International Luso-Brazilian Social Work Seminar

2025-10-31

The Instituto Superior Miguel Torga (ISMT) and the Institute of Applied Social Sciences (ICSA) of the Federal University of Pará (UFPA), Brazil, joined forces to organize the International Luso-Brazilian Social Work Seminar. The scientific event, under the theme “Social Work in Neoliberal Contexts: Dialogues on the Education and Work of Social Workers in Portugal and Brazil”, took place at the Coimbra Municipal House of Culture on 31 October. This initiative strengthened the partnership and academic exchange between the two higher education institutions.

The Seminar was organized by faculty members and researchers in Social Work from both institutions. From ISMT, the faculty members Fernanda Daniel, Maria Rosa Tomé, and Sónia Ribeiro participated. From UFPA-Brazil, the event was coordinated by faculty member Reinaldo Nobre Pontes, leader of the Study and Research Group on Social Work (GEPSS). The scientific program was comprehensive, featuring the Inaugural Conference given by Fernanda Rodrigues, President of the Portuguese Order of Social Workers, and a presentation by faculty member and researcher Yolanda Guerra (UFJF-Brazil), recognized for her extensive work in the field of Social Work.

The International Seminar featured a diverse panel of national and Brazilian speakers. Various joint research projects carried out by faculty members and researchers from ISMT and the Postgraduate Program in Social Work (PPGSS) of the ICSA, UFPA, were presented. The opening session was chaired by faculty member Manuel Castelo Branco, President of the ISMT Board of Directors, and faculty member Fernando Rodrigues from the Institute of Applied Social Sciences (UFPA). In the closing session, faculty members Reinaldo Nobre Pontes (UFPA) and Dulce Simões (ISMT) announced the decision to deepen the protocolary relations between the institutions, emphasizing the aim of creating a GEPSS research hub at ISMT, fostering the future of joint research.