Faculdade de letras da Universidade de Lisboa

Their core work

The Faculty of Arts and Humanities at the University of Lisbon is a leading Portuguese research institution in the humanities, specializing in environmental history, philosophy, archaeology, and heritage studies. They investigate how human societies have shaped and been shaped by their environments — particularly coastal landscapes — and explore questions of historical justice, colonial legacies, and citizenship. Their work bridges traditional humanities scholarship with digital tools, museum innovation, and transdisciplinary storytelling, making historical and philosophical research accessible and policy-relevant.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their early H2020 work (2017–2018) concentrated on traditional humanities themes: slavery heritage, colonial history, reparations, and Kantian philosophy — rooted in textual and historical scholarship. From 2019 onward, the focus shifted toward applied and interdisciplinary topics: environmental history of coastal zones, digital archaeology with IT tools, and European university alliance strategy. This suggests a deliberate move from purely theoretical humanities research toward environmentally engaged, technology-enhanced, and institutionally strategic work.

They are moving toward environmental governance and digitally enriched heritage research, making them increasingly relevant for interdisciplinary projects linking humanities to climate, coastal management, and public engagement.

How they like to work

They primarily participate as partners in MSCA-RISE mobility networks (3 of 5 projects), which means they are experienced in international researcher exchange and knowledge-sharing consortia. They have coordinated one major ERC Starting Grant (DUNES), demonstrating capacity to lead ambitious research. With 41 unique partners across 18 countries, they operate as a well-connected node in diverse, geographically broad consortia rather than relying on a small set of repeat collaborators.

They have collaborated with 41 distinct partners across 18 countries, reflecting a wide European and global research network typical of MSCA mobility projects. Their partnerships span from European universities to African institutions (via SLAFNET) and South American connections (via KANTINSA).

What sets them apart

Their distinctive strength lies in combining deep humanities expertise — philosophy, history, heritage — with applied environmental and digital dimensions. Few humanities faculties in Southern Europe can demonstrate both a coordinated ERC grant in environmental history and active participation in digital archaeology and European university alliance strategy. For consortium builders, they offer credible humanities integration into otherwise technical or environmental projects, particularly around public engagement, governance narratives, and cultural heritage.

Highlights from their portfolio

• DUNES
  Their only coordinated project and by far their largest (EUR 1M+), an ERC Starting Grant on the environmental history of coastal dunes — a rare humanities-environment crossover.
• SLAFNET
  A Europe-Africa dialogue on slavery heritage and reparations, demonstrating their capacity for globally sensitive, historically grounded research with direct societal impact.
• BE-ARCHAEO
  Bridges archaeology with IT tools and interactive museum experiences, showing their ability to connect heritage research with digital innovation.