05 June 2025
Time to wrap up the 4th edition of Ciência di Noz Manera (CNM), our mentoring programme running since 2021 that brings science and scientists closer to underserved communities in the Greater Lisbon area.
Following intro sessions that happened at schools back in February, nearly 200 8th-grade students from Escola do Alto do Lumiar (Lisboa) and Escola Dr. Azevedo Neves (Amadora) took part in a series of hands-on/minds-on experiments at both the GIMM Foundation and Champalimaud Foundation (CF) in March.
“We are deeply grateful to the 60+ incredible volunteers from our partner research institutions - GIMM and CF - who made this experience possible! These days at GIMM and CF are always remembered by the students as a highlight of CNM. We hope this is not only because they get to skip classes, but because it creates the possibility for them, and also our team, to learn new things!”, says Catarina Ramos, who coordinates CNM and is the Head of the Communications, Events and Outreach team at CF.
From this larger group, around 40 students voluntarily took on the challenge of the third and most demanding phase - the Mentoring Sessions held over the past two months at their schools.
During this phase, students and mentors worked on diverse, creative projects:
This impactful journey would not have been possible without the dedication of the around 20 GIMM and CF mentors who went above and beyond to ignite curiosity, foster confidence, and broaden horizons. Along the way, they too gained valuable insights from the CNM training on science communication and mentoring and, most importantly, from the vibrant and diverse interactions with these students.
Since the pilot edition of CNM back in 2021, this programme has brought together around 900 students from five schools and 150 scientists from both GIMM and CF.
