Alexandra Mendes
“The HASLab coordinators would like to nominate the researcher Alexandra Mendes. Recently, Alexandra was the winner of the Atlantic Security Award, an achievement that stems from her excellent work in Security. Alexandra’s work supported different scientific outputs, namely the development of a pioneering tool for the detection of code with security risks, as well as the activities carried out within the scope of the PassCert project – towards the development of a password manager that ensures security properties on data storage and generation of passwords, using formal verification. In addition, Alexandra has reinforced the relationship with the Carnegie Mellon University teams, leading to several opportunities for collaboration between the two institutions”.
- HASLab coordinators
You received the Atlantic Security Award; in addition to the recognition of your work, what kind of motivation does it bring to the future, at a professional and/or academic level?
It will further improve my collaborations with colleagues at Carnegie Mellon University, while opening new doors. Moreover, the financial benefits of the award will facilitate certain projects’ tasks. As a recognition of my path thus far, it obviously motivates me to work harder. It’s also quite positive to witness the reaction of the public to this news, with several support messages from strangers, and more than 7000 interactions regarding the news piece on UP’s social networks.
Still concerning this award: can you talk a little bit more about the work developed?
The main idea is resorting to data from the dark web to train or fine-tune a large language model (LLM); then, using this model, we can explore prompting techniques that allow data to be extracted and support authorities in making decisions about security in the Atlantic. In particular, the main goal is to support the design of strategies and policies to tackle illicit practices that occur on the dark web. The main expected results will be a prototype that allows authorities to extract useful data from the LLM.
Which aspects of your job do you enjoy the most?
Something I really like is working with younger people, while being able to contribute positively to their future. However, it’s hard to single out a specific aspect of my job I enjoy the most, since I appreciate carrying out different tasks. I also appreciate the intellectual freedom to create and explore new ideas.
How do you comment on this nomination?
I am very grateful to the HASLab coordinators for nominating me and for their support. It is motivating to see that they recognise, support, and celebrate the achievements of their researchers.
Ana Filipa Sequeira
“The CTM coordinators would like to nominate the researcher Ana Filipa Sequeira. This nomination is supported by the excellent coordination work of the team that organised the INVICTA school. The event took place between March 18 and 22, in Porto; we’re talking about an advanced training event in Computer Vision, Artificial Intelligence and Pattern Recognition. This year’s edition welcomed dozens of participants, and major international guest speakers in these areas. In addition, it’s important to mention the collaboration with members of the industrial and scientific community, leading to the support granted by BOSCH, Nilg.ai, AISym4MED and Fraunhofer Portugal to the organisation of this initiative. We’d also like to emphasise the amazing commitment of several junior researchers who collaborated with Filipa in the organisation of the event, demonstrating a remarkable availability and unsurpassed quality in the tasks performed, which were fundamental to the success of the INVINCTA. Ana Filipa was responsible for coordinating this entire team, having shown remarkable professionalism and management proficiency”.
- CTM coordinators
You were responsible for the team that organised the first edition of INVICTA. In your opinion, how important is this type of initiative – not only for CTM, but also for INESC TEC?
The guidance and advanced training of human resources, as well as their introduction to research, are deeply connected to INESC TEC – and CTM – activities. This is quite clear in the multiple events that both the employees and the institution are involved in each year.
In the case of INVICTA, we are talking about an intensive week-long school that provides what we consider to be an immersive journey into the domains of artificial intelligence (AI). This path has been paved over the last decade with the VISUM Summer School (VISion Understanding and Machine Intelligence Summer School), which featured 10 highly successful editions – and whose tenth edition (2022) marked a transformational era for the organisation, now integrated into INVICTA.
As Tiago Gonçalves previously mentioned, the primary goal of INVICTA is “to build an inclusive community where people can learn and grow with each other, focusing on a key topic [like AI] that is expected to significantly influence society”.
I believe there is no doubt about the importance of this event in fulfilling INESC TEC’s mission of “promoting scientific and technological developments […]” while keeping in mind the mission to be a key-player in Science and Technology, disseminating the principles of freedom and excellence in research with a focus on people, cooperation, and social responsibility.
What is your assessment of this event? And what opportunities could be explored for future editions?
Our assessment is very positive in several aspects. Besides the feedback from everyone involved (participants, speakers, and guests) highlighting the quality of the sessions, the complexity of discussions, and the human dimension of socialisation moments, I would like to emphasise the strong participation of a critical mass of elements from academia and industry eager to learn and share best practices. It’s important to remember the generous support of leading companies like Bosch, Fraunhofer Portugal AICOS, and NILG.AI and their contribution to a rich environment of ideas and practices.
The future of INVICTA is uncertain; despite the unquestionable positive contribution of an event like this, we also feel that it requires a significant investment in terms of organisational and human resources by the organising committee and the institution
Which aspects of your job do you enjoy the most?
This question is very difficult to answer, especially considering the wide variety of tasks I have performed over the years.
I mainly work as a researcher, trying to address challenges related to facial recognition and the study of AI interpretability to develop more transparent and unbiased practices. My research activities focus on producing scientific publications, seeking funding through new project proposals, and actively participating in research projects. Another recent aspect of my activity at INESC TEC is leading the Diversity and Inclusion Commission, a group that deals with issues that are very important to our institutions and society – and must be handled with great consideration. In addition to these tasks, I supervise several students (internships, summer internships, master’s degree, and PhD), participate in the organisation of various scientific events, and teach classes – among other more sporadic duties.
So, and to answer the question, I can say that perhaps what I appreciate most is the variety of activities I develop and the fact that the life of a researcher is never dull.
How do you comment on this nomination?
I am grateful for the recognition by the coordinators of CTM, who acknowledge the positive results and all the effort we put into this event. I’d like to share it with all my partners from the organising committee – each one of them made a unique contribution to making INVICTA such a successful event.
I must emphasise that this is a true team effort, which goes beyond the organising team and includes various services at INESC TEC, as well as CTM’s coordinators and secretaries. Without this joint effort, it would not be possible to carry out relevant and demanding endeavours like INVICTA.
As I have mentioned on other occasions, it is truly gratifying to develop an activity that fulfils us, at an environment that motivates mutual support, supporting us institutionally and personally. Moreover, this type of recognition should fuel us to always aspire for more and for better; since we’re living tough times in our society, at various levels, we must work within following a continuous improvement approach to create safe havens for the flourishing of ideas, good practices, and the appreciation of all members of the community.
Isabel Macedo
“In recent weeks, Isabel has coordinated the elaboration of the 2023 Report, the Meeting of the General Council for the transition of mandate/presidency of the Board of Directors, and the application to FCT Evaluation of R&D Units. These processes are vital to the institution: quite complex, time-consuming, delicate and of the highest responsibility; and they took place with a unique level of dedication, quality and skills. They are also processes that involve our community in a broader way, allowing all members to witness their relevance; and we’re pretty sure that the entire INESC TEC community supports the Board in this acknowledgement”.
- Board of Directors
You’ve been responsible for different processes over the last few weeks, all of them vital to INESC TEC; how did you manage to balance the different needs and objectives – in this case, concerning diverse and very delicate activities? What were the main challenges during these processes?
I really appreciate the nomination; but, strictly speaking, I can only accept it on behalf of the teams that also joined these processes – these results were only possible thanks to the work carried out by different people.
In terms of work balance, I really like the phrase “You can do anything but not everything”. The fact that these processes took place in the same short period of weeks required very thorough planning, adequate liaison, and significant collaborative work. As always, our teams were tireless. Concerning the reports and the FCT application, we were able to rely on support of many people – from the Centres, Services and the Board of Directors; however, I’d like to highlight the liaison/consolidation tasks carried out by Lídia Vilas Boas in the reports, and the contributions of Inês Sousa, João Castro and Marta Barbas considering the quality of the FCT application information – under the strategic and close guidance of Professors Rui Oliveira and Aníbal Matos. Regarding the meeting of the General Council and the transition of mandate, I must emphasise the work carried out by Ana Isabel Oliveira, not only in the operational dimension, but also concerning numerous institutional aspects.
As for the challenges – and unfortunately -, they were the same as always, and common to all: not enough time and overlapping issues. We had to address these processes while carrying out our daily duties, in a very dynamic institution with an ever growing activity. We often had to review consolidation deadlines due to time and delivery limitations of certain agents. The fact that everyone – whether in the Services, Centres/Domains and Board of Directors – sacrificed a significant amount of their leisure time to focus on the expected results also deserves a special acknowledgement.
You joined the institution in 2003; over all these years, what is the fact, moment, goal, etc. that you would like to highlight – and that you consider crucial to your career? And what prospects do you have for your future at INESC TEC?
It’s hard to choose; but perhaps the most defining moment of my career at INESC TEC was when I was invited to directly support the activities of the Board (at the time, at INESC Porto), in 2007.
Since then, I have had the opportunity to participate in several very interesting transformative ventures of the institution, which have always provided me with a great sense of personal and professional fulfilment; and I hope to have truly contributed to the entire community. I’d also like to highlight the my collaboration in terms of: the restructuring of various internal processes; the creation of the Institutional Bases; the transformation of INESC Porto to INESC TEC; the redefinition of the institution’s organisational model; the restructuring of the Intranet and the website; the definition and implementation of activity indicators; the implementation of the Seed Projects; and, more recently, the FCT Evaluation of R&D Units and the development of the Strategic Plan.
The common aspect throughout the years has been the confidence I have received from the members of the various Boards of Directors and my managers, who keep inviting me to address different challenges; in this sense, I’d like to thank them very much. In particular, to Graça Barbosa, for her guidance and friendship over more than 20 years, but also to Professors Mário Jorge Leitão, Gabriel David and João Claro, for their cordiality, leadership and availability. Finally, I’d like to thank Professor José Manuel Mendonça for his vote of confidence and for welcoming me to support his Boards of Directors throughout the various terms.
As for the future, namely in the medium term, there are some strategic projects that seem very promising and of great value to the institution. I’m talking about the implementation of our 2030 Strategic Plan and the redefinition of our scientific evaluation aspects – in line with CoARA’s recommendations -, but about other endeavours that the current Board of Directors and my Management Support colleagues are developing (and that will be very interesting to follow)
Which aspects of your job do you enjoy the most?
There are two aspects that I appreciate the most about my work.
The first concerns INESC TEC itself and what makes it special. I’m talking about a purpose, and a sense of mission, to be able to contribute to something greater and for the good of society. It is a feeling I sense in many members of the INESC TEC community: we can create, improve, and go even further. I feel this energy from day one; and in a country like ours, it’s a breath of fresh air. I also share the sense of “community” that guides us, the idea that by working together, we can achieve better results, with no room for scientific “prima donnas” or disagreements.
The second is deeply related to my duties. In more than 20 years, I don’t know the meaning of “routine”, and that’s something many people can’t afford. Obviously, there are regular duties and tasks; but the subjects around which they develop are always new and different. This stems from the great dynamism of our institution, which is always in constant evolution and transformation, but also from the possibility of participating in the life of the Institute and working with different people over the years, who always bring new outlooks and ideas, allowing us to learn and to improve.
How do you comment on this nomination?
I am very grateful, and I emphasise, yet again, that this is a recognition of the deep dedication and the excellent work carried out by several teams. I would like to clarify that one of the processes referred to in this nomination is not yet completed: there are still two phases in the process of the FCT Evaluation. Our hope is to keep relying on the commitment and collaboration of all, to be able to unequivocally demonstrate the merit and relevance of INESC TEC’s activity.
Ricardo Silva
“Ricardo Silva has played an essential role in the development of the energy community management platform (started with the CER DIGITAL project) and in the management applications of storage systems. Ricardo’s private and humble attitude does not hide the relevance and quality of his work, which has been crucial in the success of ongoing projects like SINNOGENES, ENERSHARE, PRR ATE, InterConnect. In addition to his work on the projects, he has also supervised some of the newest team members, with an impact on other ongoing projects like ENPOWER or BeFlexible”.
- CPES coordinators
You’ve been working on the development of the energy community management platform; could you tell us a little more about the tasks/activities you have been performing in this area, indicating some relevant aspects (objectives, goals achieved, how the results obtained so far can contribute to future developments, etc.)?
The renewable energy community management platform stems from a collaboration with the company Capwatt, within the scope of the DigitalCER project. Initially, we were responsible for developing several modules crucial to this management process, e.g., transactions module for local energy markets, settlement module for transactions, optimised predictive management module for controllable resources (e.g., batteries), and resource sizing module for communities. The interest in this topic is clear, as well as the demand for a complete software capable of doing all the management of these communities – featuring not only our modules, but also all the necessary communications with the DSO, the regulatory entity, and the Iberian market (to obtain energy prices for the next day), user interfaces and support databases. And that’s when we decided to create the platform. We are currently in the process of licensing it with Capwatt, and have recently been working on incorporating new features, and improving the robustness and efficiency of the software. I oversaw the development of the optimised management, sizing and settlement modules.
In addition to your work within the scope of different projects, you are also responsible for mentoring new team members; how do you achieve a balance between the different roles at the Centre?
It’s been challenging. Similarly to several of my colleagues, who already have some years of experience at the Centre, I make a bridge between the objectives of the projects and the implementation of the solutions that aim to meet said objectives. We aim to address the doubts and needs of new employees – either more conceptual or more technical – without disrespecting their work and creativity, while maximising the productivity of the time dedicated to this task, towards fulfilling our own duties in terms of different projects. Despite being available for a short meeting or exchange of ideas via chat or email, I appreciate following a good practice established by the Centre: to schedule a regular and weekly meeting to provide support and guidance.
What obstacles do you face while carrying out your tasks?
I don’t think the word “obstacle” is appropriate; I would say that we have several challenges associated with a positive aspect: the growth of the institution, and the fact that we are diversifying our application domains. Personally, I particularly enjoy being involved in the provision of services, in consulting activities with our partner companies, and in projects that ultimately lead to product development. These types of projects require skilful management of people, tasks, communication with partners and an ability to find solutions seriously, quickly, and effectively – a task that we end up having to share among everyone in the teams. We must also consider the sense of innovation that characterises us, which must always be present.
Which aspects of your job do you enjoy the most?
Basically, searching new solutions and working on their implementation as tools that can be used successfully by INESC TEC and/or our partners. A good example of this is the optimised energy community management module, where I could think of a solution for the predictive management of resources, leading to a tool that was integrated into the platform – currently acting as the basis for new developments within other projects, and already being used by Capwatt to manage one of its assets.
How do you comment on this nomination?
I’d like to thank the coordinators and all those who work alongside me, always supporting me with their knowledge, empathy, and good sense of humour.
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