The Centre for Biotechnology and Fine Chemistry (CBQF), from Universidade Católica Portuguesa, played an active role in the CROSSPATHS matchmaking event, held in Brussels on 25 March 2026. The event brought together researchers, innovators, policymakers, and support organisations from across Europe with the aim of building policy aligned consortia under Horizon Europe Cluster 6, focusing on sustainability, food systems, biodiversity, and the bioeconomy.
Representing CBQF’s scientific and strategic leadership, Manuela Pintado, director and senior researcher of the centre, took part in a panel discussion addressing key success factors for European research projects, highlighting CBQF’s strong alignment with the European Green Deal and Farm-to-Fork priorities.
CBQF was also represented by Sara Nunes Silva, researcher with expertise in the circular economy, and Ana Paulo, research manager, who contributed to discussions on international collaboration and consortium development.
The event further highlighted the strength of Portugal’s research and innovation ecosystem. Alongside CBQF, several Portuguese institutions participated and contributed to the dialogue on European collaboration, including MORE CoLAB, Instituto Superior Técnico, Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Agência Nacional de Inovação (ANI), and CoLab4Food.
Overall, the CROSSPATHS matchmaking event reinforced the importance of combining scientific excellence with strategic networking and policy alignment when building competitive European projects, areas in which CBQF continues to play a consistent and active role.
