professor Graça Carvalho, who was the winner of the first edition of this award in the Role Model category.

Impact of the measure approved by Técnico in the media.