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A new Science Diplomacy model for Portugal: A proposal for a sustainable strategy and delivery model, building on the diaspora.
Portugal has world-class scientific talent, strong international research links and a highly qualified diaspora. Yet, as PARSUK’s new policy brief argues, the country still lacks a systematic way to turn these assets into international influence. Science diplomacy can help bridge that gap, connecting science, technology and innovation more closely with foreign policy.
Building on the experience of PARSUK’s recent Science Diplomacy pilot in the UK, the report shows what can be achieved with relatively modest resources. The pilot created the Scientific Telegram, mapped strategic opportunities and academic champions for Portugal–UK collaboration, contributed technical analysis to the design of the new Agency for Research and Innovation (AI²), and convened a high-level technical mission to London.
The report now proposes a more permanent and scalable model for Portuguese science diplomacy, built around three complementary pillars: an institutionalised PARSUK programme for the Portugal–UK corridor; a GraPE umbrella network connecting and coordinating Portugal’s scientific diaspora globally; and, over time, a state-led network of science attachés in priority embassies.
The central message is simple: Portugal already has many of the scientific assets and networks it needs. The opportunity now is to turn them into a lasting capability. The end of the PARSUK pilot therefore represents not an endpoint, but a decision point for the future of Portuguese science diplomacy.
Read the full PARSUK policy brief, A new Science Diplomacy model for Portugal: A proposal for a sustainable strategy and delivery model, building on the diaspora, below.
