The AIR Centre took part in the Decentralised Workshop in the Azores, held on 8 September 2026 at Expolab – Centro de Ciência Viva in Lagoa, São Miguel. The session forms part of the public participation process for the Strategic Evaluation supporting the creation of the Agency for Research and Innovation (AI²), E.P.E., promoted by the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation and coordinated by PLANAPP.
The AIR Centre was represented by Mariana Ávila, Head of the AIR Centre Headquarters, and Natalia Ospina-Alvarez, Head of Biodiversity and Blue Economy and Senior Researcher.
The Strategic Evaluation examines the allocation of the AI² budget to R&D areas, strategic domains and the Innovation Promotion Unit (UPI), as well as the definition of strategic domains and potential subdomains. Its purpose is to identify strategic options, analyse opportunities and risks, and support the preparation of the multiannual programme contract between the Government and AI². Four guiding questions structure the process: the share of the budget allocated to R&D areas, strategic domains and the UPI; how many and which strategic domains should be included in the programme contract; how the budget should be distributed across strategic domains; and how it should be allocated among R&D areas.
The programme foresees ten decentralised workshops, one in each mainland NUTS II region and in the Autonomous Regions. Local actors lead the sessions in a semi-open format, bringing together participants from academia, innovation, business, industry and local and regional administration. The Lagoa workshop opened the second round of five sessions scheduled for September 2026, alongside Covilhã (10 September), Faro (14 September), Braga (16 September) and Aveiro (17 September). This round focuses on identifying strategic options and assessing them.
During the discussion, the AIR Centre contributed the perspective of the Azores research and innovation ecosystem, with emphasis on ocean science, biodiversity and the blue economy, and on the role of the Autonomous Regions in national research and innovation priorities.
More information on the participation process is available at ai2participa.pt.
Collaboration
calendar_today September 9, 2026
Students from the LASIGE Summer of Research 2026 visited the TTC@ULisboa on 8 September, as part of a programme that took place at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon from 1 July to 11 September.
Collaboration
calendar_today September 7, 2026
Europe’s Atlantic and Arctic regions are entering a new phase of coordinated ocean action with the launch of BlueMissionAA2030, a project designed to advance the EU Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030” across both basins.
Collaboration
calendar_today September 4, 2026
O Isla Bonita, um novo projeto do programa Horizonte Europa destinado a ajudar as regiões insulares da Europa a restaurar os seus ambientes marinhos e de água doce, será lançado oficialmente a 26 de setembro, com a sua reunião de arranque em La Palma, nas Ilhas Canárias. A iniciativa visa reunir autoridades de gestão, organizações de investigação e partes interessadas locais de ilhas de toda a UE para acelerar a resiliência climática, as soluções baseadas na natureza e a gestão sustentável da água.
