Could you please introduce yourself?
My name is Rui Costa, and I am a professor at the Polytechnic University of Coimbra in Portugal. At my university, I teach in the scientific area of Food Industries, contributing to degree programs in Food Technology, Food Engineering, and related subjects across other academic programs. Within UNIgreen, I serve as the coordinator of the Joint Research Centre for Food Technology, Quality, and Safety.
Which added value or benefits of UNIgreen would you like to highlight, and why?
UNIgreen provides institutions with a distinctive framework to enhance cross-border collaboration, fostering joint research initiatives and educational programs that go beyond national boundaries. So far, we have engaged in a joint PhD program which has proven to be a valuable asset, not only by enriching the international student experience, but also by enriching research through the cross-fertilization of ideas and knowledge from different universities. This collaborative model allows all partners to benefit from each other’s unique strengths. Moreover, it increases our competitiveness in securing EU research funding by providing a solid foundation for cooperation and broader access to networks that were previously more difficult to reach. The initiative thus helps create a unified academic environment, aligning excellence, inclusiveness, and societal impact as shared goals.
Please tell us what UNIgreen means to you, and use one word to describe it.
UNIgreen stands as a promise of unity through diversity, promoting collaboration over competition and fostering cohesion instead of fragmentation. It acts as a transformative force across multiple academic dimensions, enabling individuals and institutions to transcend local limitations. To me, UNIgreen means “synergy”: the combined efforts of diverse institutions, disciplines, and cultural backgrounds generate outcomes that surpass what any single entity could achieve alone.
