New steps taken in cooperation with Brazil

For the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, the delegation of the Brazil Center of the University of Münster (WWU), composed by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Bernd Hellingrath, Scientific Director, Anja Grecko Lorenz, Executive Director, and Laura Redondo, Director of the Liaison Office of the Brazil Centre in São Paulo, held a series of meetings in three Brazilian cities – São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasília – reinforcing the importance that the country maintains in the scientific and academic cooperation of the WWU. The delegation carried out an agenda that included deepening partnerships, resuming of certain initiatives and prospecting new opportunities for cooperation on different fronts.

The highlight of the visit took place on March 15, when the signing of the framework agreement for the joint supervision of doctoral students between the WWU and the University of São Paulo (USP) was officially commemorated. In this so-called cotutelle modality, the supervision of doctoral students is jointly assumed by professors from the two institutions, who follow the development of the research throughout the doctorate until the defence of the thesis. Students must also spend at least six months at the partner institution, where they have the opportunity to develop their work in closer interaction with their co-advisor. It is worth noting that similar initiatives have already been developed between single faculties and departments, but the new agreement involves all faculties of the two universities, facilitating the application and approval of the request for joint supervision. Each department, however, is free to define the specific parameters of the cotutelle, depending on the respective doctoral programme and the individual doctoral candidate.

The ceremony held at the USP Hall of Acts was attended by the newly sworn-in Rector, Prof. Dr. Carlos Gilberto Carlotti Júnior, who, like the other speakers at the event, expressed his satisfaction with this important step towards the consolidation of the partnership between WWU and USP, which has been gaining more and more solid outlines. He mentioned that this agreement is only the third one signed by USP in these terms. In the case of WWU, a similar agreement exists with only one university in Georgia. In turn, the Provost of Graduate Studies, Prof. Dr. Marcio de Castro Silva Filho, recalled that there is a huge gain in cooperation between universities, which can be quantified by the impact of joint publications: compared to articles published by researchers only at WWU or only at USP, the impact factor is five times larger.

In addition to the ceremony, two meetings were also held with the Provost of Graduate Studies, the Provost of Research and Innovation and the President of the Agency for International Cooperation (AUCANI). Among the topics covered were new ways to promote exchange and cooperation between the two universities and the identification of other sources of funding for this strategic partnership, since the DAAD programme that financed two funding cycles ended in 2021. Another subject on the agenda was the deepening of cooperation in innovation and entrepreneurship, topics considered a priority by both universities and with great potential for exchanging experiences.

Still in relation to existing cooperation, the delegation was also in Brasília for a meeting with the International Cooperation Office of the funding agency CAPES. During the meeting with the director Livia Palumbo and the deputy director Idelazil Talhavini, it was agreed to renew the cooperation agreement between the institutions and resume the Brazil Chair, established at the WWU in 2010. The initiative foresees a fellowship of up to 18 months of a Brazilian professor in Münster, accompanied by a post-doctoral researcher and a doctoral student from Brazil for up to 12 months.

Taking advantage of the opportunity of the visit and in order [GLA1] to prospect new cooperation opportunities, the WWU representatives visited the Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA), based in Rio de Janeiro and considered the main centre for research and teaching of mathematics in Brazil. Its director, Prof. Dr. Marcelo Viana, received the delegation for a conversation about converging points of interest and identification of potential for cooperation in teaching, research and knowledge transfer. IMPA showed great interest in international cooperation initiatives, especially for the academic mobility of students and researchers.

Link to the news on WWU homepage (in German): https://go.wwu.de/0a5sd

Link to the news on the USP website (in Portuguese): https://go.wwu.de/o567f