The Portuguese Minister for Science and Development visits Fiocruz

Manuel Heitor, the Portuguese Minister for Science and Technology, was at Fiocruz on August 9 to debate a proposal of technical cooperation with the institution, in particular regarding the Atlantic International Research Centre (AIR Centre), a global project for the integration and development of knowledge on climate change and the Atlantic Ocean. The minister was in Rio de Janeiro for the launching of the local office of the initiative, located at the Laboratory of Computational Methods in Engineering of Coppe (UFRJ).

Fiocruz is part of the initiative, collaborating with Urban Health research projects for cities on the Atlantic coast. The minister was welcomed by Fiocruz’s Environment, Health care and Health Promotion President, Marco Menezes, and by former presidents Paulo Gadelha, Paulo Buss and Carlos Morel. The meeting was also attended by Mauricio Guedes, Faperj’s technology director; José Luiz Moutinho, AIR Centre’s Chief Business Developer; and Sergio Portella, from Fiocruz’s Health and Disasters research group.

AIR Centre

With its physical headquarters in the Azores (Portugal), AIR Centre brings together governments, universities, investigation centers and international companies. The founding countries are Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Angola, Cape Verde, Nigeria, Uruguay and Sao Tomé e Principe, together with the regional government of the Azores. The United Kingdom and South Africa are observing members at this early stage. The AIR Centre will bring together scientists and researchers to develop studies on climate, biodiversity, marine currents and other aspects of the ocean that can be used to generate economic development.