Participatory process will engage more than 1,200 members of the academic community, civil society, and public and private organisations
University of Leiria and Oeste launches Transformation Agenda
On July 24, the University of Leiria and Oeste (ULO) presented its Transformation Agenda. This participatory process will engage more than 1,200 members of the academic community, civil society, and public and private organisations in building a collective project unlike any other in Portugal, centred on People, Ecology, and the Economy. The event took place at Campus 2 in Leiria, bringing together hundreds of faculty members, students, staff, and regional leaders.
The Transformation Agenda will guide the establishment of the new University of Leiria and Oeste by defining its institutional, academic, research, and regional development model. To support this process, 21 multidisciplinary working groups will be created, directly involving more than 1,200 participants. Over six months, faculty members, researchers, students, and professional staff will work alongside businesses, municipalities, public institutions, social organisations, healthcare providers, correctional facilities, schools, cultural organisations, alumni, and citizens.
The participatory process outlined in the Agenda will identify priorities, define transformative missions, and develop strategic initiatives for ULO, resulting in concrete proposals across nine strategic areas: academic programs; frontier research; innovation and knowledge transfer; ecosystem engagement; territorial cohesion and regional impact; internationalisation; infrastructure; agile management and governance; and institutional specialisation and positioning.
The entire process will be overseen by a Steering Committee comprising approximately 100 national and international organisations, ensuring the rigour, quality, and relevance of the proposals while bringing together academic, business, institutional, social, and regional perspectives.
ULO will organise its activities around three Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), designed to strengthen the region’s distinctive capabilities and foster closer integration between education, research, innovation, and economic and social development.
In Peniche, building on the School of Tourism and Maritime Technology (ESTM), the Knowledge and Innovation Community will focus on the Blue Economy, Sustainable Tourism, Coastal Resilience, and Food Engineering. In Caldas da Rainha, based at the School of Arts and Design (ESAD.CR), it will concentrate on the Arts, Design, Creative Industries, and Emerging Specialisations. In Leiria, where the School of Education and Social Sciences (ESECS), the School of Technology and Management (ESTG), and the School of Health Sciences (ESSLei) are located, the Knowledge and Innovation Community will encompass Education, Health, Engineering, Social Sciences, Law, Business, and Inclusion through Science.
As part of the transition to university status, ESTM, ESAD.CR, ESECS, and ESTG will become university schools, while ESSLei will, for the time being, retain its polytechnic status.
The Transformation Agenda also explores opportunities to establish additional Knowledge and Innovation Communities, namely in Leiria and Northern Oeste, focusing on Nature, Sport, Well-being, and Human Performance; in Leiria and Southern Oeste, dedicated to the Bioeconomy, Biotechnology, and Biomedicine; and in the Serras de Aire e Candeeiros, guided by the Triple Bottom Line approach and focused on leveraging the region’s strategic mineral and geological resources.
The ULO ecosystem will also include two new structures: the ULO Polytechnic School, dedicated to professionally oriented higher education at EQF Level 5, strengthening the university’s capacity to meet the skills needs of individuals, organisations, and the region; and the ULO Leadership School, focused on developing leadership, strategic, and lifelong learning competencies.
Between September and December, the Strategic Thinking for Sustainability (ST4S) methodology will be implemented through five stages: defining the Vision 2035; identifying Critical Success Factors; developing Transformative Missions; designing Strategic Projects; and defining the Implementation, Governance, and Impact framework.
The outcome of this work will be the University of Leiria and Oeste Implementation Roadmap 2027–2030, which will be presented publicly in January 2027.
This roadmap will provide the foundation for implementing the new university and its statutes, laying the groundwork for a transformation process that will continue through 2030.
