The University of Algarve (UAlg) is betting on internationalization and has (literally) gone a long way in the effort it is making in this direction.
The UAlg rector was in Japan, where he signed two collaboration protocols with as many local universities this Thursday, which are intended to be the first of several agreements with institutions in the East.
António Branco was part of the delegation of the official three-day visit that Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho carried out to Japan and took the opportunity to formalize memoranda of understanding with the Universities of Kinki and Hokkaido, in a ceremony that took place in Kyoto.
The nature of the two agreements is different, since the collaboration with the University of Kinki, which also involves the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere, will be at the level of research, namely the production of tuna in aquaculture, while the protocol with the Hokkaido University aims to promote the mobility of students, faculty and researchers between the two countries.
Before starting the long journey back to the Algarve, the dean of UAlg spoke with the Sul Informação and with Rádio Universitária do Algarve RUA FM on the agreements it signed and the institution's future plans in the field of internationalization.
“We are mainly working on two planes. At the regional level, because that's where, at the national level, we can grow more. And at the international level, because we have unrealized potential. This trip is precisely part of this second axis of internationalization of the university», referred António Branco.
António Branco: "I think there are all conditions for the two protocols to work and, from there, to attract other Japanese universities that might want to make collaboration agreements with us"
UAlg already has students of around 50 nationalities, who came to study in the region under international exchange programs and agreements, and wants to continue to attract assets from other countries. And, despite the distance, the Orient is a bet for the future.
“We are currently preparing protocols with two Chinese universities, but which are not yet ready to be signed. What we want, for now, is for the two agreements we signed in Japan to work, because they are the ones that will serve as a test and experiment. If it goes well, we can repeat, if something doesn't go so well, we can learn from any problems and fix them next time. But I think there are all conditions for the two protocols to work and, from there, to attract other Japanese universities that might want to make collaboration agreements with us», he said.
António Branco does not hide the fact that there are significant cultural differences, which make agreements with universities from countries in that area of the planet differ from others, for example, in Europe.
«Although there is the idea that Japan and Portugal are culturally and historically close, the truth is that we live quite apart from each other, at all levels, not just geographically. We have to proceed with caution, but with determination, in this type of protocol, because they are two very different cultures that meet», he considered.
"But I am convinced that we will start to obtain results in the year following the signing of the protocols", he added.
What is certain is that, at least in one case, the process was built from the bottom up, as the collaboration between UAlg and the University of Hokkaido, despite having only been formalized yesterday, already started in 2013, fostered by professors and researchers in the areas of the sea and chemistry. Something that proves the interest of elements from both academies in collaborating.
In this case, cooperation is well advanced and there have already been «several meetings from both sides, namely with the visit of UAlg elements to Japan». «I know that a delegation from Japan to the University of Algarve is already planned». said, yet.
«The Rector of the University of Kinki also showed great interest in visiting the Algarve, but no date has yet been agreed. But I believe it will take place in the near future», revealed the dean of UAlg.
The Orient will reach the Algarve via Erasmus+
«I think that what is most interesting, at this moment, for universities in the East, is the possibility opened by Erasmus+. Because there is the possibility of joint applications for European Funds. There is an open line of European funds for collaboration with Japan, which we applied for. If approved, as everything indicates that it is, this project will allow teachers to travel to meetings, because these things have to be done with a lot of work», he said.
At issue is the dynamization of the protocol, but not only. «It is also necessary to understand what kind of students are interested in coming to study in the Algarve and which of our students would like to study in Japan», he explained.
The interest in mobility is, moreover, mutual, since «to talk about mobility is to talk about advanced training, something that cannot be done without research». "The arrival of students to study at the University of Algarve in master's and doctoral courses also implies an exchange of research", he said.
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