Marking its 45th anniversary, MPU has further strengthened its long‑standing partnership with the University of Coimbra (UC), Portugal, by signing a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly develop a Global Campus in Hengqin and launching a Joint Research Programme in Digital Humanities. The agreement was signed by MPU Rector Professor Marcus Im and UC Rector Professor AmĂlcar FalcĂŁo. The new initiatives build on more than three decades of collaboration between the two universities and respond strategically to the development of the Macao-Hengqin International Education (University) Town, underscoring a shared commitment to advancing Sino‑Portuguese academic exchange.
Towards a Sino‑Portuguese Higher Education Community
Professor Im noted that MPU is actively aligning education, technology and talent development within the broader framework of integrated regional growth. The co‑establishment of a higher education collaboration base with UC at the Hengqin campus represents a key pillar of MPU’s internationalisation strategy.
Leveraging Macao’s unique role as a bridge between China and Portuguese‑speaking countries, MPU will focus on priority areas including advanced technologies and health and wellbeing, while expanding a sustainable global academic partnership network. Through joint programmes, collaborative research and dual‑degree initiatives, the Hengqin campus is expected to become a strategic node linking Chinese and international higher education systems.
With over 30 years of cooperation in areas such as smart cities and artificial intelligence, MPU and UC will continue to integrate their complementary strengths to advance high‑level research, enhance talent cultivation and reinforce MPU’s role as a key connector within the Sino‑Portuguese higher education landscape.
Advancing Cross‑Disciplinary Research in Digital Humanities
The newly launched Joint Research Programme in Digital Humanities places language technologies and digital applications at its core, focusing on the integration and application of cross‑lingual textual data. The programme aims to promote data‑driven research methods and methodological innovation in the humanities and social sciences.
Through digital exhibitions and interactive experiences, the initiative will also support the preservation, translation and sharing of multicultural resources, fostering an open and collaborative digital humanities ecosystem that transcends geographical boundaries.
UC Vice Rector Professor Nuno Mendonça highlighted that digital humanities represent a deep dialogue between technological advancement and cultural values. Building on UC’s strengths in language technologies, creative industries and cultural heritage studies, UC will work closely with MPU’s Hengqin platform to advance forward‑looking academic research.
Key research areas include the digitisation of Sino‑Portuguese historical documents, the development of large‑scale Portuguese‑language models and artificial intelligence technologies, the digital revitalisation of cultural heritage, and contemporary digital cultural communication.
Pooling Global Innovation Resources
The Joint Research Programme brings together scholars from both universities across disciplines such as computer science, translation and linguistics, and anthropology. By integrating humanistic inquiry with technological innovation, the programme will pursue multi‑dimensional research and offer new perspectives on cultural heritage preservation and digital dissemination.
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