A ceremony held on the morning of this Friday (11), in the auditorium of the Institute of Geosciences (IG) at Unicamp, marked the 30th anniversary of the founding of the Laboratory of Studies on the Organization of Research and Innovation (Lab-Geopi).
Founded in 1995, Lab-Geopi has collaborators from the Department of Scientific and Technological Policy (DPCT), the Faculty of Applied Sciences (FCA) and the Center for Public Policy Studies (NEPP), all from Unicamp, in addition to researchers from various institutions in Brazil and abroad.
At the opening ceremony, Lab-Geopi coordinator Professor Sergio Luiz Monteiro Salles Filho explained that the lab began in the IG's Department of Science and Technology Policy. "It was a research group initially interested in understanding and studying the direction of research organizations in Brazil," he explained.
Salles recalled that, during this period, the country had just emerged from the so-called "lost decade" and was still suffering from funding problems. "Looking at the situation of many research organizations in Brazil at that time, we understood that it would be important to study their causes and what could be expected in the future, to help these organizations, many of them traditional and centuries-old, recover and continue making relevant contributions to the development of Brazil and other Latin American countries," he added.
“Since then, we have made progress in conducting research, providing services, teaching – undergraduate and graduate –, and executive education, creating and applying methodologies,” he stated.
Unicamp's rector, Professor Paulo Cesar Montagner, who participated in the event's opening, recalled the important role the laboratory has played in recent decades in discussions on global issues.
"For the past 30 years, Geopi has played a fundamental role in the discussion and study of global policies. Today, as we reflect on its achievements, we also look to the future of research and collaboration on global issues and their many challenges," said the dean. "Since its creation, the laboratory's mission has been to bring together people from different fields to discuss how science and technology can help solve societal problems," he concluded.
The anniversary program includes lectures on topics such as science, technology, and innovation policy; collaborations and scientific mobility; the use of artificial intelligence in research, with an emphasis on its methodological limitations and ethical challenges, among other topics.
Also participating in the event's opening ceremony were the director of the IG, Professor Emilson Pereira Leite; Ricardo Floriano, postgraduate coordinator at the College of Applied Sciences (FCA) and André Furtado, research coordinator at the IG.
