Every year, students from both NEC and Nova SU join forces to put together the biggest Portuguese Conference Cycle on Economics fully organized by students, with the best guest speakers on the most pressing topics. They strive to bring economic thinking to the whole society: for all issues, for all opinions, for all minds. They strive to bring Economics for all.

This year, we will have the following debates:

05/04 - European Health Union

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the courage of our healthcare professionals, but it has also uncovered many fragilities within national health systems across Europe. Additionally, it raised the question of whether a better European cooperation in health could have represented a more efficient solution to the current health crisis. Therefore, the main purpose of this debate is to discuss the possibility of an European Health Union, particularly its main competences and challenges.

Miguel Guimarães - President of the Portuguese Medical Association

Ricardo Batista Leite - Doctor and Member of Parliament

Adalberto Campos Fernandes - Associate Professor at Nova Medical School

Pedro Pita Barros - Nova SBE Health Economics & Management Knowledge Centre

06/04 - Teaching in the Digital Age

Education is fundamental to the development of societies and to economic growth. Just like many other dimensions of human life, education had to quickly adapt to our new reality, shifting towards e-learning methods. In this debate, we intend to reflect on the main consequences of this transformation (analysing different levels of education) and to discuss the future role of technology in the learning process.

Nuno Crato - Former Minister of Education

Maria Emília Santos - President of the National Education Council

Carlos Oliveira - Executive President of José Neves Foundation

Ana Balcão Reis - Nova SBE Economics of Education Knowledge Centre

07/04 - Green Cities of the Future

Climate change and the quality of life in urban areas have been widely discussed issues over the past decade. The current pandemic has shown how crucial it is to change the way we interact with the environment, especially regarding the management of our resources within cities. In this debate, we intend to discuss the most recent developments concerning these topics, analysing specific cases according to environmental, economic and political perspectives.

Joana Pinto Balsemão - City Councilor of the Environment of Cascais

Filipe Duarte Santos - Associate Professor at FCUL

Luísa Maria Neves Salgueiro - President of the Matosinhos Municipality

Sofia Franco - Nova SBE Environmental Economics Knowledge Centre

08/04 - Competing in a Global World

Competition policy is considered one of the main contributing factors to the well-functioning of markets and, consequently, to the promotion of innovation and welfare. The European Union has particularly restrictive competition policies concerning its internal market, which is seen by some as a barrier to the competitiveness of European firms on a global scale. In this debate, we intend to discuss the future of European policies concerning competition, innovation and digitalization, and how they might affect the block’s competitivenes in a world increasingly polarized between the United States and by China.

Paulo Portas - Former Vice-Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister

Carlos Moedas - Former European Commissioner

Margarida Matos Rosa - President of the Competition Authority

João Azevedo - Economist at the European Commission - DG Competition

09/04 - The Portuguese EU Presidency and the European Recovery Plan

History has shown that, in critical moments such as the one we are currently living in, the European project is able to overcome the adversities and mover towards greater integration. Therefore, the present crisis represents an opportunity to reflect on the main issues of the Union and on the solutions that will support the development of more resilient Europe. In this debate, we intend to discuss the priorities of the Portuguese presidency of the Council of the European Union, giving particular relevance to the implementation of the recovery plan and its consequences.

Pedro Siza Vieira - Minister for the Economy and Digital Transition

Miguel Faria e Castro - Economist of the Federal Reserve of St. Louis

João César das Neves - Full Professor at Católica Lisbon

João Amador - Associate-Director of the Department of Studies at Bank of Portugal