The awards went to the area of Social and Human Sciences for the Com@Rehab and InteliArt projects 

The winners were announced during the NOVA Science Day, which this year was live streamed 

Lisbon, 23 September 2020. 
The Com@Rehab and InteliArt projects are the two big winners of the Santander NOVA 2020 Collaborative Research awards, announced at the Science Day. The ceremony took place in the main hall of Lisbon's Nova University, with speeches from the university rector, João Sàágua, the Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor, the head of Santander Universities Portugal, Sofia Menezes Frère, and the Administrator of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Carlos Moedas, among other figures. 

During the pandemic, the aim of the Com@Rehab project, led by researcher Maria Micaela Fonseca, from the Science and Technology Faculty, in collaboration with Rute Costa, from the Social and Human Sciences Faculty, and Ana Rita Londral, from the NOVA Medical School, is to contribute to the post-COVID rehabilitation of patients in a hospital and/or home environment. The project is based on a digital communication module (MCD Rehab) with three components, including a platform for the real-time analysis of physiological parameters.  

The main researchers on the InteliArt project were Nuno Boavida, from the Interdisciplinary Centre of Social Sciences of the Social and Human Sciences Faculty (FCSH), and António Brandão Moniz, from the Science and Technology Faculty (FCT), in collaboration with PHD students from the FCT, Marta Candeias, Sofia Romeiro and Débora Freire. 

The project will study how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can affect the organisation of work, employment and labour relations systems in several European countries over the next ten years, seeking to respond to four questions: "What will the expected penetration rate of AI in European countries be? What impacts will it have on the organisation of work and employment? And on the labour relations systems? Will social partners be able to find measures to mitigate these effects on work and employment?" 

The Santander NOVA Collaborative Research Award of €15.000 recognises research projects undertaken by junior researchers at NOVA that involve at least two organic departments of the university. This year it went to the Social and Human Sciences area. Due to the measures imposed by the General-Directorate of Health (DGS) in response to the covid-19 pandemic, the event was live streamed on the NOVA YouTube channel for the academic and scientific communities. 

Santander and its commitment to education 

Through Santander Universities, Santander in Portugal undertakes to promote the best practices in response to the challenges posed by Portuguese society. The bank is already a leading promoter of higher education in Portugal, with partnerships with 50 higher education institutions. The bank invests more than €7 million in Corporate Social Responsibility every year. 

Banco Santander has a strong commitment to progress and inclusive and sustainable growth, boasting a consolidated commitment to higher education that sets it apart from other financial institutions worldwide. It has dedicated more than €1.88 billion to academic initiatives since 2002 though Santander Universities and awarded more than 430,000 university scholarships and grants since 2005. It was recognised as the company that invests the most in education worldwide (Varkey / UNESCO / Fortune 500 Report) with 1,000 agreements in place with universities and institutions across 22 countries.