A new academic year marks the beginning of new ideas, new challenges, new collaborations and new opportunities.
At the Department of Biomaterials & Biomedical Technology (BBT), the 2026–2027 academic year brings together a diverse community of researchers, PhD students, postdocs, technicians, students, support staff, visitors and colleagues. Different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives come together around a shared ambition: to advance science and create meaningful impact in healthcare.
This year also marks an important milestone for BBT: five years of continued leadership and development. During this period, the department has grown and evolved, faced challenges, celebrated successes and learned from setbacks. Yet, perhaps the most important achievement has been the strengthening of a culture built around collaboration, openness and community.
Because a department is defined by much more than its buildings, equipment, grants, publications or rankings.
A department is defined by its people.
It is defined by how people work together, how knowledge and expertise are shared, how colleagues support one another, and how different perspectives come together to create something greater than any individual contribution.
At BBT, research takes place at the intersection of materials science, technology, biology and medicine. The challenges addressed are complex, and solving them requires expertise from multiple disciplines.
Science moves forward when knowledge is shared.
Innovation can emerge when disciplines meet: when chemists work with biologists, engineers engage with clinicians, technicians develop practical solutions, or students ask questions that challenge established ways of thinking.
Very often, innovation does not happen within a single laboratory.
It happens between people.
This spirit of collaboration is central to BBT and will remain an important part of its future. A strong academic community is one where asking for help is encouraged, experience is shared generously, and everyone has the opportunity to contribute.
Success should be celebrated collectively, because the achievements of individuals and research groups contribute to the success of the entire department. At the same time, setbacks and failures should be recognised as a natural part of scientific discovery, and as opportunities to learn, improve and move forward together.
The future of BBT will not be shaped by one person, one research group or one discipline. It will be built collectively, through the ideas, expertise, curiosity and commitment of the entire community.
As the new academic year begins, one question can help guide this journey:
What can be achieved together that cannot be achieved alone?
The answer lies in collaboration, openness and the willingness to connect ideas, disciplines and people.
BBT enters the 2026–2027 academic year with ambition: to pursue excellent science, develop courageous ideas, strengthen collaboration, share knowledge and translate discovery into meaningful impact.
Above all, BBT will continue to invest in the community that makes this possible.
Because when knowledge is shared, it grows.
When people support one another, the community becomes stronger.
And when we move forward together, the possibilities are limitless.
Welcome to the academic year 2026–2027.
Prof. Hélder Santos
Head of BBT
