During her visit to Portugal on behalf of MIT, the MIT Energy Initiative and the MIT Portugal Program Nov. 24-26, 2009, MIT President Susan Hockfield had an opportunity to discuss the future of science and engineering research and education – and the critical importance of international scientific collaboration – with a particularly receptive group comprised of 20-plus members of the MIT Club of Portugal; 40 alumni of MIT Portugal (including recent graduates of the Program’s executive master’s courses); Joao Gabriel Silva, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of Coimbra; Dean António Cruz Serra of Instituto Superior Técnico (IST); and MIT Portugal faculty.  MIT President Susan Hockfield and other guests at the MIT Club of Portugal dinner At a November 26 dinner at Lisbon’s Olissippo Lapa Palace Hotel to recognize her visit and the awarding of certificates to recent MIT Portugal graduates, President Hockfield assured the attendees that MIT will remain on the frontier of global innovation; will continue to undertake targeted, long-term engagements that fit the Institute’s research and educational interests, as well as address critical problems; will dramatically expand the percentage of MIT students who gain global experience; and will deepen the Institute’s engagement with global alumni. Saying “the world needs MIT graduates now more than ever,” President Hockfield cited the achievements not only of MIT Portugal but also of the MIT Energy Initiative and MIT Sloan, as well as the Institute’s efforts in the areas of cancer research and cloud computing. Welcoming the MIT President  MIT Portugal graduates Welcoming President Hockfield were Prof. Daniel Roos, the MIT Director of MIT Portugal, and Artur Arsenio, President of the MIT Club of Portugal (PhD, MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2004).
Prof. Roos emphasized the night as one of several “firsts”: the first visit by President Hockfield to Portugal; the granting of the first national degrees to graduates of the MIT Portugal Program earlier in the day, at the Luso-American Development Foundation; and the dinner itself being the first gathering of the MIT Club of Portugal to include MIT Portugal alumni. (MIT Portugal Program alums and current students qualify for Affiliate status in the MIT Alumni Association, which grants them access to the association’s online network, among other benefits.)
In his remarks, Dr. Arsenio said he hoped President Hockfield’s visit would “result in further collaboration between MIT and Portugal in the fostering of technological development.” In addtion, he said MIT alumni in Portugal “can make a difference in our country’s future...It is a privilege to all of us to have a top-level MIT education, but with it we have as well additional responsibilities. Namely, we have the duty to contribute to our country’s development.” Dr. Arsenio also called on MIT Portugal graduates to take an active role in MIT Club of Portugal activities. Photos: Inês Santos |
