The ceremony of the UMinho Award for Initiation in Scientific Research 2026 took place on October 9, from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm, in auditorium B1 (building 2) of the Gualtar campus, in Braga. The opening was attended by the Vice-Rector for Education and Academic Organization, Cristina Dias.
Two dozen undergraduate students and students in the first years of the integrated master’s degree have developed their scientific projects in recent months involved in teams of recognized merit at UMinho and presented, from 2:30 pm, their results. Three parallel sessions were planned in nearby spaces, that is, in auditorium B1 and in rooms 1.09 and 0.05.
Among the topics addressed, for example, the liability for harm of AI at work, interlinguistic influences on speech, the use of photos to promote well-being and an app that scales vehicles in firefighting. Emotional literacy for the elderly, politics of fear, ecomaterials for smart windows, Soviet cultural diplomacy and immune response to spinal cord injury were other topics listed.
Gabriela Silva was the guest speaker
At 5:00 pm, the lecture “From Minho to the United States, to the Algarve and Lisbon: 20 years of PIICs” (Scientific Research Initiation Programs) took place, by scientist Gabriela Silva. Born in Arcos de Valdevez, she has a degree in Applied Biology, a master’s degree in Molecular Genetics and a PhD in Materials Science and Technology from UMinho. She did a postdoc at the University of Pennsylvania (USA), went through the University of Algarve and is now a professor and researcher at Nova Medical School, in Lisbon, focusing on gene therapies for eye diseases. She returned to UMinho to share learnings, challenges and opportunities and show the impact of PIICs on students’ paths.
The winners of this seventh edition of the UMinho Prize for Initiation in Scientific Research were announced at 5:30 pm, with the closing session being in charge of the Vice-Rector for Research and Scientific Policy, António Salgado.
This annual initiative, promoted by the Rectory in conjunction with the Research Centers (EEUM: ALGORITMI, 2C2T, CEB, CMEMS, IPC, Metrics) aims to allow students of the 1st cycle of UMinho to get involved in real research contexts, work in teams that deal with new and relevant knowledge, have the supervision of recognized scientists and deepen their interest in science. The prize includes a certificate and a monetary value of 500 euros.
AWARDED STUDENTS
– Maria João Faria Quintas
– Filipa Veloso Rodrigues
– Giovanna Lopes Teotônio Duarte
– João Francisco Moniz Marques
– Duarte André Ribeiro Tecedeiro
– Ana Luísa Pinto Monteiro
– Tatiana Gonçalves Ribeiro
– Amanda Cavendish Farias
– João Dinis Macedo Gomes
– Duarte Lopes Fernandes
– Yauheni Kanstantsinau
– Ana Filipa de Araújo Vasconcelos
– Diana Sofia Máximo Pinto
– Luís Pedro Monteiro Pereira
– Miguel Araújo Pereira
– Samuel Freitas Monteiro
FONTE: UMinho
