Welcome Session
Paulo Sampaio
Co-Lead Linking Local Ecosystems WG - Arqus Alliance and Director of the Department of Production and Systems
Paulo Sampaio Professor of Quality and Organizational Excellence at the University of Minho, In Portugal.
Paulo is graduated in Industrial Engineering and Management at the University of Minho in 2002 (5-year degree).
He completed his PhD in Industrial Engineering in 2008 at the University of Minho and his Habilitation in
Systems and Industrial Engineering in 2022 also at the University of Minho. Paulo has supervised with success
8 PhD students and more than 150 Master students.
He has co-authored or authored more than 200 publications. He is the Coordinator of the
Research Group on Quality and Organizational Excellence at the University of Minho.
Paulo Afonso
Erasmus Academic Coordinator, Department of Production and Systems
Paulo Afonso Assistant Professor at University of Minho (Portugal).
PhD in Management Accounting at Manchester Business School - University of Manchester (UK);
Master in Industrial Engineering (Specialization on Investment Appraisal and Innovation Management) at University of Minho;
Diploma in Economics at ISEG (Economics and Business School) - University of Lisbon (UTL).
Teaching and research activities related to Management Accounting & Control, Strategic Analysis & Business Modelling.
Participation in several funded national and international projects and consultancy activities on investment appraisal and
entrepreneurship projects.
Masterclass - Innovation and Entrepreneurial Ecosystems
Nuno Reis
Partnerships Coordinator ETHGlobal, ALUMNI
Nuno Reis is a former President of the University of Minho Students’ Union (AAUMinho) and Portugal’s
representative at the European Students’ Union (ESU). He co-founded an agritech startup with fellow UMinho alumni before
leading Business Development at Subvisual venture studio and consulting firm, supporting startups until 2022. Since 2023,
he has been building global partnerships at ETHGlobal, the world’s largest Ethereum developer community, onboarding 25,000
new global devs to the technology every year.
Workshop - Inclusive Gender Equality in Innovation Ecosystems
Adriana Lago de Carvalho
Member of the Gender Equality Commission (CIGUM) at the University of Minho
Adriana Lago de Carvalho has over 30 years of experience in the higher education sector.
Since January 2022, she has been a full-time member of the Gender Equality Commission (CIGUM) at the University of Minho (UMinho).
From 1998 to 2016, she served as Director of the International Relations Office at UMinho, and from 2016 to 2021,
she was Executive Director of Praxis 21 at the Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave (IPCA), leading internationalisation,
employability, entrepreneurship, alumni engagement, and university-industry collaboration.
Throughout her career, she has represented both institutions in various networks and initiatives, managing strategic partnerships,
flagship projects, and EU programmes such as Erasmus, Erasmus Mundus, the European University Initiative, and Poliempreende.
She is currently a Board Member of WG10 - Inclusion & Diversity Hub of the Arqus European University Alliance, where she co-led
the development of the Arqus Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan and contributed to the guidelines for supporting students
and scholars at risk. She is also actively involved in several Communities of Practice focused on gender equality and gender-based
violence.
Turning Ideas into Businesses
Amr Mahfouz
Management & Decision Science, University of Maynooth
Amr Mahfouz is a Lecturer in Management Science at the School of Business,
Maynooth University and the programme director of Business and Global Cultures. Prior to this role, he served as the Head
of Research & Innovation at the Faculty of Business, Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin), and was Director of the 3S
Research Group (Smart Sustainable Solutions for Complex Processes). Amr holds a PhD in Operations & Supply Chain Management from
Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) and a Master's in Management Science from Cairo University. His research interests encompass
supply chain management, manufacturing management, business process modelling & simulation, and business analytics.
Throughout his career, Amr has successfully supervised many successful PhD thesis, led multiple research and industrial projects,
and published in leading academic journals and at international conferences.
Roundtable
Eduardo Bacelar Pinto
Innovation Director Fibrenamics, ALUMNI
Eduardo Bacelar Pinto is a Business Innovation Director at
FIBRENAMICS. Responsible for developing new strategies to exploit the Intellectual Property of FIBRENAMICS.
From 2021 to 2023 he served as Board Member at ANI - Agência Nacional de Inovação, S.A. (www.ani.pt)
responsible for the Funding Area, Fiscal & Financial. Additionally, was responsible for the legal and
Information Systems unit.From 2018 to 2021, he was Programme Manager for large multidisciplinary R&D
collaborative University- Industry funded contracts at CCG/ZGDV Institute - University of Minho acting
as Partnership Manager for University of Minho and BOSCH Car Multimedia S.A. (BrgP) partnership.
From 2015 to 2018, he served has Programme Manager of a R&DI programme, between University of Minho
and BOSCH Car Multimedia S.A.In the period from November 2005 to January 2014 he served as Executive
Director (CEO) of CCG - Computer Graphics Center (www.ccg.pt).
He holds a degree in Industrial Electronics Engineering and a master's degree in Industrial
Electronics - Automation and Robotics, both from the University of Minho. He was Member of the Board
of Directors of the international network GraphicsMedia.Net based in Kaiserslautern.
http://www.graphicsmedia.net/.His research interests are in University-Industry R&D Collaboration,
Technological Change and Innovation and Knowledge creation & sharing. He was responsible for various
communications, and he is the author of some peer-reviewed publications in this area.
Paulo Ramísio
TecMinho, ALUMNI
Paulo J. Ramísio is an expert in Sustainability, Hydrology and Urban Water, Wastewater & Runoff.
He was the co-founder of two consulting firms where he was responsible for more than 100 engineering projects and authored several
software programs for the design and calculation of hydraulic infrastructures (HydroPred IHE, IHU) with a
proprietary graphic editor. The development of these programs started in 1997 and has more than 1200 commercial
licenses in Portugal, Brazil and Macau. He was an Invited Professor at the University of Porto between 1997 e 1999.
In 1999 he started to lecture at the Civil Engineering Department of UMinho where, since 2007, he is an Assistant
Professor at the Engineering School (EEUM) of this University. Since 2011 he is Pro-Rector for Infrastructures
and Sustainability at UMinho and also coordinator of the multidisciplinary team for Sustainability at this
University. Also, since March 2015, he is President of the Portuguese Association for Environmental and Sanitary
Engineering (APESB), where he has been part of the Board since 2007. Since 2015 he is the President of the
Portuguese Governing Member in the International Water Association (IWA). Arising from his work as a
research, he published more than 50 scientific and technical papers in reviewed journals or presented at
international conferences. He has been supervisor of 2 PhD and 15 MSc Dissertations. He has also coordinated
several research projects.
Rui Pinheiro
SET.Up Guimarães, ALUMNI
Rui Pinheiro, Speaker at several conferences,
I am passionate about sharing experiences and serve as a mentor in business idea acceleration programs
promoted by universities and startup incubators.In recent years, I have worked as an external consultant
providing strategic consultancy in the development of startup acceleration programs and entrepreneurship
events in collaboration with universities, companies, startup incubators, and municipalities.
I was a Professor of Entrepreneurship at the European Business School of Barcelona and currently I work in
the Economic Development Division of the Municipality of Guimarães, contributing to the promotion of the
region's entrepreneurial and industrial ecosystem (helping to coordinate the Municipal Incubators of
Set.Up Guimarães and Avepark - Science and Technology Park).
Luís Rodrigues
Startup Braga, ALUMNI
Luís Rodrigues has a BsC in Communication and a graduation in
Information and Journalism, from the University of Minho. In the field of Marketing and Communication,
he completed the Advanced Program in Digital Marketing at UMinhoEXEC and the Digital Marketing Strategy program
at Columbia Business School. He held several positions in student representation, namely as President
of University of Minho Students Union, as Elected Representative of Students in the General Council, Senate
and Social Support Council of the University. During his academic path, he was also founder of
Liftoff - Entrepreneurship Office of Minho University.He was also President of the Board of Minho University
Radio (RUM) and Journalist of the program Civil Society from RTP (Portuguese Radio and Television).
Between 2013 and 2017, he was Advisor of the Rector of Minho University, having coordinated the Development
Office, a structure from which different dimensions were fostered, such as fundraising, alumni relations and
employability. Between 2017 and 2019, he was Director of Communication and Institutional Relations at
Casa de Investimentos - Assets Management. He is the current Director of Startup Braga, the innovation hub of
the Municipality of Braga, having developed several training programs for entrepreneurs and startups,
and Member of the Advisory Board of Startup Portugal.
Seminar - How to visualize ideas and opportunities
Giada Centenaro
Universitat de Lleida/University of Padova, ALUMNI
Giada Centenaro holds a PhD on fungal ecology from the University
of Lleida (SPAIN) and she has previously been working in several European institutions such as the University
of Cambridge (UK), the University of Stockholm (SWEDEN), and the INRA of Bordeaux (FRANCE).
Across her academic career Giada understood the key role of mentors and coaches in supporting the academic
community. For this reason, after testing several practical techniques to improve focus, and to favor creativity
and inspiration in challenging moments she started offering workshops on these topics for the scientific community
at her University as well as for the general public.
Seminar - How to visualize ideas and opportunities
Susana Costa
Laboratório da Paisagem, ALUMNI
Susana Costa is the Operations and Project Management Coordinator
at the Landscape Laboratory (Laboratório da Paisagem) in Guimarães. In this role, she provides technical
coordination and support for multidisciplinary projects in the fields of sustainability, innovation, and
territorial development. The Laboratory's work focuses on circular economy, environmental education,
climate adaptation, and nature-based solutions, promoting collaboration with municipalities, companies,
and research institutions. Susana also contributes to technical capacity building, scientific dissemination,
and strategic planning, reinforcing the Laboratory's role as a technical and educational reference in the region.
In parallel, she collaborates with the University of Minho as an Invited Assistant Professor and serves on the
Steering Committee of the Bachelor's and Master's programmes in Aerospace Engineering, teaching and conducting
research in Systems Engineering, Human Factors, and Safety.
