Photo: Renata Renate Krüßmann, Director of the Internationalization Program (Zuko), Fábio Amaral, Communications Advisor (IEAT/UFMG), Sigrid Elmer, Public Relations and Science Communication (Zuko), Mihaela Mihaylova, Director of the Program for Research and Fellows (Zuko), Laura Dirmaite, Administration (Zuko) and Michael Krauße, Information Technology (Zuko).

As a result of a partnership between the Institute for Advanced Transdisciplinary Studies (IEAT) at UFMG and the Institute for Advanced Studies (Zukunftskolleg – Zuko) at the University of Konstanz, Germany, another stage of the international exchange program for technical and administrative staff from the Institutes for Advanced Studies linked to the network of University-based Institutes for Advanced Studies (UBIAS) took place.

The employee Fábio Amaral de Oliveira Paes, responsible for the communications advisory at IEAT, was at the Zuko headquarters between January 15 and February 14 for a schedule of activities that included meetings with the institute’s employees focused on observing work and also an intensive German course.

According to Fábio Amaral, the exchange experience was extremely productive, both in terms of exchanging experiences on work practices and gaining knowledge about the research programs developed at Zuko, as well as learning a new language. “I believe that the meetings were essential for understanding how Zuko works and identifying the potential of the projects they develop to support early-career researchers. I learned a lot about the communication processes of these programs at an international level and the importance of strategic communication in the formation of cooperation networks. Understanding these processes gave me important insights into the work of Zuko, which is considered a major strategic project of excellence at the University of Konstanz,” he emphasized.

International exchange in partnership with other IEAs

This is the second staff exchange organized by the Institute for Advanced Transdisciplinary Studies at UFMG in partnership with other Institutes for Advanced Studies linked to the UBIAS network. In August of last year, the IEAT was represented at the Institute for Advanced Studies of the University of Dublin (UCD Institute for Discovery).

The initiative, whose objective is to promote international exchange among the technical and administrative staff of the institutes participating in the network, is in the initial phase of implementation and may be expanded to other members of the UBIAS network.

The international staff exchange program aligns with UFMG’s internationalization goals by fostering a technical staff compatible with a world-class university. The initiative has the support of the Office of the Vice-Rector for Human Resources (PRORH) of UFMG.