25 Years of FCT in Science: Opportunities and Challenges

The Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) will open the program of its 25th anniversary celebrations with a conference entitled "25 years of FCT in Science: Opportunities and Challenges", on January 14 at 2:30 p.m. at the Thalia Theatre in Lisbon. This will be the first of 12 sessions organized by the FCT throughout the year to mark its first quarter of a century.

The program for this first session opens with a speech by the president of the FCT, Helena Pereira, entitled "25 Years of the FCT in Science". The second speech will be given by Alexandre Quintanilha, a member of the Portuguese Parliament, with the paper "Knowledge - Pillar of Democracy". This will be followed by a panel discussion on "A vision of the future for science", which will include science and technology researchers as well as the former presidents of FCT and the National Board for Scientific and Technological Research (JNICT). The last presentation will be made by the president of the National Council for Science, Technology and Innovation, José Manuel Mendonça, under the title "Science with impact - social relevance and contribution to the economy". The session will be closed by the Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor.

The session will be broadcast online at this link.

The debates will continue throughout this year, taking place in different cities, stimulating discussion around important issues for the future of science in Portugal and Europe. The sessions will be attended by personalities and representatives of the various dimensions of the construction of knowledge about science and technology in Portugal, in which FCT, over the last 25 years, as the national funding agency for scientific activity, has played an important role.

Next sessions:

Advanced Training and Doctorates
February, Aveiro

Scientific Employment and Careers
March, Porto

Scientific Institutions
April, Coimbra

Science 2022: Meeting with Science and Technology, on the 25th anniversary of the FCT
May, Lisbon

R&D Activities and Projects
June, Vila Real

Open Science, Repositories and Online Library
July, Braga

Summer with Science
August: Bragança

Scientific Culture and Ciência Viva
September, Faro

Advanced Computing
October, Guimarães

International Scientific Cooperation
November, Évora

FCT and science in Portugal and Europe
December, Lisbon

(The dates and venues of the sessions will be announced shortly.)