Secretaria de Relações Internacionais | Office of International Relations

On 25 and 26 September 2025, the Universidad Católica del Norte (UCN), Chile, conducted an institutional visit to the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) with the aim of strengthening institutional ties and developing research and graduate education partnerships between the two universities.

The Chilean delegation was composed of the Director of Technology Transfer, María Eugenia Olivares, and researchers Mohammad Malaki and Vasthi Lopez. During the two-day visit, the UCN representatives were hosted by several UFSC laboratories, focusing on identifying potential areas for scientific and technological collaboration. UCN’s priority areas include Water Security, Biotechnology, and Ocean Governance, which are also strategic themes at UFSC.

On the first day of the visit, 25 September, the group toured leading scientific research laboratories, including the Molecular Biology, Microbiology, and Serology Laboratory (LBMMS), headed by Professor Maria Luiza Bazzo, in the School of Health Sciences (CCS), and the Plant Morphogenesis and Biochemistry Laboratory (LMVB) and Plant Developmental Physiology and Genetics Laboratory (LFDGV), located at the School of Agricultural Sciences (CCA), where they were welcomed by Professors Valdir Stefanon and Marcelo Maraschin, respectively.

(more…)

Friday, 12 September 2025, the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) received representatives from the Catholic University of Temuco (UCT) in Chile. UCT and UFSC currently have an agreement covering all areas of common interest and providing for exchange opportunities, signed in January 2024 and valid until January 2029. The agreement is coordinated at UFSC by Professor María del Carmen Cortizo, from the Department of Social Work, who also welcomed the UCT visitors.

The meeting took place at the Rector’s Office and was attended by UFSC Vice-Rector, Prof. Joana Célia dos Passos; Secretary for International Relations, Prof. Luiz Carlos Pinheiro Machado Filho; Superintendent of Projects at the Prorectorate for Research and Innovation (PROPESQ), Prof. William Gerson Matias; and Dr. Vera Gasparetto, researcher in Gender Studies and member of the Institute of Gender Studies (IEG/UFSC). Representing UCT were Dr. Claudio Inostroza Blancheteau, Vice-Rector for Research and Graduate Studies, and Dr. Natalia Cárdenas Marín, Directir of the Center for Gender Studies.
(more…)

This post is available in Brazilian Portuguese only. Please access the website in Portuguese to read it.

Opening ceremony of the I UFSC International Week in the CCS Auditorium. Photo: Andrey Santiago/Agecom/UFSC

The first edition of UFSC International Week began on Monday, 21 October, with the debate on topics related to the internationalization of higher education and the need to strengthen academic partnerships. It was organized by the Prorectorate for Graduate Studies (PROPG), the Office of International Relations (Sinter) and the Prorectorate for Research and Innovation (Propesq). The event offers a program made up of panels, conferences, round tables and other activities aimed at sharing internationalization experiences.

The planned activities began in the morning, and the opening ceremony was held on Monday night, in the School of Health Sciences (CCS) Auditorium, on the Trindade Campus, in Florianópolis. The ceremony was attended by the Rector of UFSC, Irineu Manoel de Souza; the Prorector for Graduate Studies, Werner Kraus Jr.; the Secretary for International Relations, Luiz Carlos Pinheiro Machado Filho; the Prorector for Research and Innovation, Jacques Mick; the Director of International Relations of the Fundação Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (Capes) [Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel], Rui Vicente Oppermann; and the Prorector for Research and Graduate Studies of the Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina (Udesc), Sérgio Henrique Pezzin.

>Watch the opening ceremony of the Week

Coordinator of the UFSC I International Week, Professor Werner Kraus, highlighted the “intense schedule of activities” of the five-day event. In addition to holding a conference and three main panels, the prorector highlighted the number of works registered for the parallel sessions (about 50 presentations, most of them linked to the Capes-PrInt Program). “It will be a very fruitful week. I am sure that we will all be very pleased with what will be discussed and with the prospects that lie ahead of us, “said Werner.

In turn, Prof. Luiz Carlos Pinheiro Machado Filho stated that the implementation of UFSC’s internationalization policy has been built on basic principles, such as reciprocity, academic excellence, solidarity and diversity. In his speech, he also stressed that this process should involve the entire university community, including professors, students, and technical-administrative staff (TAEs).

Professor Sérgio Pezzin, who represented the Udesc Rectorate at the time, defended a closer action between both universities, with the objective of expanding academic partnerships and strengthening relations between the institutions. “UFSC is a very important partner for Udesc, just as Udesc is for UFSC. We have many complementary areas in which we can, together, be stronger, strengthening our work and working as a network, “he said.

The Rector of UFSC, Irineu Manoel de Souza, reinforced that the internationalization of the University must occur in a comprehensive way, involving undergraduate and graduate programs, research and outreach. “I am sure that the Week will pave the way for important discussions for our University. Despite the financial difficulties, we have the prospect of new moments, dialog, expanding knowledge and making the University really the motivating factor of a new society, nationally and internationally, “said Irineu.

Shortly after the session, Capes’ Director of International Relations, Rui Oppermann, gave a presentation on the activities of the Foundations. He highlighted that “internationalization is in the DNA of CAPES”, since the first activities developed there were faculty development programs in countries such as France, the United States and England. Opperman also presented a panorama of stricto sensu Graduate Studies in Brazil. According to data from 2022, the country today has 4,592 graduate programs, with 7,027 courses, distributed in 425 institutions, 49% of them public and 33% belonging to the federal network.

Capes is the main distributor of scholarships in Brazil, responsible for financing 79% of the total. Currently, the Coordination maintains 47,187 master’s scholarships and 52,895 doctoral scholarships. Next, it is the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), with only 8% of the total: 4,310 master’s scholarships and 6,097 doctoral scholarships.

Afterwards, Professor André Brasil, from the University of Leiden, in the Netherlands, spoke about the evaluation methods in the context of internationalization. Also affiliated with Capes, André is a researcher at the Center for Science and Technology Studies (CSTs) and a member of the UNESCO Chair on Diversity and Inclusion in Global Science. His research focuses on national evaluation systems, scientometrics, academic publishing, open science, responsible research and innovation (RRI), and diversity in science, especially with regard to multilingualism and geographic inclusion.

Throughout the week, the program was full of additional activities — proposed by the UFSC community itself — and lectures on internationalization in Higher Education, with the participation of UFSC authorities and professors, as well as guests from institutions abroad and professionals related to Internationalization.

The UFSC I International Week closes this Friday (25 October).

> Watch the event on UFSC Internacional YouTube channel

For more information access: sinter.ufsc.br/semanainternacional.

Reproduced by the UFSC Communication Agency, with additions by the Office of International Relations (SINTER/UFSC).