Católica Porto Business School dominated the podium of the Porto Economy Award, an initiative promoted by Porto City Council, which annually recognises three academic dissertations on topics relevant to the city's economy. The award ceremony occurred on 3 April, at Porto City Hall, with the Mayor of Porto, Rui Moreira, personally presenting the awards.

Francisco Sousa Matos, a Master’s in Business Economics student at Católica Porto Business School, took the top prize with his thesis "Dynamic Analysis of Housing Market Segmentation in the Municipality of Porto". Católica Porto Business School professor Pedro Silva supervised his research.

For Francisco, "Receiving the Porto Economy Award is a recognition of my work and effort, showing that research like this can go beyond academia and contribute meaningfully to the economic reality."

"This study aimed to identify the existence of housing submarkets in the municipality of Porto. Defining these submarkets provides valuable insights for homeowners, local authorities, lenders, investors, and property developers," he added.

Second place was awarded to Isabel Marramaque Ribeiro (Master’s in Marketing), while third place went to Tiago Gesta Pedrosa (Master’s in Management, specialising in Service Management).

Joana César Machado and Carla Martins supervised Isabel's thesis, "A content analysis of Porto's online perceived and projected city image, " exploring how Porto’s image is shaped online.

For Isabel, "receiving this award is truly rewarding. The thesis process was challenging, but I believe it resulted in a comprehensive and insightful study on how Porto's city image is built online. The guidance of Professors Joana and Carla, to whom I am deeply grateful, was essential to achieving this result."

Tiago Gesta Pedrosa, under the supervision of Jorge Julião, developed his dissertation based on his internship report, "Enhancing Urban Attractiveness for Foreign Direct Investment".

Reflecting on the achievement, Tiago shared: "I am incredibly proud to be part of this podium and of this school that has given me so much. (...) Here's to the next challenges!"

The Porto Economy Award aims to encourage research with real-world applications to the local economy. It allows students, researchers, and professionals to share their perspectives on the region’s economic landscape.

Católica Porto Business School has three of its Master’s programmes ranked among the best in the world in the QS Business Master’s Rankings.

The April issue of CAIS magazine, on the theme of ‘Europe of knowledge or Europe of security’, has the President of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Isabel Capeloa Gil, as its guest director.

In the editorial, the President of the Universidade Católica reflects on the importance of the university as a great project for understanding the world and dignifying people, a central element in the project of modernity and, more specifically, in the construction of a Europe of Knowledge.

Isabel Capelo Gil also emphasises the role of universities as agents of social change, arguing that they should develop ‘partnerships with the public and private sectors and civil society, promoting projects that are sensitive to local and global needs’.

The President emphasises the need for universities to commit to ‘training ethical leaders and conscientious citizens’ and adds: ‘A true Europe of Knowledge is one that embraces the idea that knowledge should be used for the common good, and universities have a moral duty to lead this movement.’

In addition to the editorial, Isabel Capeloa Gil shared the films that made a deep impression on her, ‘Memento’ and ‘Ainda Estou Aqui’, by Walter Salles, and highlighted her trip to Bolivia, Chiquitania, as the trip of a lifetime.

This edition of Cais magazine also features Pedro Simas, a lecturer at the Católica Medical School, and Sónia Ribeiro, a lecturer at the Institute of European Studies, who debate the theme: ‘Are we moving towards a Europe of Knowledge or a Europe of Security?’.

The magazine, which costs €2, earmarks 70 per cent of the proceeds to support CAIS vendors. This support aims to guarantee essential needs such as food, accommodation and transport, as well as providing an opportunity for these individuals to rebuild their lives with dignity.

This issue and others of the CAIS magazine are on sale at the UCP Stationery Office.

Débora Campos, a researcher at the Centre for Biotechnology and Fine Chemistry of the Faculty of Biotechnology and founder and CEO of AgroGrIN Tech, is the winner of the 2025 European Prize for Women Innovators in the EIT Women Leadership category. This recognition highlights her innovative contribution to developing an eco-friendly process that transforms industrial fruit waste into functional food ingredients

“Receiving this distinction is a deeply touching recognition that reflects not only my work, but also the immense support I’ve received throughout my career. My connection to the Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP), and especially to the Faculty of Biotechnology and CBQF, has been – and continues to be – essential to the development of the initial idea and now to the ongoing growth of the company. At UCP, I found the space, the resources and the freedom to experiment, to question, and to grow. This award, therefore, is not mine alone, but belongs to everyone who believed – and still believes – that it is possible to make a difference with courage, dedication and, above all, an inclusive vision for the future, by supporting projects and companies like AgroGrIN Tech and entrepreneurs like myself”, shares Débora Campos.

AgroGrIN Tech has developed a pioneering technology that repurposes waste from the fruit industry, converting it into high-value nutritional and functional ingredients. This approach not only reduces the environmental impact of the agri-food sector but also promotes a more sustainable economic model, aligned with European green transition goals.

The European Prize for Women Innovators is an initiative by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and the European Innovation Council (EIC), aiming to celebrate and encourage the role of women in leading scientific and technological innovation. Débora Campos’ nomination underlines the impact of her work on sustainability and the circular economy, contributing to more sustainable solutions in the food industry.

The competition awarded prizes in the categories of EIT Women Leadership, Rising Innovators, and Women Innovators, and the winners were announced at the EIC Summit held on 3 April 2025.

The Universidade Católica Portuguesa is one of the institutions now eligible for a 1% deduction from its personal income tax (IRS), which will be used to increase the number of social support scholarships offered to the community.

This measure offers the opportunity to help students who have financial difficulties or are in a humanitarian emergency to access university education and enjoy socio-economic, psycho-educational and integration conditions in a university community, which will certainly transform their future. 

Consigning this 1% has no additional cost for those who contribute, nor does it mean a reduction in the reimbursement to be received. In practice, instead of this percentage of the tax going to the state, it will be given to the university to reinforce the social support it provides.

By choosing Católica, you are collaborating with an institution strongly committed to social responsibility and committed to creating a positive impact on society and the common good.

To do this, when filling in your personal income tax return, simply indicate Universidade Católica Portuguesa and enter its Tax Identification Number (NIF) - 501082522 - in box 11. 

At a time when the world is experiencing an accelerated global and technological revolution, Católica Porto Business School, in partnership with Seal Group, has decided to organise a series of lunches called Beyond Business, which will bring a national or international guest to address the selected topic. For the first edition, which took place yesterday, 1 April, guests had the presence of the chairman of the board of the Serralves Foundation, Isabel Pires de Lima.  

The dean of Católica Porto Business School, João Pinto, gave the opening speech. "This initiative is part of the extension of the Executive MBA Corporate Club to Católica Porto Business School", he began. "But it's also an initiative that aims to foster an even greater connection to practice, create a positive impact on society and companies, and debate new ideas and ways of looking at reality", he concluded. 

The theme of this first edition centred on the valuable nature of leisure and imagination, with Isabel Pires de Lima beginning her speech with "the evolution of society towards a subordination to the acceleration in which we live, which is an endogenous form of violence". For the former Minister of Culture, this acceleration "prevents the enjoyment of moments of suspension, due to the feeling of guilt the individual has for not doing what they should be doing". 

For this reason, Isabel Pires de Lima emphasised that "the humanities and the arts can occupy a place of resistance" in a healthy questioning that must exist in resistance to this fast pace, movement, and robotic hyperactivity. "We can slow down, take breaks, question. Yes, we can", she followed up before emphasising that young people are also affected by the difficulty of integrating "new knowledge into the previously known world. We have to be able to offer them stories, narratives that stimulate their inner enlargement and their relationship with others". 

In conclusion, Isabel Pires de Lima quoted Eça de Queirós in "The Correspondence of Fradique Mendes": "Illusion (...) is as useful as certainty". The next Beyond Business lunch, which aims to create a space for trust, sharing, networking and debating strategies and ideas centred on the future of business, will be announced soon.