Science Meeting 2021 with 860 in-person participants and 9,500 online

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Science 2021 – Meeting with Science and Technology in Portugal, which took place from June 28 to 30 at the Lisbon Congress Center (CCL) under the theme "Science that shapes tomorrow and transforms the economy," had more than 800 participants on site and more than 9,000 who followed the sessions via live online broadcast.

Every year, Encontro Ciência brings together the national scientific community around a scientific program covering all fields of science, in a multidisciplinary framework that includes contributions from research and development (R&D) units funded by FCT, as well as renowned figures on the international science scene, invited by the organization. This year, the program included 52 sessions, including plenary and thematic sessions, and around 300 presentations that stimulated sharing and debate on current issues in the fields of science and technology. In addition to the sessions, 468 scientific posters were submitted by PhD students funded by FCT and 18 video demonstrations were presented by national R&D institutions.

On the first day of the Meeting, 18 personalities from the scientific community were awarded the Medal of Scientific Merit, which recognizes their work and contribution to the evolution of science and scientific knowledge in the country. The day was also marked by the discussion of topics as diverse as digital skills in education; the future of employment; artificial intelligence; data science; virtual reality; industry, innovation, and economic growth; pedagogical innovation; and MOOCs in the promotion of science.

On the second day of the Meeting, French astronaut Jean-Jacques Favier participated in the afternoon plenary session on the theme "Science and the new challenges of space-climate interaction: from Earth observation to space weather." Other topics covered during the second day were: the Horizon Europe program; science and the economy: recovery and resilience 2021-2027; research and development in creative industries; climate change, Earth and space observation; and cooperation programs between FCT and other entities.

On the last day of the Meeting, the focus was on the theme "Science heals: the challenges and opportunities of science-health interaction" in the afternoon plenary session, with the development, distribution, and worldwide application of the Covid-19 vaccine dominating the discussion, which featured a presentation by Kathrin Jansen, vice president of Pfizer. Genetics, neuroscience, biotechnology, and oncology; health sciences; nutrition and public health; telemedicine, computational biology, and medical applications; and sustainable production and consumption were other topics addressed on this third day.

At an annual event, which is defined as the highlight of interaction between researchers, the business sector, and the general public, Ciência had France as its guest country this year, which actively participated in the program through its scientific community. The French Minister of Science and Higher Education, Frédérique Vidal, spoke at the opening session, and the French Ambassador to Portugal, Florence Mangin, spoke at the closing session.

The meeting also featured contributions from several national policy makers, including ministers and secretaries of state from the areas of health, economy and digital transition, territorial cohesion, environment and climate action, agriculture, inland development and labor, social security, and solidarity. Prime Minister António Costa sent a video message, presented at the opening session, in which he emphasized that the theme of the meeting "reflects well the spirit of our Recovery and Resilience Program," as this program invests "close to 40% of the available funds in science, knowledge, and innovation."

At the closing session, a video message was broadcast from the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, in which he emphasized that "creativity and vision for the future are an integral part of science, in identifying solutions for the well-being of humanity." and, with regard to France as the guest country, he noted that "events such as Science 2021 are still crucial in scientific diplomacy, in the interaction between countries and entities, for the resolution of common problems."

The Minister of Science, Technology, and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor, summarized the meeting in the closing session, emphasizing that "the debate on time and the debate on transforming the economy or the science that shapes tomorrow is certainly a response to societal pressures for critical technologies, recognizing that the knowledge base for these technologies needs to be solid, and depends on both a set of infrastructures and scientific institutions in all areas of knowledge."

The Covid-19 pandemic did not go unnoticed at this meeting, and Helena Pereira, President of FCT, speaking about the relationship and impact of science on the mechanisms to combat Covid-19 and the participation of Portuguese science in this process, emphasized that "everything we have been building over the last few decades shows the excellence of our science and how we can be international players in the development of knowledge."

Science 2021 was curated by David Braga Malta, founder of LiMM, Cell2B, and BoostPharma; Marta Oliveira, launch vehicle safety specialist at the European Spaceport with Vitrociset; and Paula M. Alves, CEO of iBET and professor at NOVA University Lisbon (ITQB and FCT-NOVA). The Science Meeting is an initiative organized by the Foundation for Science and Technology, with the collaboration of the National Agency for Scientific and Technological Culture – Ciência Viva, and the institutional support of the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Higher Education (MCTES) and the Committee on Education, Science, Youth, and Sports of the Assembly of the Republic.

For those who did not have the opportunity to watch the event live or would like to review the sessions, videos of the recordings are available on the Encontro Ciência 2021 website.