Porto’s Serralves Director Wins Science Prize, Boosts Outdoor Labs and Tours

Anyone who has wandered through the sweeping gardens of Serralves in Porto will not be surprised that the open-air museum of trees and artworks has now earned national scientific recognition. The person largely responsible for turning that urban oasis into a research-friendly classroom, the park’s director, has just been awarded the Grande Prémio Ciência Viva 2025, Portugal’s most prestigious distinction for the public communication of science.

Recognition that resonates beyond Porto

While the title of the prize may sound like an insiders-only accolade, its implications are far-reaching. The Ciência Viva Agency, which reports to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education, only grants the award to individuals or institutions that have demonstrably widened access to scientific knowledge. For residents across mainland Portugal and the islands alike, the victory signals fresh momentum for environmental education at a time when classrooms are crying out for hands-on content tied to the national curriculum.

Who is the new laureate?

The director—an ecologist by training who has spent the past decade overseeing the 18-hectare Serralves Park—has quietly transformed the grounds into a living archive of Iberian biodiversity. She spearheaded the cataloguing of more than 200 tree species, introduced citizen-science apps that let visitors log bird sightings in real time, and opened after-hours stargazing sessions in partnership with the University of Porto’s astrophysics department. The judging panel highlighted her knack for "making science feel like an everyday language," praising the way she blends botany, art and community involvement without dumbing anything down.

Why Serralves Park became a living laboratory

Created in the late 1930s as a private estate, the park was gradually reimagined in the 1990s when the Fundação de Serralves set a mission to merge art, nature and knowledge. Over the past five years, the site has welcomed an annual average of 1 M visitors—nearly double the footfall of some northern museums—thanks largely to the director’s decision to frame each walking path as an introduction to climate science, soil chemistry and urban ecology. School trips from as far south as the Algarve frequently end their spring term here, using QR-code trails to compare local flora with Mediterranean cousins. Those digital tours became a lifeline during pandemic restrictions, a fact the Ciência Viva jury took into account.

A prize that mirrors Portugal’s science goals

Since 2016 the government has invested heavily in STEAM outreach, hoping to reverse decades of lukewarm enrolment in biology and physics. The €50 000 Grande Prémio, funded through both public grants and private donors, is designed to amplify projects that already show measurable impact. Past laureates include a marine biologist who brought deep-sea webcams to Azorean classrooms and a mathematician who gamified algebra for Lisbon’s public schools. This year’s selection underscores Lisbon’s stated ambition to treat green spaces as engines of scientific literacy, not mere recreational extras.

What comes next for visitors and schools

According to a roadmap released by the foundation minutes after the award announcement, the park will debut an immersive tree-canopy observatory in early 2026. The four-story structure, inspired by German Waldwipfelwege, will allow teachers to run experiments on photosynthesis and air quality without leaving the city. Meanwhile, a new collaboration with Porto’s municipal transport company aims to issue discounted weekend passes that bundle metro tickets with science-guided tours, making the programming accessible well beyond the usual museum-going crowd. The director confirmed that at least 30 % of the prize money will be reinvested in scholarships for public-school teachers seeking advanced training in outdoor pedagogy.

Reaction from the scientific community

Researchers from Coimbra to Braga were quick to salute the choice. The Portuguese Botanical Society called the decision "a strategic nod to the urgent need for urban biodiversity corridors." Even tech leaders chimed in: the CEO of a Lisbon climate-data start-up noted on social media that Serralves’s server of crowd-sourced tree metrics has become "an unexpected but crucial data set" for modeling heat-island effects. In a year when Europe has seen record temperatures, the symbolism of a park director winning a science-communication award did not go unnoticed.

Why it matters to people living in Portugal

For families planning their next weekend outing, the accolade is a reminder that scientific discovery is not confined to laboratories. It can unfold under a 90-year-old cedar tree, beside a sculpture by Joan Miró, or along a path where schoolchildren count ladybirds to track pesticide drift. For educators, the win could unlock fresh funding streams and curriculum credits. For policy-makers, it underscores the argument that investing in green-public infrastructure pays environmental and educational dividends simultaneously. And for anyone worried that Portugal’s younger generations might shy away from STEM, the buzz around this award suggests the opposite: curiosity is alive, well and flourishing—quite literally—in the heart of Porto.